Did you know that self defence can be taught from the day your child is born? Self defence is not fancy kicks and punch combinations. Rather, it is based on self belief and personal value, which gives every single person of every age, size and race the strength to fight for their own safety when in danger. This means you can – and should! – start teaching your child self defence from the day they are born.
How? It’s the small but significant things, like reinforcing how valuable they are to you, how they are entitled to assert themselves, that they should never wander off alone, how they should always be honest with you about situations that happen to them, and the fact they should ALWAYS listen to their instincts❗️
You should teach, reinforce and practice these basics to a greater degree every single day as your child learns and grows. As they become more mature and capable, you can then start to develop additional self defence habits all children should have, such as noting the who, what, when, where, why and how of all the places you go and people you meet. As your child grows further, you can begin to teach an ever-increasing range of specific physical self defence techniques 🥋
The actual physical self defence techniques and fighting skills only come into play when these basics have failed and danger is imminent! Here, the same techniques apply to every person of every size: fight back, and fight back with all you’ve got. Go for the most vulnerable targets, like the eyes. It doesn’t matter how small a finger is, if it goes into an attackers eye it is going to hurt 😣
If your children practice basic safety protocols and act in ways that minimise or avoid potentially dangerous situations from a young age, they will be more likely to adopt these habits instinctively and habitually through childhood, teenage years and adulthood. Just as in our courses, your parenting should aim to instil these principles in children as early as possible in their innocent little lives 🤗
It is all about empowering children with self defence skills to avoid dangerous situations in the first place, so they never actually need to fight off a predator. In the event this fails, which is unlikely but possible, then your child is empowered with knowledge and skills to react and have a fighting chance to escape 💪🏼
Similarly, if you act in a way that de-escalates potentially violent situations, and leave your ego at the door when confronted by aggressors, your child will see and emulate this behaviour. This is the best form of self defence your child can ever learn, as you are teaching risk avoidance and risk management implicitly. This will mean your child is less likely to ever find themselves in crisis management, when actual physical fighting and defence is required.
Big or small, all children deserve the right to defend themselves and, in this crazy world we live in, it is our duty as parents to parents to facilitate this skill set for the little ones we love. Because one child is too many, and it is never too early for a child to learn they are important and worth protecting 👊🏼
Comments