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When I was 21, living on my own in a single wide mobile home, someone tried to break in at 3 am.

I did not have any self-defense weapons in the house. First he tried the windows, all of which were closed, then he brazenly knocked on the front door and told me to let him in. When I refused, he became enraged and broke a window in my door.

I did not have any self-defense training.

I had just dialed 911 but hearing the window break, I panicked, dropped the phone and ran out the back door to let my chained up German Shepherd loose. She ran around the house barking, the intruder yelled, jumped off the porch and ran for his car, which he had parked next door in a vacant lot. Panic is the result of not having a self-defense mentality.

I was lucky this time.

I had not prepared myself to ever have to protect myself from human predators, but fortunately my people friendly dog knew this was a situation she had to diffuse. That was probably the only time I have actually been in shock, shaking uncontrollably afterward.

It left me angry towards all men because of the strength and power that they could choose to use to try to invade a woman's sanctuary and do bodily harm.

I was suddenly afraid to live alone.

I wish now I had prepared a plan of self-defense beforehand. Not having seen the perpetrator's face, it left me wondering about every man I saw.

It had to have been someone who knew I lived alone. But who? Every man was a potential target of my fear turned to wrath.

If I had only had some self-defense training and weapons, I could have possibly gotten him arrested and would never have wondered who it was, wouldn't have had to spend years in fear of hearing that terrible “LET ME IN” again and could have begun trusting men once again.

There were actions I could have taken to possibly insure a positive outcome in this situation that I was not even aware of at the time.

Instead, I did several things wrong:1.

I was naive and had not planned what I would do if anyone ever tried to break in or attack me.

I thought that only happened to “pretty” women.

The self-defense action in this case would have been to prepare myself mentally for the possibility.
2.

I didn't finish the call to 911.

I didn't realize that to get through the door, the intruder would have also had to break through the screen, reach in and unlock the door, giving me plenty of time to make sure the police were on their way.

The self-defense action here would have been to stay on the line with the operator until help arrived.

Also, I should have known how secure my doors and windows were.
3.

I should not have run out the back door to let my German Shepherd loose. She loved people and I had no idea if she would protect me or not. Another person could have easily been waiting outside the back door since the dog was a ways from the house. Staying in the house would have been the appropriate self-defense action along with staying on the phone. 4.

The only self-defense weapon in the house was a knife.

It may have stopped him if he had gotten in, but chances are he would have over powered me, taken it away and possibly used it on me. A stun gun or pepper spray would have been a better self-defense weapon, causing an immediate debilitating effect on any intruder. Having some kind of non-lethal weapon or alarm system on hand or in place would have been the self-defense action that was missing. That action alone could have given me the confidence to know that if the intruder actually did get in my house, he would have regretted it.

I could have had a personal alarm system in place on the windows, a motion alert alarm or a door guard alarm set to scare off anyone touching the door knob. Any of these self-defenses could have saved me years of fear, given me confidence and security and might possibly have helped catch the perpetrator. Women today have access to non-lethal self-defense weapons which are affordable. Pepper sprays and stun guns pack a huge punch and are legal in almost all cities and states, but check your local and state laws before purchasing. A woman should be able to live alone and feel safe without owning a lethal gun.

There are some keys to self-defense, which are:a. Plan ahead and even have back-up plans. b. Have a non-lethal self-defense weapon easily accessible and know how to use it. c.

If you have a dog and live alone, keep the dog inside your home at night, andd. Practice possible scenarios until you are comfortable with the fact that IF someone WERE to break into your home while you were there, HE would be the sorry one, not you!
Karleen Lindsey is an advocate for women's safety without the use of lethal weapons. To receive 20% off first purchase over $10, check out her products to keep women safe and especially be safe at home , using coupon code 3254

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