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What If ...
It is always sensible to think about what you would do if you were
physically attacked. Are you mentally capable of fighting back, giving
him a good hiding and rendering him physically incapable of ever doing
it again; or would you play along and be co-operative to avoid any
further harm?
Attacks and rapes outside by an unknown person are still very rare.
In most cases you will probably end up hurt a lot less if you try and diffuse
the situation, as opposed to meeting violence with violence.
Only you can decide whether to fight back or play dead, depending
on the individual circumstances you might find yourself in. The best
thing for one person in one instance, could be the worst thing for
someone else in other circumstances.
Shout !!!
If you find yourself face to face with a potential attacker, let him
know what he's up against: Shout and scream as loud as you can. This
is also worth doing even if there is no-one else nearby, as it
probably will unnerve your attacker and frighten him off.
Alarm
If you haven't got the guts to shout, invest in one of the little
personal alarms, which are fortunately becoming so popular. There are
aerosol sirens small enough to fit in a pocket, but loud enough to
deafen anybody. I personally prefer the battery operated type, looking
like a 'yuppie' pager and operated by pulling a string out of the
side. They last a lot longer, and are more reliable. If you have any
doubts on their efficiency, do you think a bloke would try it on with
someone whilst a siren was blasting out of her pocket, pendant or
belt. No, I don't think he would either.
Weapons
As you probably know, there is no way you are allowed to carry a
personal armoury of flick knives, knuckle-dusters and sub-machine guns
in your handbag. When I give talks to women's groups on this subject,
this is the bit of the law they always complain about. Well the answer
is obvious. If you were allowed to carry offensive weapons, so is the
six foot muscle-man. What does always surprise me is that most women
don't realise that they've already got an armoury of weapons in their
bag. A person being attacked has every right to defend themselves with
reasonable force and with any means at their disposal. That includes
keys, rings and hairspray, to name only a few. Having your car or
house keys ready in your hand not only stops you being vulnerable
whilst searching in a bottomless handbag, they could even stop an
attacker.
Buying Time
The important point to stress, is that whilst he's clutching his
nose, regretting ever starting the whole thing, you don't take the
opportunity to lay another one on him! What you are doing is buying
time to hitch your skirt up, and run like heck!
With a bit of common sense and planning, you can deter an attacker
and not be a victim of this still rare crime.
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