From girls. |. From schools. |. From teenagers. |. From adult women. |. From older women
Self defence stories from girls
Two 12 year old girls were followed home from school by a man in a car. He asked the girls questions, and tried to get them to come closer to the car. The girls knew that recently other girls in the area had been trailed by a man in a car, and their instincts told them this man was not to be trusted. One of the girls called out the registration number of the car and a description of the man while the other girl wrote this information down. As soon as the man saw what they were doing he took off in his car. The police used the registration number to catch him.
An 11 year old girl told the self defence teacher of a family member who was sexually abusing her. The abuser ended up in court, and was convicted. The abuse stopped.
A 7 year old girl walking through Hagley Park was confronted by a flasher. She walked right up to him and kicked him hard in his genitals, then ran for help. The man was arrested.
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Girls’ self defence stories from schools
A pupil who did this course last year was able to speak assertively and carry out a safety plan yesterday when approached by a youth on the way home.
A girl who was taught self defence last year was able to support her mother to leave an abusive partner. They made a plan and left when the partner was out at night. The girl and her mother now live in another town.
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Self defence stories from teenagers
A 16 year old girl was at a party at a friend’s house when she was followed and ‘cornered’ by a guy. She turned and kicked him. He left her alone after that.
A 19 year old was out one evening in Wellington. She headed down the street to join friends at a bar when she was grabbed from behind by a man. She peeled his little finger back and kicked him in the shins to make him release his grip. Then she turned and followed up with a punch, before taking off to safety. She had done a self defence course 7 years earlier.
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Self defence stories from adult women
A small woman in her fifties was in a lift when she was grabbed by a man. She broke his grip then kicked him to the knee to make him fall to the ground so that he couldn’t attack her again. As soon as she could leave the lift she notified building security.
A woman whose husband was violent after drinking attended a self defence course. The next few times he came home drunk from the pub and tried to grab her, she blocked the grabs. He couldn’t get a hold on her. His attacks always started with grabbing her and when this no longer worked his pattern of behaviour was interrupted. He stopped his attacks.
A woman woke up one night to find two intruders in her room, one wielding a knife and the other with a bottle. She was outraged, and sat up and yelled at the men to drop their weapons and GET OUT NOW! They did!
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Self defence stories from older women
An elderly woman was sitting at a dinner party with friends. The man sitting beside her put his hand on her knee and started to fondle her leg. She was not impressed — and immediately picked up her fork and whacked it into the back of his hand. He yelped and took his hand away. Everyone at the table saw what happened. The man was embarrassed by being caught out, and the woman was proud of her response.
An older woman moved into a unit after she was widowed. One evening she was doing the ironing in the kitchen. The window beside the kitchen to the outside was open, and she was astonished to see a large male hand come in the window and start to unlock the door from the inside. She unplugged her iron, strode across the kitchen, and held the burning-hot iron against the back of his hand. There was a cry of pain from outside the door, the hand disappeared, and she heard footsteps running away. Two days later she noticed one of her neighbours had an iron-shaped burn on the back of his hand. She informed the police and he was dealt with.
An elderly woman had attended the first session of a self defence course, and had learned how to use her voice. One evening an intruder burst into her house. She leapt to her feet, jumped into her self defence stance, and yelled “Wrong house, mate, I’m a self defence expert!” The intruder turned and fled.
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