One of the many things that I am interested in and involved in is women’s self defense. I first took up the sport of martial arts when I moved to Connecticut in 2003. It was a great way to meet new people, learn new things and get some exercise in the process. What I didn’t expect to receive was a life-changing experience.
As a young girl, I grew up hearing many well-meaning cautions like “don’t talk to strangers,” “beware of bad men” and “don’t go out alone at night.”, ” Stay in groups – there’s safety in numbers.” I remember after college, when I was sharing a flat in San Francisco with my friend Sally, I used to barricade my bedroom door with furniture, to prevent an intruder from attacking me at night. Sally, on the other hand, had experienced a house fire when she was a young girl. She wanted all the passage ways clear so she could safely escape the building. We were an odd couple.
When I first went to New York City after graduating from college, I walked around the city expecting to be mugged. I packed my purse carefully, leaving out the special things that I didn’t want to lose. I imagine that my body language must have been a dead give away to the people around me. “She is scared.” Thankfully, nothing bad happened.
It took me until I was 40 years of age until I tackled that fear and began to learn some self-defense techniques and practice them until they became second nature (that’s on on-going goal!). I found my voice and learned to use it to create more power and energy in my movement. I learned to stand tall and look people in the eye. My posture is much more confident now, since I learned the defensive stance. I am a very different woman than the one that was cowering around the New York city streets some 20 years ago.
On February 14, 2009, my husband Byron and I tested for our black belts in Tae Kwon Do (the art of punching and kicking). We were granted the award on May of that year. (photo shown here was during my black belt test, demonstrating a self defense move with the help of my friend Dorien Boon van Ostade). After seven years of study and regular attendance, I had not only achieved this unexpected goal, but I had found a new passion: helping other women and girls find their voice and learn to defend themselves.
Find your voice and change your life
To that end, I invite all the women and girls who are reading this blog (and the people who really care about them) to join me on Saturday, June 26, 2010 from 2:00-4:00pm in Canton, Connecticut for an introductory women’s self defense workshop. If you live outside the CT area, then you should look up and visit the local martial arts school in your area. Take a few classes or sign up and become a full-fledged student.
Our Best for Women Self Defense Workshop is a community service project and is co-sponsored by Soroptimist International of Farmington Valley (of which I am an enthusiastic member. Learn more about this non-profit women’s service club at www.Soroptimist.org) and also sponsored by Yu’s Academy of Martial Arts with schools in Canton and Simsbury, Connecticut.
This special workshop will be taught by the women high belts at the school. The second half of the workshop, we will have volunteer males who will be padded up and will allow the women to practice their new techniques on them. It’s a whole different feel to use your self defense techniques on a human being versus a practice pad. Come experience this empowering feeling!
Here are the logistics of the event:
Women’s Self Defense Workshop
- When: June 26, 2010 Saturday
- Time: 2:00-4:00pm
- Where: Yu’s Academy of Martial Arts, 345 Albany Turnpike, Canton, CT Tele (860) 693-0025
- Who: Open to women and girls age 12 – 80 years young
- Dress: please wear comfortable clothing, such as sweat pants, yoga pants, t-shirt and socks. No shoes are allowed inside the school. No prior martial arts experience is necessary. It’s easy and fun. You’ll catch on quickly!
- Cost: Suggested donation per person is $10 per person. All proceeds go to service projects of Soroptimist International of Farmington Valley
- Download and post this FLYER_Best for Women Self Defense Workshop_June 26 2010
- To Reserve your spot call Kathleen Oyanadel at (860) 614-5676
Check out our new web site:
Peruse our photo gallery from past womens self defense workshops.
Watch the amazing video from Dr. Ruthless
Click on the image and watch our TV interview on Better Connecticut with anchors Kara Sundlun and Scott Haney. Kathleen Oyanadel and I demonstrated some basic self defense techniques. This video was filmed to promote a women’s self defense workshop we did last year.
Read the interesting blog article contributed by Soroptimist and Rotarian Dorien Boon van ostade about why parents should pay more attention to their daughter’s safety than the prom dress she wants to wear to the year end school party.
Please help me spread the word to other women and girls about the importance of learning to defend yourself. Every part of your body is potentially a weapon that can be used to PROTECT yourself. You must give yourself permission to be strong, powerful and fierce when the occasion calls for it.
Please leave your comments below and share some of your experience and views on the subject of self-defense.
Bree Gurin is a 65 year-old first-degree black belt practicing at Yu’s Academy of Martial Arts. Having experienced a violent attack by her ex-husband and rape by a family acquaintance, Bree was determined to never again be in a submissive, compromised position. She began her martial arts training at age 55 and was astounded at the emotional and physical empowerment she realized, which allowed her to make better choices both personally and professionally. Bree’s martial arts practice has become an essential component of her life, providing enrichment through the excellent friendships developed at Yu’s Academy and the satisfaction of consistently being presented with and surmounting new challenges.
Empowerment
onfidence are obvious to those around us and can discourage a would-be attacker from risking resistance or, even worse, retaliation.
