Today, a big focus is put on preventing bullying. Bullying in schools is destroying kid’s lives, creating internal, fundamental, emotional issues, and helps to form a flawed and broken identity for the rest of one’s life. Without belittling prevention in any way (prevention is just as, if not more important than treatment/action), but with this piece I want to put a stronger emphasis on defense. Yes, prevention efforts to stop physical abuse on a child or teen is essential, but all that prevention goes out the window when the lunch table bully has a good choke hold around you or your child’s neck. What would happen if the teen or child getting bullied knew how to defend himself against that physical and emotional threat?
Let’s take a look at another scenario. The 12th grade bully approaches a teen, grabs him/her around the neck and shoves him into a locker. In a confident move the teen brakes free of the hold and is able to gain access to a teacher or friend. This will most assuredly end up with the bully defeated, and this teen that would have walked away from this situation broken and hurt, now walks away with confidence and a feeling of self worth.
Although for a person who has been bullied all his life has most likely accepted the fate that this will be a permanent theme throughout his life, learning how to defend yourself as described in the situation above is a REALITY. I know because I have seen it happen in my own classes. Every day people sweat and push themselves, learning the skills necessary to turn a sticky situation into a positive one. Prevention won’t prevent everything, and when faced with a physical threat the tools to learn how to defend yourself are right in your backyard. Don’t believe me? Come in to Masada and let me show you. Don’t continue being a victim!
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