Here Are 15 Self-Defense Tips Parents Told Their Kids, Which They'll Never Forget
Growing up, many people learn about this universal self-defense trick with your keys: If you feel unsafe, you're supposed to hold the keys between your fingers and strike an assailant at the opportune moment.
Though it's sad that most children, and especially girls, learn this at a young age, we can't ignore that this move can be life-saving. So, we asked the BuzzFeed Community to share self-defense tips they grew up with, and I've never heard of some of these before:
1."Take your thumbnail and sink it in their eye socket. Gross and possibly traumatizing, but you’re better off in therapy than a morgue."
– Scrump
2."Did you know that a girl's best friend back in the late 1880's was the hatpin? The ladies would poke harassers with the hatpins. Personally, I think we need to bring hatpins back into deadly fashion. I wear them!"
– zfiledh
3."If they grab you from behind, use your heel to kick them as hard as you can in the shin."
4."My mum always said: If you can’t fight back, scratch them as much at you can and get their DNA in your fingernails! Something I’ll always remember!"
5."Personally, I have pepper spray."
– bbgirl35
6."If a man grabs your wrists, you can break free by thrusting your wrist against their thumb. There's a really good chance this will make him let go because holding on with your hand in that position is extremely painful."
7."Don't forget to S.I.N.G., an acronym for four vulnerable areas including the solar plexus, in-step, nose, and groin."
8."The elbow only requires 11lbs of pressure to break. If they've grabbed you with their arm straight and outstretched, try to pivot, then use your forearm against the BACK of their elbow with as much momentum as you can. If you do this on the front of the elbow it just bends the arm, but the back, as hard as you can, can break their arm."
9."My dad told me to hit them in the nose with an open palm driving upwards if possible."
10."I have a whole mess of keys on a lanyard, ready to swing at someone like a motherf**ker."
– Jazzap
11."My car keys include a corkscrew, just in case."
– LenaGH
12."Punch them in the throat."
13."If they come up behind you, stomp on the top of their foot as hard as you can, and ram your elbow backward. This can buy you some time to get away."
14."You don't punch with the keys, you take them down their face."
15.And finally, the best defensive tactic/preventative measure for our society: "Teach your child about consent and their bodies early. My son is 5 and knows that no one should touch his body without consent. He also knows that before touching (including hugging) friends, he needs to ask."
– kimr49
