Preventing Sexual Assault

By Great Wall Defense an Online  Personal Defense Store

No matter how many laws there are on the books or how many time Joe Biden announces the fact that sexual assault is a crime (everyone knows that), a woman must always be extra cautious and on guard. To someone that is determined to commit sexual assault, the laws on the books and announcements by the Vice President make it far more enticing to those doing the crime. Prevention requires much more than self-defense classes and scare tactics to remind us how these things happen on TV and on the movie screen. A woman needs practical reminders to avoid attacks around the home, at school, or even at work on the job. These sexual predators are active opportunists who if given the chance will try to take advantage of whatever weakness and given the right moment in time, make a victim out of you too. Personal Safety takes effort and insight from those who have not been as well prepared as you will be. Though it may involve some extra effort on your part, it is worthwhile, even critical to consider and examine your personal safety level based on these tips. Here are a few.

Here are some tips to help you to stay safer around the places you occupy, and what to do if things go wrong.

1. When a female's name is listed (by itself) in a public place such as on your mailbox compartment or a master listing in front of an apartment or condo community. This announces to the world that a single woman lives there, and most likely alone. If your name must be displayed in public, such as on community mailboxes, intercom listings, or telephone listings, opt to use your initials instead. You may even wish to go so far as to have mail and bills delivered with only your first initial and your last name. You might even opt for a post office box.

2. Get your things together and organized before you leave a building, so you’re not perceived by the criminal element as struggling with your purse, packages, or grocery bags. Have your keys out and ready before you reach your car when you’re in a lonely or dark parking garage. For example, if you’re doing laundry away from home and you are going to be alone, do what you have to do to get things going, then leave. If you must attend to your things, purchase a high decibel personal alarm or a good quality pepper spray in case you are confronted. But if you decide to leave the premises to avoid this scenario, take the opportunity to find a safe haven (Starbuck's, library, a grocery store, etc.) nearby while the clothes are being washed or dried. Then after some time has passed, simply return to move things along or if you are done, just pick up and go home. It is far better to risk your clothes being stolen than risking your life. Don’t linger anywhere for long periods of time in situations that of necessity cause you to be there all alone. Don't be a sitting duck.

3. Never let anyone know that you are all alone, even if you’re on the telephone, at the door, nor alluding to it to anyone while on the town day or night.store at night. Feel free to call out to an imaginary “Fred and or John” telling them that you’re on your way, or do the same during a fake phone call. Perhaps adding a determined statement telling them them how you see them waiting for you outside. If you’re walking down the street, wave at the windows of your imaginary friends. When you're home alone, never open your door to anyone unless it’s someone you know really well, or if it's a scheduled service call that you have been expecting. Even then, use good judgment and discernment if anything seems odd to you. Better safe than sorry they say.

4. Don’t let people know that you had to take public transit to get to a class, an event, or other outing. If you do, you are setting yourself up for someone to notice a pattern of behavior. Once they know that they can lay in wait for you in possibly some places where you are vulnerable. It is never wise to accept a ride home from someone you have just met. Just say no thanks, and then proceed to tell them that someone is waiting for you. Remember that many women that let their guard down in times past, never reached home at all because of a bad decision on their part.

5. If you decide to physically resist an assault, it will be your one goal to physically incapacitate your attacker long enough for you to run off and seek help. This is not the time to seek revenge or take photos.  Keep in mind that you can and will be injured while you do this, and you’ll have to cause injury to the person attacking you, but it’s better than the other option.

6. If you have been the victim of a sexual assault, contact the police immediately. It can be tempting to discard clothing, bathe, or toss out evidence but don’t, because leaving yourself with evidence in tote can lead to arrest and prosecution of the suspect. Don’t even consider dealing with this yourself—the authorities can help you with counseling services, and you may need to be looked at and treated for possible diseases. Remember that it’s not your fault.

It’s very important for you to take these reminders seriously and not rely solely on common sense to provide all the help. Learn from others and get yourself some kind of non-lethal defense weapon to help you get away should someone grab or try to trap you.  Remember that criminals attack during the best opportunity which is when you are caught off guard or in a compromising situation. Don’t give them that opportunity, and you’ll keep yourself safe. Personal defense is a personal matter so do it for you.

Why Use Pepper Spray?

Many people would like to carry a self-defense product with them wherever they go, but often in many areas in this country, guns, knives, swords and many other self-defense weapons of a certain size and type are simply not a good choice by law. You could easily end up in jail, or be mistakenly fired upon by law enforcement in many jurisdictions. If you don't believe it, just try flashing one of these items around. These kinds of  defensive weapons are not legal to carry in public places because of their deadly potential. Yet the fact remains that teens, men, women, disabled ones and seniors will continue to need some form of effective self-defense these days. One of the best solutions is simply to carry the well known Pepper Shot Pepper Spray, a non-lethal highly effective self-defense product.

Pepper spray is very easy to find online and for the most part, something that nearly everyone can afford. It usually comes in a small canister that is contained within a small plastic casing or leather-like holster and can comfortably fit into any pocket, belt, jacket, purse, or backpack.

You can hide it in your makeup bag or pencil bag if you don’t want anyone to know that you’re carrying it. It’s also small enough to tuck into a small evening bag for when you go to the bar or nightclub. Keep it with you at all times, because attackers may not necessarily try to do so only in secluded places when you’re alone.

The pepper spray holder comes in an assortment of colors and sizes. You can choose from black, red, pink, or blue in either a leather holster or injection molded jacket. No one will ever know it’s pepper spray—they’ll simply think you’re carrying a cell phone or a flashlight. The leatherette model holster has a silver snap closure on the front, which provides additional protection from you accidentally spraying yourself.

The personal models of  pepper spray can be kept easily within reach, when you need to walk to your car or the transit late at night, or through any questionable part of town. The pepper spray holster has a handy key ring on it so you can attach it to your keys, your belt, or your pants buckle strap. The holster or holder is made from leatherette materials, and can be easily wiped clean with a cloth.

The Pepper Shot brand of  Pepper Spray is made from natural capsaicin pepper. It has a 10% dilution that is rated at 2 million Scoville heat units. It’s made with a finer grain than any of the other coarser grain pepper sprays, providing a better wallop and a better chance of escaping from your attacker.

Pepper spray works by you aiming the canister in the direction of your attacker’s face and eyes, and pressing the button. It will deliver a fine spray to their face. The pepper spray will swell up their mucous membranes, causing breathing difficulties, as well as a swelling up of the eyes, making them quickly close shut. This gives you the opportunity to escape.

The negative effects of pepper spray is that it can last up to forty-five minutes and may require some intervention to rid oneself of these painful effects. The primary benefit is that pepper defense is non-lethal and causes no lasting damage to the attacker, minimizing your legal liability should anything ever come up and you go to court.

There is also a locking actuator on the pepper spray so that you won’t accidentally spray it while it’s being transported in your purse or pocket.

For your personal safety, pepper spray can be one of the easiest yet most effective self-defense weapons for the price. It doesn’t take any time-consuming training or lengthy specialized instructions to read. There are a few cautions to be mindful of such as avoiding spraying it into the wind so that it doesn’t blow backward and disable you by accident. If you can spray a bottle of hair spray or perfume, you can spray your pepper spray for legal self-defense.