Attacked with a weapon!

He's attacked you with a weapon and, because of your outstanding training and skillful technique (or by sheer luck), you've managed to end up with the weapon...now what do you do?

The choices on the survey were:

1. Immediately use it [the weapon] to counterattack;
2. Threaten to use it and back up to gain distance;
3. Keep it and run away;
4. Throw it away as far as possible;
5. Other.

This survey stems from the questions we get when running students through the Level 3 class (now being modified into the Defending Against the Armed Attacker module).  This module deals with the armed attacker.  He could be your vengeful ex, a stalker or an armed rapist.   The module teaches you what to do when attacked by someone with a cord, a club, a knife or a handgun.

A central strategy of the course is to secure the weapon in a way that the attacker cannot use it against you.  Many of the techniques finish with the defender (you) ending up with the weapon that the attacker originally was going to use against you.

So what do you do next?

Here's what the general thinking is for those who took the survey:

27.2% = Threaten to use it and back up to gain distance
25.2% = Keep it and run away
17.5% = Other
16.5% = Immediately use it to counterattack
13.6% = Throw it away as far as possible

The bulk of the "Other" responses were based mostly around the classic response, "It depends".   These respondents offered that what they would do depended on where they were, whether there were multiple attackers, whether they could safely retreat, etc.

As mentioned above, this topic was spawned by student questions.  The actual use of weapons is covered in the newly developed women's self-defense module "Weapons for Women".  Look for it on the schedule of courses offered by certified instructors.