Traditional vs. New Age Self DefenseThe alternative self defense product, stun gun, requires a bit of introduction. A lot of people when they first hear
term “stun gun”, they actually think of little gadget featured in many science fiction movies. In fact, self defense technology has come a long way.
For a long time, if one wanted to protect themselves, they would have to spend years of time practicing martial arts or self defense techniques. In fact, it is still ultimate way of self defense. If one can master skill, it becomes built into your body. You can use it anytime, anywhere and nobody can take it away from you. However, downside is that it takes a lot of discipline and time to master.
Later, firearm became a popular way of self protection. Guns are no doubt a very effective method of protection if one is properly trained to aim and shoot accurately, and if one is able to face permanent consequences of their split-second decision to take a life. If one is unable to shoot with accuracy, a determined assailant can continue to attack. Unfortunately, a fatal shot is only guarantee to stop an assailant with a gun. A life or death decision must be made in matter of an instance while knowing consequences of your actions cannot be reversed.
Non-lethal self defense weapons can be very useful in stopping an assailant while not causing permanent damage. These too have limitations. The personal alarm might be effective if someone was around to hear it. Even so, most of us have grown accustomed to loud alarms and rarely do we act upon them. Pepper spray is another option for non-lethal self-defense. Pepper spray can be very effective if attacker gets very close and you happen to have pepper spray aimed to their eyes. The close proximity and limited target area make pepper spray less than ideal.
Our very last option would be a stun gun. A common myth about stun gun is that when held against an attacker, attacker will fall to ground immediately. This is not how stun gun works. When a stun gun touches both probes against assailant’s body for ½ second, it will startle assailant, giving him some pain, muscular contraction and shock. For 1-2 seconds, it will cause muscle spasms and a dazed mental state. For 3-5 seconds, it will cause loss of balance and muscle control, total mental confusion and disorientation, leaving him dazed. (Under no conditions can you suffer a charge back to your own body, even if assailant touches you while you are using a stun gun on him.) As you can see, it will take 3-5 seconds for a stun gun to knock down assailant. To be honest, 3-5 seconds is a very long time in a desperate situation. Now, you may ask, why would I need a stun gun then? Well, would you rather have something that would work but take a little time or nothing but your bare hands? Would you want a device that you can use with very little training? Would you rather have a mechanism that is non-lethal or one that causes death? Do you want protection without a license or waiting period?
