Mental Exercises
I can’t stress enough the importance of mental exercises. They are extremely important for everyone, they are not just for those of you who have your permit to carry. Mental exercises help bridge the gap between what you practice on the range and the type of situation you might find yourself in. You can run through them anytime, when you are driving, at work, or going about your daily life.
Mental exercises are not a form of paranoia or a desire to engage in a lethal encounter, they are a form of preparedness. If you look at the statistics, there were over 1.3 million violent crimes in the United States in 2010. Unfortunately, violence is not going away, which is why we train and have a plan in place to keep us safe.
If you prepare mentally for a given situation, you will increase your chances of reacting accordingly without panicking or freezing like a deer looking into headlights. There is no time to freeze or panic during an encounter, seconds count!
A person needs 3-5 seconds of warning time to defend themselves, that is not much time.
With that being said, lets get back to mental exercises. Here are some examples:
What if you are in a restaurant eating and an armed robbery occurs and your young child says “Mom/Dad get your gun.”?
What if you hear someone in your house in the middle of the night?
What if you see someone else being attacked?
What if you come home after work and find your house unsecured (garage door open, front or back door open, etc)?
What if you’re doorbell rings and the solicitor at the door forces their way into your home?
What if someone is following you in public?
You will also need to think about your options if you find yourself in a situation. Do you have enough warning time to avoid, escape, or are you faced with defending yourself. Are you going to deploy a weapon? What type of force is reasonable for the circumstances? Are family and / or friends present? What are your escape routes? What are you going to do in the aftermath?
Do you remember what to do in the aftermath? Check out our resources section on the Use of Deadly Force https://bluelinedefense.com/resources/use-of-force-in-minnesota
Those are just some examples. Use your imagination and think about the places you go on a daily basis. Are you mentally prepared for something bad to happen to you? Do you feel comfortable with how you may react?
Have you ever thought about expanding your training more beyond a Permit to Carry? Blue Line Defense offeres some follow up classes that will sharpen your handgun skills. Check out our Defensive Handgun 1 and Defensive Handgun 2.
Author: Terry Pretzloff