Imagine you're walking through the parking lot to your car. It's late—9:32pm—and the hazy streetlights don't give off much light. You're pushing a cart full of groceries, trying to get home before your Tillamook chocolate ice cream melts, when arms clamp around your waist and wrench you from the cart.

Do you know what to do?

In 2005, the National Institute of Justice commissioned a report where researchers  examined cases of physical and sexual assaults made against women. The report discovered that those who resisted physically and verbally against their attackers significantly reduced the probability of serious injury.

In the alarming chance that you find yourself confronted with someone who might cause you harm, knowing how to defend yourself will give you the potential upper-hand and may buy you enough time to get away to safety. And, according to a study by a University of Oregon sociologist professor, women trained in self-defense find themselves more confident in their ability to confront unwanted attention.

Self defense opens up this source of freedom for women in an imperfect world. Building confidence in physical resistance skills allows women to feel more capable and more at peace when in potentially dangerous areas as they know the proper techniques to help fend off an attacker.

According to the study by University of Oregon, training classes can even teach women how to be “better able [at discerning] the warning signs of assault. They are clearer about their own desires in an interaction, and more willing to speak and act on their own behalf.”

Keeping yourself safe is a priority, and every women deserves to know the proper skills to defend herself if or when danger attacks. If you are interested in learning skills to protect yourself against assault, Continuing Education and Workforce Training is offering a class in Women's Self Defense that starts on September 12. Visit cetrain.isu.edu or call 208-282-3372 to register.