Self Preservation Starter Guide
Women, specifically mothers, can we talk for a moment?
Can you defend yourself? Do you know how? Do you know what to do and when? Do you know the signs of an impending attack? Do you know how to fight back, especially if you have kids with you? Do you know your options and the various tools available to you and the legality of them in your state?
If you answered no to any of those questions, I highly encourage you to lean in for a moment.
I know this is a heavy and complicated subject. I know it is heavy and there are many layers to unpack. I know there is trauma and fear and all of that is completely valid. I understand because I had some of my own and it took me a really long time to work through it, to even get to the point where I was comfortable acknowledging that I needed to be more proactive with my self-defense strategies.
But let me tell you, once I got there and I started learning and owning it, I highly regret waiting so long.
Hear me out: it is not my goal to get women to carry firearms. I don't ever want anyone to feel pressure to do something they don't want to do or aren't comfortable doing. All I want to do is dispel fear, add to the conversation, and bring awareness to proactive defense. This means staying on guard and being armed with the KNOWLEDGE and the TOOLS that you need to defend yourself and better even, to prevent anything from escalating to the point that you need to defend yourself. What most women don’t realize is that they have options and they can take their time to learn and get comfortable but in order for that to happen, you must start somewhere.
Violence, evil and danger are all around us. So much so that we cannot and should not let it control our lives. That being said, to be a good steward of our bodies and lives, we should work to take somewhat calculated risks, listen to the Holy Spirit about where (and when) we should go, and arm ourselves with the tools we need in the event that we would need to preserve life.
Yes, I said preserve life. Preserve your life, your child's life, someone who is in danger around you- we aim to preserve life. Despite the popular narrative pushed by certain groups of people, those of us with good intentions, who take the proper precautions are not ignorant with our tools, we aren't looking to take life.
I am not asking you to answer any of these questions, I simply want to ask you to start thinking about these questions and to answer them honestly.
I just encourage you to not ignore this subject anymore because you don't want to think about it or because you're not sure how to approach the subject. Regardless of if you're new to it or if you want to know how to take care of yourself but are adamant you don't want to carry- those aren't reasons to stay away.
I'm here to support you wherever you're at, with whatever you need. I've asked so many questions and I've had all the fears, I get it. I'm happy to point you in the direction of incredible women who have so many resources and an abundance of information to answer any question or ease any fear you may have. To get you started I’ve put together an entire list of accounts and posts that will give you awesome information that will inspire you to dig deeper and take your self preservation into your own hands.
My hope for you is that this guide will help dispel fears that you may have, show you solutions to the problems you’ve come up with in your mind that may be holding you back, show you how important it is to take this seriously and give you ideas and options. Don’t put this off until something to happens to make you take your life and the lives of your family seriously. I know that sounds harsh, but the stories and the stats support that statement and its validity, do something now to help prevent something serious from happening later and if it can’t be prevented, at least you’ll have the tools and knowledge to fight for your life and the lives of those you love and the lives of the innocent around you.
I remember when I first went to learn more, I was so overwhelmed and I didn’t know where to start. I didn’t know who to follow or who had good information and once I did find someone I didn’t know half of what they were talking about even meant and for someone reason that felt embarrassing to me. It slowed my journey down. That and there was just so much content I didn’t know what to read or watch first and what actually applied to me. That’s why I put together this compilation of posts that are actually helpful and will get you started off on the right foot. Content for women, from women- a lot of mothers and then younger females and college students who walk the same paths we do everyday. I’ve included a variety of women from different demographics and walks of life so that you can hopefully find a perspective that you can relate with and find your community of people to support you. I’ve found so much love and support and kindness in this community because we all started somewhere, we’re all continuously learning and we all have the same common goal of preserving life. That being said, if you have any questions while you’re going through the guides, I’m happy to help as best I can and if I can’t, I’ll point you in the direction of a woman or resource who can help you. There is no shame and you are so welcome here.
Below you can find the categories I’ve split these guides up into and why it’s important to read about that specifically. Scroll down, find where you need to start and click the guide. It’ll take you to Instagram where you can read through the content now or click the button and read it later.
Safety: Mindset
Safety, Self Preservation, Self Reliance, Self Defense - whatever you want to call it- it all starts with your mindset.
It starts with knowing your why. Not sure what that is? Start here and learn the stats, the risks and why you should care about your personal safety & take it into your own hands. I want to note that part of self-preservation is thinking forward about possible situations. Remember when all of those people got stuck on the freeway in Virginia during that snow storm? I’m not just talking about violent situations, I’m also talking about dangerous situations that are out of your control. You should be prepared for all kinds of things to come up. This means having medical supplies, extra batteries and chargers, food and blankets in your car. You should always carry some kind of knife, flashlight *other than your phone*, tourniquet, and extra ammo with your EDC. If you’re not carrying a firearm, having extra pepper gel or whatever your preferred method is in your bag or easily accessible in your vehicle. Have backups and know how to use all of your equipment. Check the state of your supplies, update them and practice regularly.
Safety 101
The whole point of self-preservation is to preserve life.
You don’t want to have to get to the point where you have to defend yourself. You want to preserve your life and the lives around you. This starts with situational awareness. It means not relying on others to defend you. It means choosing to take precautions and take calculated risks. It means not ignoring the fact that danger can be everywhere and listening to your intuition. It means being prepared and taking “stranger danger” seriously- even as adults. It means taking steps to stay safe and choosing to make these things happen before an incident occurs. Have a plan, practice it, prep and be on guard. Know the signs of an impending attack and the factors that increase your chances of being a target and then avoid making those choices and if you must, be especially on guard and prepared to defend yourself if need be. Prepped ≠ Paranoid.
Safety: Beginners
New to firearms?
Start here to learn more. Even if you don’t want to carry, read through these posts so that you know what to do if you encounter a firearm. This is basic safety information that everyone should know.
Follow:
Mom Prep
As mothers, a huge part of our responsibility to preserve life is assigned to caring for & protecting our kids.
This means training them to be situationally aware & knowing how to prepare them for any situation, especially if you were to have to react to a dangerous situation. Interested in learning more? Start here.
Check out these resources as well, shared and/or created by @ms.amber.elle of Field Craft Survival.
Eddie Eagle
4 Rules of Gun Safety
Concealed Carry Tips
Approaching concealed carrying can feel very stressful.
How will I do it with kids? Is it comfortable? What will I wear? What gun do I carry? How will I know when and how to use it? What holster do I get? What belt do I choose? Why is it printing so bad? Do I have to carry a gun or do I have other options? What are the laws? These are all questions I’ve had and these accounts I’m about to share with you have answered every single one and more. They’ve taught me, given me resources and empowered me to have the confidence I needed to take my self-reliance into my own hands and make the active choice to preserve life everyday. This is a great place to start if you’re beginning your CC journey or if you’re not even fully there yet but have questions and want to understand more why someone would even consider carrying- especially mothers. These are a few of my favorite accounts to follow and they’ll answer your most pressing questions.
Want more? Listen in to this week’s episode of the Solidarity Podcast "Can You Defend Yourself?" with Self Reliance Coach and Firearms Instructor @caseylynnetactics. Whether you're a beginner that has never thought twice about self defense or someone who is struggling to grasp why they need to be prepared, this is the episode for you!