Stress & Resilience

Gershon Ben Keren

Mon 26th Dec 2022

In last week’s article I wrote about the short-term effects of dealing with violence e.g., experiencing the parasympathetic nervous system as it brings the body back to stasis etc. In this article I want to look at the longer-term effects of dealing with a violent encounter, including PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Many people first became aware of PTSD, from the news coverage, concerning the mental health issues that veterans returned from Afghanistan and the Gulf Wars with. Whilst it has always been understood that there is a psychological toll from combat e.g., the “shell shock” that many soldiers experienced...Click To Read More

Recovering From A Fight

Gershon Ben Keren

Mon 19th Dec 2022

It is very hard to put into words, and describe, how it feels to be violently victimized, whether an actual physical assault occurs, or whether a threat of violence/intimidation is used. Often those who have experienced some form of assault, will go into a form of denial, because they find that their experience(s) contradict their previously held world view, concerning violence and personal safety. It is extremely common for survivors of violent attacks, to change their narratives of what happened, in order to protect themselves from a complete psychic breakdown, where they must live perpetually on edge, in a state...Click To Read More

Open Palm Strikes & Closed Fist Punching

Gershon Ben Keren

Mon 12th Dec 2022

Debates and discussions in Krav Maga and Reality-Based Self-Defense communities are often binary in nature, with one side arguing that “their way” is the only/right way, and the other side is wrong etc. Rarely do opposing groups want all parties to be right, and see acknowledgment of the value of the other side’s point of view, as demonstrating a weakness in theirs. The problem with the adoption of “absolute positions” is that they ignore context. Arguing that you should only do something, or never do something, fails to acknowledge that context is important and that violent incidents can contain many...Click To Read More

Cross Body Bags & Safety

Gershon Ben Keren

Mon 5th Dec 2022

On October 12th, 2000, a small boat approached the USS Cole, which was anchored in the port of Aden (Yemen) as part of a routine fuel stop. As it approached the port side, the two men navigating it smiled and saluted to some of the sailors on board. It was interpreted as a friendly gesture. Once it was close enough, the two suicide bombers detonated the explosives that the boat was carrying, ripping a 40-foot wide hole in the Cole’s hull, close to the waterline. The blast killed 17 service men and injured 40 other crew members. It...Click To Read More