Dr.Ruthless: Methods & Philosophy

Fear into Fire!

"For now it appears that the perilous journey was a labor not of attainment but of reattainment, not discovery but rediscovery. The godly powers sought and dangerously won are revealed to have been within the heart of the hero all the time." —Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces

A Return To The Primal Heart of Self Defense

Take a good look at the woman to the right. Try to feel her stance, the way she's hunkered down inside herself, into the low slung architecture of her hips and base. Look at the fierce determination and set of her face; her absolute readiness to engage and do what it takes to protect her young. Defend herself.

If any of this feels even vaguely familiar or stirs something deep ... that's a really great start! Because she is you, or rather an ancestral part of you. This capacity for competent, aggressive, even deadly, self defense is innate. Womanly. As old as the womb and the brain itself. Born in the fires of love, fury and primal survival instincts.

Yet for many women today, this ancient muscle and might has been lost to modern life, buried beneath fear and the rubble of socialization, hidden under the cammo of our Cover Girl veneer, the digital beeps that swarm our world, usurping our senses.

It's a dangerous disconnect.

Here's the deal: To be safe and self-possessed, this power needs to be unearthed and restored to maximum capacity, fired back into our loins and limbs, our sex and our souls. It's a power that must be realized from the inside out, a knowing to be kept aglow in our hearts, on at all times.

Returning to this source, plugging back into what we once knew and possessed in full is central to my message and methods... and it's the key to unleashing your full Savage Beauty.  

Once you recognize your place in this lineage and realize that YOU could be a dangerous creature—and not just feel like the endangered one—the journey to becoming battle-ready is a matter of instruction and clearing the path. Here's what you'll need, and need to do, to get your mojo primed, pumped and back online:

Get Your Moves On!

Typically, attacks against women happen at very close range. Phone booth range. Hot breath on your face range. Tight quarters call for explosive, instinctive skills. Here are the basics of what you'll need:

  • Practical Moves that capitalize on our lower bodies and base of power—our hips and legs.
  • Uncomplicated, gross motor skills. A small but efficient and reliable arsenal of techniques that can be used from standing, sitting and lying down (rape specific) positions and that range in application from low-level to life threatening attacks.
  • The ability to effectively utilize weapons of opportunity and at the very least basic knowledge and familiarity with conventional weapons.
  • The ability to size up, exploit and use your physical surroundings to your advantage—from places to hide, to hard and pointy things to crash an attacker onto.
  • Breathing techniques that enable and maximize focus and control.
  • Guts. A cultivated "spirit of entering." The skill and will to enter and engage, to blast through and not recoil or retreat when attack is imminent and there's no other way out.

Harness the Power of Fear & E-motions

Emotions are a vital source of power for women. By tapping into this reservoir and harnessing its juice, we can boost our physical defenses and super-size our fighting heart. When combined with the charge of adrenaline, this energy—be it terror, fury, or our very craving for life—can transform petite women into formidable fighters. But to make these emotions work in your defense, here's what YOU need to get a handle on:

  • Appreciate the power and double agency of fear. Fear can be savior and saboteur; it can enfeeble AND empower. What this depends on is... YOU!  Learn to interpret fear's signals as your trigger to act, to mobilize action-- not inaction. This is its purpose: to rally your defenses, switch your SURVIVAL engines On.
  • Fear's other job is to release a potent adrenaline-fueled cocktail into your bloodstream, prepping your body for flight (escape) or fight (battle), gifting you with incredible strength and speed that you can then capitalize on.
  • Know this: adrenaline ALSO produces shakes, dry mouth, rapid heart rate, tunnel vision, loss of fine / complex motor control, possible loss of bowels—but hey, who cares? —and loss of cognitive abilities. Precisely why you should stick to core gross motor skills! With this cocktail pumping through your veins, pain becomes meaningless; anticoagulants slow down bleeding, helping you fight your way to safety. Good stuff!
  • Find the stable center-of-gravity within your emotion and attach to that. Let it empower and fuel your fight. Don't let it  overwhelm you or devolve into panic or physical flailing. The secret? Collect yourself. Focus. Breathe!
  • Self defense is elemental. It calls for Fire & Ice. If pinned or you cannot immediately move, stay COOL on the surface, building momentum underneath, gathering your charge like a tropical storm until it's time to erupt, unleash, hose down your attacker.
  • When it's time to unleash... Ready. Aim. Fire! Be like a bullet, supremely directed. Not like a firecracker dispersing energy in all directions at once.
  • Turn Your Fear Into Fire! Once fear has ushered into motion the neurological changes that prep us for action, the fear must burn away into the flame of another more appropriate emotion: Primal Rage. Focus and aim this into the HEART of your attacker. If it is to escape, go through him to safety. If we must counter attack, this fury is the unsuspecting wolverine at his throat.
  • One Caveat: Do not let the power of your emotion get ahead of your technique. E-motion and technique must work together as ONE.

Clear Your Head & Your Heart

To be the baddest you can be, shed excess baggage from your psyche! To stay focused on the EXTERNAL threat, free yourself from internal obstacles, doubts, inhibitions or conflicts that could bog you down, split your attention or cause paralysis when all systems must be "Go!" (It's like plumbing: to go full blast, or ANY blast, the pipes need  to be clear of crud and residue that obstruct the force.) Here are common encumbrances that MUST be overcome, attended to, or flushed out of your mind.

  • KO your inner muggers! Vanquish the voices of doubt/ can't/ shouldn't that could spring from your psyche and ambush you in The Moment of Truth causing you to vacillate or freeze when seconds count.
  • Reconcile spiritual and moral conflict around the use of aggressive force. Clear your conscience. Otherwise this division of heart and mind will stifle your fighting spirit or create a state of "cognitive dissonance" impeding your ability to go full-blast, be whole-hearted or possibly SURVIVE!
  • New motto: Harmony... or Else! Personally, I don't even kill bugs or spiders; I escort them out of the house, prayerfully cupped in hand. I abhor violence. Yet we MUST embrace the totality of our prismatic female nature, our myriad potentials—from high and mighty to down and dirty. Hold these words dear: "Nothing human is foreign to me."
  • Cultural "nice lady"conditioning is exploited by criminals, predators and abusers. Undo it! The more you're beholden to traditional behaviors of femininity—or New Age views of the "all nurturing, do-no-harming" feminine principle—the more at risk you become. Inquire within and reject all limitations.
  • Internalized beliefs and myths can become realities, so purge myths of incompetence / fragility / non-aggression from your psyche. Be realistic about your abilities, YES, but throw out the trash!
  • Renegotiate with fear: OVERCOME THE FEAR OF INJURY! 
  • If you suffer traumatic stress from past assaults or events, make it a priority to attend to, integrate and resolve this. Free-floating anxiety, emotional "triggers" and demons from the past  embedded in the psyche can effect behavior and responses to danger in the present. 

Cultivate the Female Warrior Mindset

Look again at our prehistoric woman. It's unmistakable: her mind is set; her will, committed—so much so that it dissolves all trace of fear and hesitation. In her mind, the battle has already begun. YOU too must be prepared to engage the full-force of the warrior spirit, the utter willingness to do what it takes. Here's a closer look at what this entails:

  • This mindset is more than "mind." It's a total state of being, a radical shift in consciousness. In effect YOU become the predator not prey. It's the ultimate Reversal.
  • Battle ready is a state-of-being centered in the present. In the context of self defense, it all happens NOW! Now is the only time that matters. Be there!
  • Being fearless implies a lessening, a minus. Being fearsome involves adding something in. Embrace fearsome. Go toward the MORE. Cultivate its shocking potential.
  • Here's the deal: Nobody is ready for a wolverine slapped onto their mug! Learn to seize the moment. Take charge—literally. Step up and bring it!
  • Battles are often won in the will. Decide in advance where you draw the line. What is worth fighting for? What is non-negotiable?
  • Pacifism can only be a truly meaningful choice if born of strength not fear or wishful thinking and you are willing to do what may be unthinkable—including the taking or losing of life. There is no escaping the reality that purposeful violence is sometimes necessary.
  • Remember—this isn't new. It's ancient. Old. Some part of you knows how to do this. Find it. Respect it. Learn to bring it to bear.