Learning self defense is not just about the physical benefits that you can get. Yes, there are some great physical things that will change within your body, but you should focus on more than just that. In fact, there are several mental health benefits that will come with learning martial arts, self defense, and fighting in any capacity. If you have never thought about this, perhaps the following will guide you to understanding the importance of learning the steps necessary to defend yourself, and others.
The Confidence Boost
Regardless of which martial art you want to learn, regardless of the classes that you take, you will gain confidence. People that know how to defend themselves don’t walk around scared. They know that if something comes at them, they can calmly
disarm, and avoid being beaten. Now, that doesn’t mean that self defense is going to protect you from bullets in a gun fight, but it can give you confidence to move forward when others are in a panic. Staying calm when nefarious characters are trying to hurt you is tough, but when you know that you have skills to defend yourself, you will see things differently. While everyone else panics around you, imagine going through slow motion, and being able to fight back with relative ease.
Learn To Manage Stress
Alongside the benefit of staying calm, and getting a boost in your confidence, self defense classes can help you manage stress. Regardless of which option you decide to learn, martial arts are famous for teaching how to manage stress in all situations. There’s nothing more stressful than being attacked, or dealing with a situation where you have to use your fists and feet as weapons. When those things occur, you can either panic or you can be calm. Managing stress doesn’t just factor into the moments where you need to fight, but rather bleeds into your work life, home life, and relationships. Reducing stress, fighting depression, improving mental health, and assisting your daily routine are all benefits that come with this type of learning process.
Fighting Depression and Other Mental Health Disorders
Learning martial arts does not replace having to use antidepressants, or any other medications. That is not what this means. However, research studies have shown that individuals that train in self defense classes, manage mental health disorders a bit easier. In some instances, individuals were able to reduce or completely replace their medications as a result of improvements in their self-esteem, and mental health. Now, this doesn’t mean that every single person will get this benefit, but there are some that do in fact get those results over time. One thing is for certain in this benefit, those that study martial arts, and learn how to defend themselves, improve their mental health over time, since it’s a life-long process of learning.