Self defense with a firearm. Are you ready?

  So, you want to carry a firearm for self defense?  OK. You did your research and took a firearm safety course. You purchased the firearm, ammunition, and holster appropriate for your needs.  You went to the range and practiced your shooting skills. You even went as far as to work on and practice some tactical shooting skills. Now you’re completely prepared to defend yourself, right?….Wellllllll…. not necessarily.

When faced with the threat of deadly force, a firearm is an excellent self defense tool. Live fire training at the range is invaluable for building your shooting accuracy. However, too many people consider their firearm the “end all, be all” solution for any violent situation they encounter. The tendency is to practice shooting at distances of  15-25 feet. A firearm is a great equalizer when there is a lethal disparity of force.  If your attacker affords you the necessary time and distance, drawing your firearm and engaging the threat accurately is indeed an effective solution.

What about a deadly force encounter at close quarters? 7 feet or less. Are you going to have the time and distance necessary to draw your firearm from concealment and engage accurately with it?…. without some additional training, probably not. Your firearm is one tool in your self defense tool box. Even if you can shoot accurately at distance with it, what about other close quarter tools? Did you practice drawing from concealment? Did you practice shooting from a retention position? Did you practice retaining your firearm from an attacker determined to to take it from you? What if you don’t have time to draw you firearm before you attacker is on top of you? Did you practice striking effectively? Self defense in a deadly force encounter is a complex problem that requires a tool box with more than one option. Simply relying on a firearm to solve all your self defense woes is neither prudent nor effective.  This is where learning simple, real world, combatives techniques comes in to play.  Basic combatives proficiency gives you more options, not to mention advantages such as:

•  A shorter reaction time and rapid deployment (its a lot faster to “Throw dem hands” than fumble for you gun)
•  Isolation and retention your firearm
•  Create the time and distance needed to deploy and engage threats with your firearm. 

With a high enough degree of proficiency combatives can be used in place of a firearm.  Additionally, Serious and regular practice of  real world combatives techniques in an established program with qualified instructors is a key factor in developing your survival mindset. Gun or no gun, the will to survive is arguably your greatest asset in a life or death situation. So.. maybe you need to augment your  firearms training? No worries. Or maybe you haven’t started your training yet? Even better. CDI’s Defensive pistol Course and  Practical Self defense classes are specifically designed to teach our students the skills and mindset necessary to survive a close quarters encounter. Checkout our course offerings and sign up today!  https://www.trainingatcdi.com/courses/ Self Defense with a firearm at close quarters is far more than having proficient shooting skills. You might need to defend yourself faster than you can draw your firearm. You will definitely need to protect and retain your firearm once it’s drawn.  And you will most certainly need to create the necessary time and distance to deploy your firearm. At CDI we sum it up by saying…. “You gotta fight to get to your gun.”