The fear of getting hit

[pknox]

Originally posted by Michael Billings
1. Controlling the flinch response (having a partner, whom you trust to not actually hit you), put you up against a wall and throw slow punches or kicks without making contact. They need to focus their strikes a couple of inches from your face and 1" from your body (at first.) Over a period of weeks or months, they speed up. The goal? Keep your eyes open, don't move your head. Don't worry, you are probably not the only one flinching away in class, if this is the issue for you. You will get through this in a couple of weeks probably. I know my old TKD teacher had me against a wall throwing full power kicks and stikes for several classes before I started being able to trust I would not be hit unless he wanted to hit me.

Michael:

Very good advice. BTW, there is a good example of your #1 in Zen and the Martial Arts by Joe Hyams involving Hapkido master Bong Soo Han.

 

[KenpoTess]

I have never had fear of getting hit.. think it resulted from growing up with a nasty brother who took great pleasure in attacking me from every angle of life.. ~!
Also the lifestyle I grew up in was one of being very active.. sailing.. skiing.. and always getting banged up one way or another.. so Pain was never an issue.. I can tolerate it just fine..
'The Queen of Pain'

 

[pknox]

.. so Pain was never an issue.. I can tolerate it just fine.. [/B]

Interesting. So in a way, you were conditioned not to respond to pain due to your lifestyle activities.

I wonder if with beginners it is more an issue of fear of pain, or fear of injury? Most of us who have trained for a while, if we have partners we trust, don't worry too much about the latter, but I really can't remember what it was like on day one. For a lot of people, it may also be fear of embarrasment more than anything else.

 

[rmcrobertson]

"I will have no man in my boat who is not afraid of a whale."

Sincerely,
Starbuck

I liked the argument that fear of embarassment probably supersedes everything else, for many of us.

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by pknox
Interesting. So in a way, you were conditioned not to respond to pain due to your lifestyle activities.

I wonder if with beginners it is more an issue of fear of pain, or fear of injury? Most of us who have trained for a while, if we have partners we trust, don't worry too much about the latter, but I really can't remember what it was like on day one. For a lot of people, it may also be fear of embarrasment more than anything else.

I think so.. when sailing if I got injured.. which was common racing a 19 ft 'Lightning' class 3 crew boat.. clocked on the head with the boom .. pinched body parts in various ways.. or skiing.. taking a tumble .. hitting an icy mogul and going helter skelter.. in the flurry of activity there wasnt time to stop and feel the pain.. you went on or you lost the race or whatever you were doing..
I remember my first day of Karate. .I was doing backfist drills with a 6'5" guy who stopped suddenly saying.. "shouldn't that hurt" Looking at my hand and seeing the back of it raised a good 2" in swelling.. replying.. I guess it should at that.. *hand was totally shattered and I didn't even feel it.. came back to class the next day with my arm in a cast.. ~!!

If people fear pain.. injury.. it's going to take them in it's grasp and they will fear being hit .. IMHO

 

[pknox]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
If people fear pain.. injury.. it's going to take them in it's grasp and they will fear being hit .. IMHO

Well said. And as would said earlier in the thread, people who constantly worry about getting hit seem to get hit more often. I think the same is true with people who are constantly afraid of being injured. Maybe their fear is causing them to tense up, and a good fighter will react to it. A healthy sense of caution is a great idea, and in reality a really nice human instinct as it tends to contribute to self-preservation. However, if you are constantly walking on pins and needles, it's hard to be very effective at all.

 

[pknox]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
I think so.. when sailing if I got injured.. which was common racing a 19 ft 'Lightning' class 3 crew boat.. clocked on the head with the boom .. pinched body parts in various ways.. or skiing.. taking a tumble .. hitting an icy mogul and going helter skelter.. in the flurry of activity there wasnt time to stop and feel the pain.. you went on or you lost the race or whatever you were doing..

I think that's quite true. When one of my children falls (I mean goes a little bump, not a serious injury), I've noticed that if I (or someone else) doesn't make a big deal of it, they rarely cry...however, if someone makes a fuss, basically expecting the child to go nuts, they're happy to oblige. Pain is a natural response to stimuli, and as long as all of the nerves are OK, can never be completely eradicated. Response to pain, however, seems to be a different animal, and if my kids are any indication, is a conditioned response at least partially based on what society perceives as "correct."

KenpoTess-

I wonder if things would have been different for you if you weren't as active as a child, and picked up these activities at say, 20? My guess is that the "de-conditioning process" would probably take a lot longer in that case, right?

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by pknox
Well said. And as would said earlier in the thread, people who constantly worry about getting hit seem to get hit more often. I think the same is true with people who are constantly afraid of being injured. Maybe their fear is causing them to tense up, and a good fighter will react to it. A healthy sense of caution is a great idea, and in reality a really nice human instinct as it tends to contribute to self-preservation. However, if you are constantly walking on pins and needles, it's hard to be very effective at all.

People need to relax... and unfortunately lifestyles of today's world... most don't have any idea how to let themselves just go.. The abundance of headaches, back problems et al are 99% tension.. and what is tension from.. but stress.. and stress is generally relating to worry.. worry is fear of something .. it affects them throughout their daily lives and bringing it to the studio or a reality confrontation.. they will get injured.. they will hesitate .. and that could mean their lives..


Rambling

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by pknox


KenpoTess-

I wonder if things would have been different for you if you weren't as active as a child, and picked up these activities at say, 20? My guess is that the "de-conditioning process" would probably take a lot longer in that case, right?

I think you're right.. the de-conditioning process most likely would of taken quite a bit longer.. though deep inside I believe we all have a different level of pain tolerance built into our genetic structure.. it's not just a gender thing.. some females can't tolerate any kind of pain.. nor can some males.. I had 3 children .. all over 9# without pain killers.. I think I was blessed with some natural high dose endorphin factor *G*

 

[pknox]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
Rambling

Not at all. I think that stress relief is what draws many people to the arts -- and I'm not just talking the Tai Chi folks either. After a bad day, hitting the heavy bag feels even better than normal. The renewed confidence and increased self-esteem that comes with hard training definitely gets rid of a bunch of stress too.

Bruce Lee often talked about relaxing fully in a technique in order to be more effective. I truly believe the same lesson applies to life as well.

 

[pknox]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
I had 3 children .. all over 9# without pain killers.. I think I was blessed with some natural high dose endorphin factor *G*

:asian:

Ouch! I will never ever whine about pain in your presence. I know that beats sparring, running, or whatever to all hell.

 

[Ceicei]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
I have never had fear of getting hit.. think it resulted from growing up with a nasty brother who took great pleasure in attacking me from every angle of life.. ~!
Also the lifestyle I grew up in was one of being very active.. sailing.. skiing.. and always getting banged up one way or another.. so Pain was never an issue.. I can tolerate it just fine..
'The Queen of Pain'

Same here. I have a brother and his friends who do that (attack). I also have childhood neighbors who are boys (at the time, there were no girls my age around) and we did rough-n-tumble things.
As a result. I've always been athletic and involved with sports.

Pain doesn't bother me. In fact, some accuse me of *enjoying* pain (no, I don't). I just have a high pain tolerance threshhold and am aware pain can and do happen. I just try to minimize the occurance of pain whenever possible.

- Ceicei

 

[pknox]

Originally posted by Ceicei
I just have a high pain tolerance threshhold and am aware pain can and do happen. I just try to minimize the occurance of pain whenever possible.

True. And most martial arts raise that tolerance considerably - especially if they have a grappling component. After I had been studying judo for a while, I realized how much less susceptible to pain I had become. It is really kind of a gradual process, and you kind of notice it eventually -- a gee, that technique used to work on me, but now it doesn't kind of thing. Whether or not you believe that "90% of fights end up on the ground" line, I think an increased pain tolerance is a real reason to study it.

 

[theletch1]

it affects them throughout their daily lives and bringing it to the studio or a reality confrontation.. they will get injured.. they will hesitate .. and that could mean their lives..

Tess, very good points. I may bring my stress to the dojo but have found recently that the doorway to the mat seems to have little "stress" magnets in it that seem to draw all the stress out of me. No matter what is going on outside the dojo my "cup is emptied" when I step onto the mat without really even thinking about it. I'm not sure why, but I think I subconsciously view pain differently in the dojo. A good shot to the jaw with a training partner gets a totally different psychological response than getting hit in the jaw with the door of my work truck. Am I making any sense? The human mind is a really odd beast and the mind is so much harder to train than the body. I guess all I can do is to keep working on it.

Just rambling, too.:asian:

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by pknox
:asian:

Ouch! I will never ever whine about pain in your presence. I know that beats sparring, running, or whatever to all hell.

hahaa yes that it does ~!!


Grappling.. Oh I love it.. *G* we train in Samurai Jiu-jitsu too.. Ground fighting is great for just about whatever ails ya


Ceicei.. hehee you're my kinda girl

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by theletch1
Tess, very good points. I may bring my stress to the dojo but have found recently that the doorway to the mat seems to have little "stress" magnets in it that seem to draw all the stress out of me. No matter what is going on outside the dojo my "cup is emptied" when I step onto the mat without really even thinking about it. I'm not sure why, but I think I subconsciously view pain differently in the dojo. A good shot to the jaw with a training partner gets a totally different psychological response than getting hit in the jaw with the door of my work truck. Am I making any sense? The human mind is a really odd beast and the mind is so much harder to train than the body. I guess all I can do is to keep working on it.

Just rambling, too.:asian:

Letch, the older we get I think we're able to ditch the stressors at the doorway.. Time does have that effect on me I know.. and I'm not just speaking of dropping stress before I go into the studio.. but dropping it right back in it's own wicked lap.. 10 yrs ago. .I was totally stressed out.. constantly fretting about one thing or another.. making myself sick physically and emotionally.. When suddenly I realized this.. that no matter how many things may hit us in the face in life.. if we stop to rely on drugs,, booze.. or any other crutch.. we will be stagnated forever in that uneasy lifestyle.. so I got out of it.. I booted Stress in the groin and you'll not see me worrying about things I can't change.. and if they are changeable.. Let me at em *G*

 

[pknox]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
When suddenly I realized this.. that no matter how many things may hit us in the face in life.. if we stop to rely on drugs,, booze.. or any other crutch.. we will be stagnated forever in that uneasy lifestyle.. so I got out of it.. I booted Stress in the groin and you'll not see me worrying about things I can't change.. and if they are changeable.. Let me at em *G*

And I don't know what the dictionary says, but that, my friends, is the definition of a healthy attitude.

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by pknox
And I don't know what the dictionary says, but that, my friends, is the definition of a healthy attitude.

*beams happily* Thank you..

 

[Ceicei]

Originally posted by KenpoTess
I had 3 children .. all over 9# without pain killers.. I think I was blessed with some natural high dose endorphin factor *G*

LOL!!!

I have four children and had them without pain killers too. However, they weren't as big as yours. The labor process in giving birth don't last long--the longest at 5 hours and the shortest at 50 minutes.

You and I have got to meet sometimes!! I don't meet too many females like us.

- Ceicei

 

[KenpoTess]

Originally posted by Ceicei
LOL!!!

I have four children and had them without pain killers too. However, they weren't as big as yours. The labor process in giving birth don't last long--the longest at 5 hours and the shortest at 50 minutes.

You and I have got to meet sometimes!! I don't meet too many females like us.

- Ceicei

^5's ~!! WOohoo.. we are a breed apart indeed my friend *G* I would love to meet you sometime~!!