You just had a close call - you were waiting for the bus afterstaying at work late.  The neighborhood gets a little roughafter hours and a suspicious character approached you.  Beforethings could escalate, a handful of people joined you at thestop.  Still, the situation was enough for you to seriouslyconsider how you would react to being attacked.  Is it time forself-defense classes?  It could be.

Self-defense classes are a common way for people to learn how tohandle a situation where they become a victim to violence of onesort or another.  There are several different types ofself-defense classes available - from martial arts to simpleself-defense classes, and it can be confusing trying to choosethe one that is right for you.

Here are a few tips for you, to help choose a self-defense classthat will deliver the knowledge you need to protect yourself:

- Investigate the different programs - If you don't have thetime to spend learning a martial arts discipline, then maybe aweekend course that offers you techniques and other escapestrategies will work for you.  You don't necessarily need tophysically defeat an opponent - you merely need to provideyourself an opportunity to escape safely.

- Good courses don't tell you what to do - Instead, good selfdefense courses provide you with simple techniques, informationon the options you have when a situation arises, and also teachyou how to analyze the type of danger you are in.  Everysituation is different, and you should not be fooled by thoseclasses that give you the absolute answer for every situation.

- Find out the background of the instructor - Your instructorshould have extensive experience in their field of self-defense. Discover if they have a self-defense philosophy that matcheswhat you are trying to achieve.  Ask if they mind if you sit inon a class or two to get a feel for the program.  Then askwhatever questions you want of the program and the instructor.Find out as much information as you can before you make adecision on your self-defense class.

- It's not always about physical defense - You should find acourse that offers you information on awareness of yoursurroundings, verbal confrontations, de-escalating aconfrontation as well as physical techniques.  The mostsuccessful self-defense classes for the average person encompassseveral different areas, and do not focus solely on physicaldefense.

- Get referrals - As with anything you are about to commit asignificant amount of time and money into, you want to do asmuch research as you can.  Talk to others who have takenself-defense classes and find out what they liked and what theydidn't like.  You can also talk to your local YMCA or YWCA,local colleges, and the area rape crisis center.  They willoften run classes or be able to offer you the names of peoplewho can provide solid self-defense skills.

Take your time to find the right self-defense class.  Determinewhat your needs are, and then begin your search from there.Martial arts may be the right way for you to go, or you mightjust want an evening course over a couple night to help you leanto defend yourself.

Any course you take should provide you with more than just aphysical way out of a situation.  Most courses will teach youhow to recognize a situation and react as quickly as possible toavoid any danger altogether.  In doing this, it gives you afeeling of power and confidence when you have to wait at the busstop - next time it might be alone.