This feature appeared in Combat magazine's column The Negotiator in March 2010. It has been edited for website convenience.
Dealing with fear
By Aran Dharmeratnam
Many people look to the martial arts as a way to handle fear, control fear or overcome fear. Systema the Russian martial art is certainly one approach to training that openly addresses the subject of fear. Systema’s fear control strategies are powerful. They help the practitioner to realise the ways in which fear can penetrate the human psyche and the ways in which fear can affect a person’s ability to move and ability to make decisions. Now I know we have touched on fear control in other features within The Negotiator column, but I want to address this area again and cover it from a different angle. Fear can be a persistent opponent who can come in many guises and many forms; so the concept followed in Systema is that fear should be handled from many different angles. When we are able to understand fear on deeper levels, when we discover some of the ways it tries to creep in and when we connect with methods of countering fear, it can have a positive and profound effect not only within our training but within many other areas of our lives. What follows now are some insights into fear control.
Just a messenger: While we explore the subject of fear, we must also be careful that we don’t turn fear into some kind of monster. Yes fear can be destructive. Yes fear can sometimes create an unnecessary prison around a person. And fear can sometimes cause the type of stress that fatigues a person and disrupts their state of balance. But, there is something to be considered about fear or at least one type of fear... On a primal level, there is a feeling that occurs within the body, when something isn’t right. This feeling is our intuitive ability kicking in. Its telling us that there could be danger. We often pick up information on very subtle levels. After all, our senses have an immense capacity to gather information at an extremely fast rate. And so this feeling that we sometimes call fear may at times just be a signal. But the question is, once a person receives this signal, will they act upon it in the appropriate way? Will they even pick up this signal. Its for this reason why so much of the training in Systema is geared at helping the person to understand more about themselves. The more one understands the different feelings the body picks up, the easier it becomes to respond. Sometimes the signal we pick up is telling the person to be alert and step up their awareness level. At other times, the signal may be telling the person that they need to move. For example a person may have wondered into an environment where there is some potential for trouble and they need to move or choose a different route to their destination to avoid nearby danger.
Understand the body; know the mind: If the body senses some danger and our intuitive abilities help us to avoid trouble then that’s good. However, we must sometimes be careful that the signals we pick up are based on information gathered by the senses, or they are based on our ability to rationally assess a situation. You see, there are other moments when the feeling of fear can be unnecessarily disrupting us. This is often the case when the fear is generated by the imagination or because the mind is working over time. If the mind is too active, it means there is no equilibrium between mind and body. We need to make sure that the mind does not create problems or worries that simply create unnecessary distress.
So how does Systema help the person to keep mind and body in harmony? One strategy to bring the mind and body to a point where they can work together involves the use training drills that put the person in the moment. Such drills put the person in a situation where there is no time for complex analysis. Instead the person must simply respond to the events at hand; to the reality in front of them, free from a hypothetical future anticipated by a running mind. There are many different ways of helping the person connect with the moment. Everything from avoidance drills to work against pushes or strikes can be utilised. The fact is a large part of a Systema class is designed to put the person in the moment and help them flow with the unpredictable situations. Also be aware that the type of fear generated by the imagination can also appear more readily at times when the person is fatigued or energy levels are low. That’s why some of the exercises in this Russia art are so focused on energising the body and maintaining a positive mind set. Optimism blocks fear. Now lets look at some Systema’s other ways of dealing with fear…
Fear recognition: Sometimes in training or in life, a person really isn’t sure what is causing the fear. So in training, we try to explore some of the specific types of fear that sometimes emerge within the realms of physical confrontation. Now interestingly enough, some of the fears may relate to close quarter training; however once these fears are handled in the class, people find that it has a positive impact on other areas of their life. So let’s look at a few of the fears that can be detected in training:
The fear of falling: This is a fear that can really make a person tense up when they are working against grabs. It is the fear of falling that also leads to so many injures in everyday life when a person slips over and ends tensing up through fear of hitting the floor. Systema contains an endless supply of movement options. There is a freedom of movement within this art, that helps a person to connect with various ways of falling. When a person internalises the art of falling, they can free the body of a great deal of tension. Even outside of the training, this type of person often conveys relaxed body movement and a relaxed demeanour.
Fear of being trapped This is a fear that is often revealed during groundwork, when one practitioner is pinned to the floor by their training partner. Some people find themselves getting very tense and scared when an opponent has pinned them to the floor using body weight. That’s why some martial artists struggle when a physical confrontation ends up on the ground, because they are not used to the pressure that comes from an opponent who uses their bodyweight to control and pin. Whenever I teach ladies self defence, I will often show the female practitioners how to escape or survive ground based scenarios. This can really help the practitioner to reduce some of the fear and gain more confidence in their survival abilities. Of course, its good if all practitioners of self defence training develop their knowledge on how to survive ground based skirmishes. The other thing that can help a person deal with the fear of being trapped is by understanding and learning how to escape from various grabs and holds. And as movement skills improve, and as the person develops greater control over their body, confidence will increase.
Fear of freezing up Many times I have heard people say that if they were ever faced with an aggressive situation, their concern would be that they would freeze up under pressure. This is why we spend time in training, helping students getting comfortable with the wide range of threat based scenarios. We also help the person to deal with unpredictable attacks as opposed to simply working against prearranged moves. There are many other ways to help students gain confidence so that they won’t freeze up. For instance, some of the drills are designed to develop qualities as opposed to set physical moves. These qualities include: spontaneity, adaptability, awareness, and determination. The notion of freezing up can also be reduced by helping the person to understand some of the different ways aggressive situations can manifest. Students of self defence should understand some of the ways predatory aggressors use dialogue and body language to intimidate and startle the people they target. So we could say that the way to reduce the fear of freezing up or prevent the fear that actually causes the person to freeze up is by making sure that training is well rounded. Preparation must be diverse.
Other ways to remove fear during training: While training must help a person to work under pressure and keep going when faced with adversity; there is something else that can lower fear levels within the training room. If the training is made interesting and enjoyable, people will relax more and automatically some fear will leave. If the atmosphere in the training is tense or too gung ho; it can be off putting to some people and it can make them feel uncomfortable.
We have touched on a few more insights about fear. Recently, someone who read my manual on self protection, asked if I would consider writing a book on fear control. It’s a big subject to cover and a book may be an easier format in which to explore this subject. At the same time, the subject of fear is best dealt with in the training.
To find out more about London Systema training with Aran: Email: aran@globalkick.com
Tel: 07939 678 356