It maintains that fighting back mentally involves an understanding of the positive aspects of fear, reactions to fear, the importance of breathing and facing the attackers, and the utility of assertive and positive body language. Combined with these mental principals, verbal techniques are described, such as confident negative replies to casual questions by persons invading your personal space, verbal confrontation, the use of vulgar and commanding words, and roaring. Physical fighting is proposed only when one's life is threatened. Victims are told to hit the attacker first and strike to cause serious injury to such vital areas as the eyes, nose, throat and groin. The hands, elbows, knees, feet, head, and mouth provide personal weapons for countering an attack. Specific techniques for using these weapons are described and illustrated in photographs. Additional techniques for surviving knife and gun attacks, multiple attackers, and attempts at strangulation also are presented. The effectiveness of guns, knives, chemical mace, noise alarms, keys, and the Kubotan as self-defense weapons is evaluated. Finally, the crime victim is provided with guidelines for giving police an accurate description of the attacker and for taking and leaving behind physical evidence to aid in apprehension, prosecution, and conviction of the attacker.