A Point Loma self-defense teacher shared her methods with the nation last week under the bright spotlights of television. Tracie Arlington, owner of PlayItSafe, appeared on the “Dr. Phil Show” Nov. 12 to provide self-defense tips and techniques. “It was really a neat experience and he was amazingly professional,” Arlington said. “We never took any [extra] takes. I was shocked.” After watching an episode of the talk show about Jaycee Dugard, the California woman who was abducted in 1991 and disappeared for 18 years before emerging again, Arlington e-mailed the show to praise one of Dr. Phil’s points. Two months later, the show responded and asked Arlington if she would like to participate in a self-defense segment. “I thought it was a joke when I opened it up,” Arlington said. Arlington demonstrated her techniques in two segments during the episode, entitled “Abducted by a Predator.” One of the two children who was part of the demonstration was seven-year-old karate champion and La Jolla resident Kaelyn Whaley, who Arlington taught at USA Freestyle Martial Arts in Point Loma. In addition to owning PlayItSafe, which teaches defense strategies to women and children, Arlington is the lead instructor. She teaches self-defense classes every day at martial arts studios around the county and to private groups, including Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, after-school programs and women’s groups. “Prevention is everything,” Arlington said. “Ninety percent of self-defense is awareness — knowing who a stranger is, what kinds of lures they can use on children and where to go if they’re in a bad situation. There are a lot of things that kids just don’t understand.” Arlington recommends that all children take some form of self-defense class. She said it is the best way to prepare for a potential attack. “Learning self-defense techniques gets them mentally prepared on how to react,” Arlington said. “If they’re being grabbed and they can’t run away, they just know to drop to the ground and have a self-defense temper tantrum. They don’t have to think about it, they just react.” The technique Arlington and Whaley demonstrated on the show had Whaley drop to the ground and throw a self-defense temper tantrum involving screaming and kicking. Arlington calls this action going “Chihuahua crazy.” “If people don’t know what to do before it happens, they’ll freeze,” Arlington said. “If they freeze, they don’t scream.” Arlington said a child’s biggest weapon is their voice. She said a person being attacked also has a secret weapon (confidence) and a strong weapon (legs, for kicking and running). Arlington said family members are key to teaching a child self-defense. She said even with classes, parents should regularly role play a dangerous situation with their kids so that children know what to do. “Unless we role play with our kids on what to do if they’re approached by a stranger or grabbed,” Arlington said, “they’re not going to know what to do if it happens.” Among general tips to avoid abduction, Arlington suggests always looking back over the shoulder when walking by someone, walking against traffic and keeping at least a four arms-length distance between yourself and a stranger. Her advice goes beyond the old standard of not talking to strangers. “We’ve been telling our kids don’t talk to strangers,” Arlington said. “But we need to tell them don’t even stop and listen because strangers can easily approach a child if they are not keeping a distance.” For more information on PlayItSafe or for general safety tips, visit www.playitsafedefense.com. USA Freestyle Martial Arts is located at 3125 “A” Rosecrans St. in Point Loma and can be found on the Internet at www.dragonkick.com.
