Weapons, Life or Death

[Bahala Na]

There have been a lot of threads opened on topics like guns and knives to carry for self-defense, and it makes me wonder...
As many replies as have been posted, how many out there have:
A.) Been in a weapon encounter
B.) Had to use a weapon to defend yourself
or
C.) Ever spent any real time preparing for the kind of mental/emotional side of what it would take to defend yourself using lethal force.

The reaon I'm asking this isn't to collect a bunch of war stories or to hear people brag about nearly killing other people. It is because, in my own experience, I've been involved in four edged weapon encounters and one firearm encounter, and each one of them had a radical impact on the way I saw my training. It even effected the way I look at empty hand encounters, and I want to know how many others have had the same experience, and what it did for/to them. I have always felt like the most neglected area of training for real streetfighting is the mental and emotional preparation. By that, I mean if we don't take a realistic look at what your mind and body are doing under the insane pressure of a life threatening encounter, then no amount of physical preparation is going to be as effective as it should. All opinions are welcomed, here, so let me know what you all think.
Mike

[Underdog]

I was involved in several "Skirmishes", and from all of them I've learned alot.

As far as preparation goes, I think that, regarding gun training I've done pretty much all. For what I know I must be the only italian that has taken 160 Mcg of clenbutherol at once in order to get trembles and shakes resembling fight or flight sydrome (I did a IPSC field course with my heart at 185 Bm), I shot drunk, stoned, In water, rain, mud, snow, with 42° temp, blindfolded, with restrained limbs. I've used extensively Autogen Training and visualisation (very effective).

I've been In armed encounters three times: On one I beated to the draw my opponent while he was searching for his gun in his car glove compartement. On the second I broke the front teeth of a guy with the barrel of my glock while he was drawing his knife; on third I held at gunpoint a guy that was treathening a friend of mine because of a woman (a bitch, I must say...).

I have multiple scars on my right forearm because of a fellow sardinian guy that tried to slash me while I was in the army; other than that I have used the knife offensively a number of times, but every time the other guy (or guys) was disarmed.

If you are intersted in something particular, let me know.