There are a few myths that have circulated regarding using keys for self defence.  (I keep mine on a flashlight, but that’s for another post.) 
The main one I’ve heard is that you should position a key between each of your fingers so that, should you be accosted by a violent assailant, you could punch or swipe your fist into their face or other soft target.
The downsides are, first, that those keys will likely fold into your hand and cut you as badly as you were hoping to damage your attacker.  
Secondly…

There are two good reasons not to wear headphones - awareness and hearing protection.   

First, the hearing.  The in-ear buds are worse than the larger headphones, and they both can be easily damage middle-ear function.  This threat increases with volume and distortion, and many small devices produce plenty of both.  They have very cheap amplifiers which happily distort, and the MP3 files which they play are inherently low quality.  Please be kind to your ears. 

Perhaps more importantly is the awareness…

Making a Habit of Personal Safety 

You may have noticed after our Self Defense class together that your awareness was heightened; you were more aware of your surroundings, alert to potential dangers, and sensitive to issues related to safety. 

Please take a moment and notice: are you still that aware?  Or are you taking those old shortcuts again, leaving doors and windows unlocked and telling yourself, "Nothing will happen this time"?  Don't feel bad.  Complacency is a default state. But that doesn't mean…

Please take a moment to program your cellular phone with an emergency contact and name it ICE.

Emergency responders will often check the phones of victims who cannot communicate for this entry.

Whether someone's been in a car accident, a violent incident, or has had any other medical emergency,

this will allow responders to contact someone for you with a minimum of delay.  I recommend programming  

the cell, home and business numbers into the ICE location to ensure fastest contact. 

Most of us are familiar with the international distress signal, SOS.  In Morse code this is represented by three dots, three dashes and three dots, or "  . . . - - -  . . .  ".  You may have heard this pattern in movies (such as Titanic) or even commercials (SOS pads).  But very few of us carry our telegraph keys everywhere -- so how do we take advantage of this simple safety option?

Thankfully 911 operators know the SOS signal and can send help even if you can't talk.

If you are in an emergency (such…