MIS Defense Products | Safety - Security - Self Defense / the purse self defense kit

The purse is an ideal place for women to keep self defense items to use in case they are in danger. The items you select for the kit will determine your ability to deal with a proximate threat to your well-being.





Use a purse with a shoulder strap but don't put it across your opposite shoulder. It could choke you if it is snatched and the strap is around the neck. Clutch type purses or ones with handles require you to occupy one hand while carrying it. If you can put it in a shopping cart in the little place nearest you when pushing the cart, that would be OK in that situation.

A purse should be a mini self defense kit. It should be organized. Don't become complacent and let your self defense weapons fall to the bottom of a cluttered purse. They should always be located in the same position in the purse and you should be able to practice drawing them out a few times here and there so you become familiar with the drill.


I have three daughters that all carry three items minimum with them at all times. A personal alarm, a pepper spray, and a stun gun. I would select at least one of each of these items to carry in a purse.


OK, here we go. Let's prepare for a situation where you may be in a shopping center parking lot walking to your car at night.

Before leaving the store, you have checked your alarm is ready, your pepper spray has been set in a firing position, and your stun gun is armed. As you're walking, you have determined through keen observation of your surroundings that there may be a threat where you are going. You are concerned because you notice a group of suspicious looking people lurking near where you parked. You need to be prepared for this situation. Immediately upon recognizing a threat, your imaginary force fields instantly go up and you are in a 10 foot invisible bubble that has to be protected in all directions. If anyone enters that bubble, or begins approaching you, you must act without hesitation. As you are walking to the car, you have already made yourself ready to defend yourself. You will be carrying your keys in your weaker hand. Be ready to grab your personal alarm with your dominant hand from where you're keeping it. You are ready...


personal alarm

In your purse, you have a personal alarm with a flashlight where it can easily be pulled out with your dominant hand. These come with a keychain, but don't use it. Keep the alarm as a separate item, I'll discuss why in a moment. If your purse doesn't have an outside pocket for the personal alarm, you can get some velcro and put in on the alarm. You can then fasten it to the inside of the purse, near the top, so you can yank it out in a moment's notice.

Your personal alarm will be used more as a diversion than anything else. I mean, help may come, it would be nice, but I wouldn't count on it. Just set off your personal alarm with your dominant hand and casually slide it to the ground at the slightest hint that someone is about to cause trouble. In other words, you draw your alarm with your dominant hand, briefly position it with the help of your weaker hand while you set it off with your dominant hand. Don't put the alarm in your weaker hand, just use that hand to help hold the alarm while you either pull the pin or push the button (depending on how you activate the model you've chosen). Don't throw the personal alarm hard to the ground, just sort of toss it casually aside from your dominant hand, let it travel 7 or 8 feet if you can. You sort of crouch a little by bending your knees and skip the alarm aside on the ground.

As soon as you have made the quick decision to set off your alarm, you will simultaneously start yelling, Fire!, Fire!, Fire! repeatedly throughout the incident, as loud as you possibly can.

Keep your wits, and execute the rest of these instructions in sequence. Don't allow yourself to be paralyzed with fear. Your adrenaline will come to your aid if you direct it into action. You'll do this right at the point of noticing fear setting in. Your instinctual Fight or Flight response will kick in. Let nature help you here.

Don't stop yelling. The bad guy will be thinking, "Do I go for the alarm, try to shut her up, or get the hell out of here?" Hopefully, this will buy a few seconds with the distraction. Immediately after tossing the alarm aside, you've freed up your dominant hand. You're still yelling while at the same time drawing your pepper spray with your dominant hand from where you have it positioned in your purse.

It goes like this:

Fire! (alarm out, set off)
Fire! (crouch and skip alarm to side)
Fire! (up pepper spray firing)


See the personal alarms listed below this commentary to make your selection.

pepper spray

You should have a hold of your pepper spray within about a second or two. At least before you've yelled Fire! more than three times. If the perp is coming at you, you will have begun moving backwards in retreat at the same time he is approaching, all the while firing your pepper spray directly in the direction of the perp's face. Remember, the 10 foot barrier between you and the perp is essential to get your pepper spray fired off. As soon as your pepper spray is drawn, begin firing. You've made your spray ready before leaving the store by flipping up the cap. Point and shoot with your arm stretched out all the way toward the perp. You're attempting to liberally coat his FACE with pepper spray.

You'll need to select which pepper spray unit you'll carry to protect yourself. A mace brand spray is a good choice. High-quality, respectable brand. The Mace units I would really recommend are the ones with flip top caps and a handle to orient to a woman's grip, making it harder to spray yourself. Like the ones listed at the bottom of this page.

The personal and police models have a belt clip that can be used to put the unit inside a purse or clip it on a belt if a blouse is untucked. You don't really want to expose these things in public. They should be concealed until ready to use them.

You wouldn't want to opt for a small unit, just in case the threat may be more than one person and you want to spray them from a safe distance. We recommend the larger models to keep in a purse. There might be multiple people to deal with in this situation and you wouldn't want to run out of pepper spray.

Remember, not to let someone get within 10 feet of you. You should imagine an invisible 10 foot barrier that is your safe zone. If you allow a perp to get within this distance, it may be too late for the pepper spray to be used. You'll have to get ready to bring out your stun gun and use it.

If the perp hasn't yet grabbed you, and you've sprayed some pepper spray liberally on his face, you have gained control at this point and several options will have opened up for you. You can run away as many self defense experts would recommend, or you can go on the attack.

See the pepper sprays listed below this commentary to make your selection.

stun gun

If the assailant is close enough to grab you, it's time to bring your stun gun into the mix. There are many models to choose from. These take up a little room in the purse but may mean a big difference in your ultimate survival. There are various models listed below for you to choose from. Find the stun gun that is right for your budget. The models on this page are all small enough for a woman to effectively use.

You can't just get a stun gun and think everything is safe. You need to know how to use it. Basically, the perp will have to be close enough for you to touch him for you to use it. Locate a target on the perp that you can strike with the stun gun in your dominant hand. You should be attempting to hold the stun gun on the target area of the perp for 3-5 seconds. It may work sooner, but be prepared for this. Don't worry, the stun gun WILL NOT stun you if you are touching the perp at the same time.

If you have sprayed the perp in the face with your pepper spray and he is still there, but you notice his vision has been taken out temporarily. You'll want to either run away from the scene, or run around behind him and forcefully jab your stun gun into his lower back area just below the ribs. You'll be setting it off about half way to the target. This movement should take about 1 second to complete. Hold the stun gun there and ride him down to the ground. You can jump on his back with your weaker arm around his neck from the rear while maintaining contact with your stun gun on your target area. After contacting your target with your stun gun, hold the stun gun on it while continuously firing it. This should be sufficient to bring the perp down for the count. He'll be out for several minutes which will allow you to call 911 for them to come tidy up. Keep the pressure on with your pepper spray and stun gun until help arrives. When the perp looks like he's beginning to recover, stun him some more. The pepper spray effects should last longer than the stun gun effects.

Congratulations! If you practice the things outlined in this commentary, you should gain confidence and be more prepared to dispense with an attack while out walking somewhere.

See the stun guns listed below this commentary to make your selection. They are listed in order of voltage.


pepper spray batons - kubotans

I don't really recommend keeping your pepper spray on a keychain unless it's a kubotan pepper spray. These self defense weapons require a little more investment in your self defense kit, but they serve two main purposes. They allow the pepper spray to be concealed in the baton and give you an extra weapon that can be attached to the keychain. There are five colors to choose from.

If everything breaks down and a perp gets too close, you can use the kubotan as an effective self defense weapon. You just hold the kubotan vertically in your dominant hand and twirl it around and around. The keys on the end will start spinning like a helicopter rotor blade. You can thrust forward in a horizontal motion toward the perp's face and smash your wad of keys into his eye area if possible. You have created a Flail Weapon to use effectively to distribute major damage in one motion. When the perp grabs at his eyes and is dealing with excruciating pain. You're in control. You can then move in and use the pepper spray contained within the kubotan. He'll really be in trouble now. It's time to get your stun gun cranking. Put it on him from behind if possible. If from the front, aim for his center or his torso area. Give it to him a few seconds even after he has fallen. Call 911.

I wouldn't recommend these as your primary pepper spray because they only shoot five feet or so. However, if your budget allows, they can prove useful if the assailant approaches too near.

In addition to using the kubotan to create a flail weapon, they can be used to inflict iimmense pain upon an attacker. They are aluminum and can be jabbed at approaching arms, legs, or any body part. You jab at the attacker with it. You don't even have to become proficient with this technique. The hardness and angles of the kubotan send pain shooting through the body immediately when you strike an area with it. It works best when you use it to block at advancing blows from your attacker. I think there's a physics calculation here but, when you add the forward momentum of his blow to the momentum of your jab, it creates greater force than your forward jab movement alone. When you meet his strikes with the kubotan, you are much better off than trying to use offensive moves with your hand alone. You're just trying to buy enough time to get your stun gun or taser ready for him. You can practice this when you get one.

You can find these listed near the bottom of the page in the Featured Products section.

pen knives

Pen knives are excellent to keep in a purse. They're small dagger-type knives concealed in a pen. You can keep one of these in your purse just in case you need it. If everything breaks down, the perp has totally taken you by surprise. It was too late for your spray; your stungun fell to the ground; and you couldn't set off an alarm. Pull this out of your purse and jam it into the perp.

You'll want to pick the best available target that you think you can hit. Good targets are the eyes, face, throat, hands, thighs, and any soft tissue area; not in any particular order. You want to try to minimize the possibility that he will block the jab. Just keep jamming it in as many different areas as fast as you can. You'll use short jabs with it, not slashing motions. Remember, it is a small dagger. Maintain the tightest grip on the pen knife as possible. Practice jabbing your pen knife into an old pillow to get the hang of it. You'll soon become familiar with the grip and will gain confidence if you should ever have to really use it to save your life. It's also a wonderful stress reliever.

You can find these listed near the bottom of the page in the Featured Products section.


If you still aren't sure what items would make up the best self defense kit for your purse, you can tell us a little more about your situation and we'll try to recommend the products that may be best suited for it. You can Contact Us Here for more information.

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