“These Are Pretty Good”: SA Woman Raised on Military Base Shares 3 Self-Defence Tips for Women

• A South African woman raised on military bases shared three self-defence tips she learned from soldiers who babysat her as a child
• The tips cover how to handle a firearm, stop a moving car, and detect a spiked drink, all drawn from real experiences she survived
• South African women online flooded the comments with gratitude, saying the advice could not have come at a better time

A South African woman known on Instagram as @kebidoo_ posted a video on 16 September 2026 that quickly struck a nerve. In it, she shared three self-defence tips she learned from military men who raised her, and the response from women across the country was immediate.

She explained in her caption that growing up on army bases meant that the men who babysat her did not teach nursery rhymes. They taught her how to protect herself, and she has been carrying those skills since she was four years old.

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The 3 self-defence tips she was taught

Her first tip is learning how to disarm a firearm and render it non-functional, something she says requires no licence to learn.

Her second is knowing how to stop a moving car. She described how older models, particularly those commonly used in crimes, can be brought to an emergency stop by pushing the key in while the car is in motion, twisting it and pulling it out, then throwing the key out the window.

Her third tip addresses drink spiking. She advised women to stick to the same drink throughout a night out because consistency in taste makes it easier to notice when something has been added. She said she was able to identify a spiked drink on the first sip because she had been tasting the same flavour all night.

As a bonus, she reminded viewers of a key point in South African law: a woman acting in immediate self-defence is protected, but the response must be proportionate and connected to the immediate threat. Returning to confront an attacker later would generally not be considered self-defence.

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She ended with a prayer that one day she would not need to pass these tips on to her daughters because men would be teaching other men how to behave instead.

View the TikTok video below:

Women flooded the comments on @kebidoo_'s page with messages of appreciation:

@thickmomma1427 said:

"Wow, these are actually pretty good pieces of advice"

@m.i.n.t.y.c.h.l.o.e wrote:

"Thank you for your tips ❤️ We need to be safe out here ❤️😢"

@ms.boki commented:

"I love this advice. Thanks 👏👏"

@queensve said:

"Thank you so much. If you have more, please give us 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏"

@khayo.ful wrote:

"Thank you ✨✨"

More Briefly News stories on safety

• Xolile Vesi praised the Capitec and Home Affairs partnership, allowing South Africans to apply for smart IDs at bank branches with shorter wait times.
• A mother faced a difficult choice after her son asked her to sell her parents’ house to fund his R320,000 wedding, but a hidden letter changed his perspective.
• A shopper’s photo of maggots on a refrigerated chicken shelf raised concerns about food safety and possible cold-chain failures.

Source: Briefly News