Why women who hold their keys between their fingers for safety are doing it WRONG – and what they should be doing instead
- TikToker @faaesfx has warned women not to hold their keys between their fingers to protect themselves, saying it puts them at risk of injuring their hand
- She demonstrated how the key would end up getting pushed back if she punched something, and she would end up getting hurt
- Instead, she recommends holding the base of the key in a closed fist with the point coming out of the hand, between the pinky and the outside of the palm
- The TikToker then brought in another woman and had her hold the key in the two different positions while she pretended to attack her from behind
- While the woman was defenseless with the key between her fingers, she was able to stab @faaesfx in the leg when holding the makeshift weapon in her fist
A TikTok user is warning women not to hold their keys between their fingers to protect against potential attackers, explaining that the method could actually leave you injured — and there’s a better way.
In light of the death of Sarah Everard, TikToker @faaesfx said that she noticed many women saying they are using the keys-between-the-fingers trick when they’re out alone.
But trying to punch an attacker that way could leave a woman with an injured hand and wrist, and won’t help her at all if she’s grabbed from behind — so @faaesfx shared another way to hold a key that makes for a better protective weapon.
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Wrong to right! TikToker @faaesfx warned women not to hold their keys between their fingers to protect themselves (L), saying they should hold their longest key in their fist instead (R)
Don’t do this: She demonstrated how the key would end up getting pushed back if she punched something, and she would end up getting hurt
‘I’ve seen a lot of women say that they are carrying their keys like this to feel safe,’ she says in a viral TikTok video, showing a key popping out between two fingers.
‘If I punch, that key is going back into me and is going to hurt me,’ she adds.
‘Instead, take your longest key, hold it like this,’ she explains, demonstrating the superior technique.
Here, she grips a single long key, the base inside her fist and the point coming out of the opening at the bottom, between her pinky and the outside of the palm.
‘That key isn’t going anywhere,’ she says.
This works! Instead, she recommends holding the base of the key in a closed fist with the point coming out of the hand, between the pinky and the outside of the palm
The TikToker goes on to say that holding keys the first way also makes it harder to defend oneself if attacked from behind.
She enlists another woman to demonstrate how holding the key the first way, as so many other women do, with the key protruding between two of her fingers does little to help.
‘If I grab her and attack her, she has nowhere to go,’ she explains as grabs her assistant around the waist. ‘She can’t do anything.’
The woman tries to swing her arms back with the key to defend herself, but she can’t make contact from that angle because the point of her key is facing the wrong way.
Scary: She enlisted another woman to demonstrate how holding the key the first way leaves her defenseless if she is attacked from behind
Making contact: When the woman held the key in her fist, she was able to stab @faaesfx in the leg during the demonstration
However, when the woman holds the key the way that @faaesfx recommended, the point of the key ends up facing backward, allowing her to punch her arm back and stab her attacker in the leg
‘She moves her hips, she can stab me in the delicates,’ the TikTok user adds.
The educational video has been viewed more than 2.6 million times, and thousands of people thanked her for the advice, though some admitted that they wished they didn’t need it.
‘It’s sad how we need to have this at all times,’ one person wrote, while another said the tip is ‘very helpful.’
‘This is amazing advice,’ another agreed. ‘I just wish it wasn’t necessary. I’m sorry we need to do better.’