Anxiety choked out
“It’s a good way to spend time with him, and beat him up,” she grins.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu, or BJJ, is all about defence, and works on the premise that a stronger opponent can be subdued by a weaker one.
“That’s the beauty of BJJ, you use leverage and technique rather than strength” says Amy, who weighs 65kgs and easily executes a chokehold on dad, Wayne Westrupp, at 87kgs.
The pacifistic martial art originated in India, and spread around the world, before a Brazilian family adapted it. BJJ is based on grappling and ground fighting.
Wayne encouraged Amy to join the Vanderson Pires Jiu-Jitsu team at The Combat Room as a supplementary form of therapy, as she previously suffered from social anxiety.
“I would have panic attacks if I had to talk in front of a group of people, and found it hard to look people in the eye.”
School was a struggle.
“I’d just walk out of class,” Amy says, describing how she coped, “I left school at 15 because of it.”
Since taking up BJJ in May last year, the panic attacks have stopped.
“It makes you communicate,” says Wayne. “You are in people’s space all the time. You get over those boundary issues.”
Amy has since been graded which involved a nerve-racking 10-minute demonstration in front of her BJJ class. She admits “it was a bit of a blur,” but she didn’t walk out.
The family connection is continuing as Amy’s five year old brother, Kalani, has recently joined the children’s class.
For more information: combatroom.co.nz









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