1. Whoever said, "more physically vulnerable to rapes and beatings" as far as women go....ummm...I'm sorry, gotta diasgree with that statement. I'm not Ahnold, but if I can't get to my weapon, I still know hoe to make YOU come to your knees....and it ain't gonna be pleasurable.
(I just think that statement was an oversimplification of "how" women "are")
sreising ~
You could look it up: most rapes and sexual assaults are perpetrated upon women, not upon men. Simply being female makes you a target for some crimes in a way that you would not be if you were male.
You could look this up, too: generally speaking, men have more upper-body strength than women do. They generally have more endurance, and generally mass more than women do. This gives them the edge in any physical altercation, no matter how well-trained the woman is. The edge can be overcome, but to deny it's there is really foolish. Part of being well trained is making a realistic survey of your strengths and weaknesses.
Furthermore, few criminals attack people they don't think they can take down. Females get attacked at a greater rate than men do; in part, this is because criminals themselves believe that women are easier targets than men are. If anyone would know, wouldn't you think the guy who does it for a living would?
Like you, I've taken a fair number of physical self-defense classes and know how to bring an attacker to his knees. It bothers me when people make general statements about any group (including women) and then proceed to act as though the general statement is true in each individual case.
Nevertheless, it is still a factually true statement that women are more vulnerable to these types of attacks than men are.
***
Oh, carrying a gun in the shower? Heh. I decided years ago that my gun would stay on my hip every hour I was awake and dressed. When I shower, I disrobe in the bathroom; thus my gun is locked in with me, and is not available for my children to toy with in the next room. Of course I could use it if attacked, but mostly it's just a matter of keeping it within my physical control and out of the hands of the hooligans I'm raising.
pax