Realistic, evidence-based self-defense training

I’m Brigitte Schulze Martinez, and I founded 3 Rivers Defense in 2009. After three years of going back and forth between Montana, USA, and Patagonia in Chile, I’m now back full-time in Montana.

For over 16 years, I’ve been committed to providing research- and evidence-based self-defense coaching.

My focus is on holistic, trauma-informed training, based on our instincts and intuition.

I am a SPEAR ® self-defense trainer, an Evidence Based Scenario Trainer, and a Be Your Own Bodyguard ® coach, all certified by Blauer Tactical Systems.

Looking back to 2025, my overwhelming emotion is gratitude for our students and for our Blauer Tactical, Inc. worldwide training community.

For 2026, I’m excited to continue offering private self-defense training and Be Your Own Bodyguard ® courses by appointment.

Sound journeys

In addition to being a self-defense coach, I am also a certified sound practitioner, and I am thrilled to provide gong baths and sound journeys as part of our holistic wellness program.

Stress and trauma can cause dis-ease. Gongbaths are a potent anti-dote to stress and anxiety, promoting calm and relaxation. They can restore and regenerate the parasympathetic nervous system which is often damaged by chronic stress. The immersion in sound and stillness creates a sonic environment in which the nervous system can relax in a safe environment, allowing the body to restore its physiological and emotional equilibrium. This process is known as acoustic co-regulation, conducive to reorganization towards harmony and holistic health.

See, The Art of Meditating With the Gong, Vikrampal © 2025 and The Pocket Guide to the Polyvagal Theory, the Transformative Power of Feeling Safe, Stephen W. Porges © 2017

A calm mind is also a fundamental component for all phases of effective self-defense - threat detection and avoidance, de-escalation, and fighting back as ethically, morally, and legally appropriate.

Sometimes, we also use sound to access, process, and purge emotions, thoughts, and energies that need to leave. After the purge, we return to a calming soundscape to relax, recuperate, and fill with gentle, nourishing energy.

Next Sound Journey: 7pm, Sunday, March 22nd, 2026

Our next Bozeman, Montana sound journey will take place at 7pm, on Sunday, March 22nd, 2026

To reserve your spot, please RSVP by email to 3riverssoundjourney@gmail.com or Venmo $35.00 to @Brigitte-Schulze

This sound journey will include a purge to process, release, and banish negative, destructive energies. The energetic purge will be followed by returning to gentle sounds to relax and calm our bodies, minds, and spirits and to invite peaceful and gentle energy into our hearts and souls.

Thank you for your support and for your dedication to making the world calmer, safer, and more joyful for you and others!

Brigitte and the 3 Rivers Sound Journey Team

What our self-defense training is about

•    Reality-based, trauma-informed, holistic self-defense training

•    Assertiveness and boundary setting

•    Mind-speed training and mental, emotional, and spiritual preparation for violence prevention

•    Physical self-defense building on your intuition and your instinctive reactions to threats

•    Comprehensive and graduated physical training, up to full-impact counter-attacks

•    Supportive and respectful environment

•    Empowerment through increased knowledge and skills, not illusions and dangerous over-confidence

 •   Evidence-based scenario training

•    Fully-equipped self-defense gym  

•    Moral, ethical and legal defensibility

Whom we serve

•    Everyone is welcome

•    We value diversity 

•    We serve everyone who wants to learn self-defense for violence prevention

•    We serve people interested in trauma-recovery through supplanting body memories of helplessness with new sensations of power and control  

•    Our training is for anyone age 13 and up who wants to learn in a supportive environment

•    No particular physical ability or fitness level is required

What we hope you'll take away

•    More self-awareness, situational awareness, and knowledge about violence dynamics

•    Fear management skills

•    Full realization of the power of your intuition, instincts, and intelligence

•    Better mental, emotional, and physical abilities to recognize, avoid, reduce, and manage risk

•    Mental and physical safety skills, using your natural weapons that you can use as soon as you walk out the door

•    Increased or regained confidence, well-being, and peace of mind

What we can’t do

•    We cannot guarantee your safety

What we can do

• We can give you increased personal safety and self-defense options

What our sound journeys are about

We focus on living life with harmony and joy.

Intentional sound can create a harmonious balance of our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual bodies. It can provide deep relaxation, release, realignment, and restoration. It can nurture joy, holistic wellbeing, and peace. People with an harmoniously aligned body, mind, and spirit, as well as deep self-awareness and relaxed situational awareness are better able to protect themselves. That’s why I combine self-defense and sound experiences. Some people consider this combination odd; others intuitively grasp their inherent complementary nature.