Martial arts and self defense training are invaluable even if you never have to use it.
I agree.
Doing BJJ is one of the best things I have ever done. Doing full-contact martial art like BJJ, Judo, Wrestling, Boxing and Muay Thai can transform you as a person and your outlook on the world. One of the first thing I realized is just how different a real fight is from how we grow up thinking about fighting and being powerful from pop culture. And I see so many people walking around with this bent-up aggression. Both men and women who lose their shit at the cash register, in their car. People are civilized but they are passive-aggressive.
Meanwhile, people who tend to do full contact martial arts, tend to be gentle, controlled and calm in that they get beaten over and over. A lot of that natural human aggression is drilled out of them. It kills your ego because you get submitted, choked and thrown by so many people who don't look like they could beat ANYONE in a fight.
Martial Arts really is a lifestyle and I recommend it to anyone. Like everything else it is about finding the right people and the right gym. And like everything else, you get out of it what you put into it. This is the hardest thing you will ever do, and part of the experience on your own journey is realizing that it is okay. It's okay that some small Steve Urkel looking MOFO will destroy you. You will feel weak, incapable and like your world is upside down. But if you stick with it, you will find that you grow as a person, and your troubles in daily life will seem much more insignificant.
Knowing martial arts doesn't mean what it means in the movies. Movies will have you believe that a MA practitioner can fight multiple people at once, disarm people with knives and guns. Total crock of shit. I've seen black belts in brazil almost getting killed from trying to fight someone who tried to rob them with a knife/gun. Still, you can be a badass in a one-on-one unarmed altercation, and you get to use your body to its full extent and capacity. You are turning your body into a weapon, and that is more awesome than any blade or gun could ever be. When you get old, you will wish that you had used your body more. Your body is like a rent-a-car you have to return when you die. So use it to its fullest while you can.