The sister who did the shooting looks more in the 240lbs range, at most. She isn’t more than 5-5. Hope she switches the cylinders out and loads 22 magnums from now on. If she’s not going to make head or neck shots, she needs a bit more velocity.
I agree that the .22LR is way underpowered for up close and personal social occasions and she needs something with more zapp. Problem is if she has a North American Arms mini revolver the "window" in the frame where the cylinder is pinned is a different length for .22short, .22LR, and .22 magnum. The cylinders are made just slightly longer then the cartridge so a magnum cylinder won't fit in the frame of a .22LR (too long) and a standard .22LR cylinder won't work in a magnum frame (too short). NAA does make a .22LR cylinder to fit in a magnum frame, I suppose if you shoot a lot it's worth while but for a purse gun you'd never need the extra cylinder.
In the real world she should consider something in a .25NAA, .32NAA, or .380ACP Guardian. NAA produces some fine guns, a bit pricey but beautifully made and powerful for their frame size. The .25NAA and .32NAA are proprietary cartridges, the .25 being a necked down .32 and the .32 being a necked down .380ACP. They both have impressive ballistics.
Regards,
GtG