Help getting past handgun anxiety

[SnowBlaZeR2]

Lots of great suggestions in here. Experienced instruction will be the best thing you can do. If you weren't on the wrong side of the state, I'd be more than happy to help you out when I get home. If you ever make it up to the Panhandle, you can shoot anything I own. I'm always eager to help out a new shooter.

 

[Ultraviolet]

All - I still haven't turned into a troll ;-)

You'r an encouraging bunch. I'll let you know how I fare along the way - someone might re-read this and benefit from it. I'll PM some of you for some more information and follow up.

Take care, UV.

 

[Walkalong]

I shoot at an outdoor range but we have metal awnings over tables at each pit. I won't shoot the .223 under the awning because of the increased noise/blast. If I don't step out from under it, I at least hang the muzzle out from under it. I have never even dreamed of shooting the .458 Winchester Magnum under the awnings.

Indoors has to be even worse.

 

[BCRider]

It's nice that you post some replies so we know you're still around and reading. Far too often new members post the original question and never come back. We begin to feel like we're typing to ourselves....


Courses are great and wonderful. But just like with most skills if you don't go on and continue to practice what you learn you'll quickly forget it. And then in an actual situation you'll be as much a deer in the headlights as you would have been without the course. We learn from doing things repeatedly and often to maintain our skill set.

So my contribution is to urge you to check into the various hand gun sporting matches put on in your area. Granted in the end such things are games. But what you'll get is a lot of gun handling and that all important draw and first shot practice. It will also give you a LOT of opportunity to both learn to handle your own guns confidently and to pick up ideas on handling and safety from others.

Oh, and it's plain and simply great fun....

Granted a lot of folks will say that in the end such matches are still games. And yes they are. But the movement and timing and situations in a "game" such as IDPA will still give you far better practice than simply standing and perforating paper the same way every time you go out.

And did I mention that it's great fun? Not only that but you'll meet a lot of great shooting buddies at the same time. When you spend a full day at the range so you can shoot for an accumulated total of about 5 minutes you can't really help but get to know the other shooters and have a good time.

 

[JustinJ]

The action of a gun is no more violent than that of the internal combustion engine of your vehicle. The only difference is openness and proximity. Are there any other machines of which you feel the same level of apprehension or fear?

In addition to working up from lighter calibers, avoid short barrels. The longer, the less flash and noise. Also, i would limit shooting sessions in duration and work up to longer and longer. A concern is that if you are so affected by the noise with hearing protection, how would you react if you ever had to shoot the gun without it, such as in a self defense situation? It might be prudent to approach your fear as a phobia and research ways to overcome them.

 

[Blackstone]

I'm trying to rationalize this, and have come up with few thoughts:
1. The absolute amount of noise - oddly enough, I perceived the shotguns to be 'quieter' than the 9mm handguns. Maybe this has to do with the closeness of the muzzle, or the fact I was more in control?

You're most likely shooting shotguns outside, which is going to be much different than shooting a handgun indoors.

 

[medalguy]

Good advice from previous posters. Last year I taught a new shooter how to handle a handgun and he, too, was a little bit afraid of the noise and recoil, so I tried something I hadn't done before, and it seemed to work. Outside range by the way.

I gave him several full magazines and told him to simply load and shoot the gun without having any target to concentrate on, just get used to the noise and recoil, and to figure out when the gun would fire and prepare for the shot. In other words, become accustomed to the trigger pull and learn when it would fire. That seemed to work for him, and after about 30 rounds he got the hang of it. He did remarkedly better after that.

 

[Dinosaur1]

You're right, a 9 mil in a small auto makes a big noise. There's also the possibility of slide bite and the recoil which can be a little startling for someone who's new. The most easily operated .22 auto is the Ruger Mk II or III. If there's one around you can shoot that's the go to gun for new shooters. I've started several shooters with mine and they all liked it.