Shooting while pregnant.

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357 Terms

357 Terms

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Well my LAST child is on the way! (boy) My adorable g-friend is in her last tri-mester (6 more weeks) I was just wondering if anyone had an opinion about her blasting away at the range. She doesn't have an opinion ( which is odd because she has an opinion about everything) Anyone see anything wrong with this?
 
YES! There are several threads here and on www.thefiringline.com on this matter.

A better question would be whether you see something right with exposing your unborn fetus to the factors of very loud noise (and related shock waves), chemicals, smoke, heavy metals, etc.

Unless you need to be shooting, such as you have to go out and get your own food from the wild or risk starving to death or because you have intruders breaking down your door, there really isn't a reason to exposing the fetus to those insults.

Will such insults necessarily harm the fetus? No. Might they harm it? Yes.

Here is a simple rule of thumb. Don't expose your fetus to anything that you would not expose your newborn child. You would not take your newborn to the gun range, would you, setting it on a bench behind the firing line as you blasted away? Probably not. So why would you expose a fetus?
 
CONGRATS! I am a father of 3 and this is what we did.

Me and the Mrs love to shoot - we spent a lot of time at the range but once she was pregnant she stopped going. Couple of things that we did not care to expose our children to - very loud noise since they are very capable of hearing and feeling and also the threat of issues due to lead.

She even took it one step further - she did not go back to the range until our children where weaned.

Now we all shoot as a big happy family.
 
Thats an interesting question, and I can't find any real information on it, but I think doc.lonestar has the right answer...
 
The only indoor range in my area will not even admit pregnant women for fear of liability if Junior should emerge with lead poisoning or bad ears.
 
Great question and a great link and read. Has anyone given thought the the blast/consussion?
 
I was just wondering if anyone had an opinion about her blasting away at the range. She doesn't have an opinion ( which is odd because she has an opinion about everything) Anyone see anything wrong with this?

What I see wrong is asking the question on a gun forum. You should be asking her doctor.

The safest answer is don't shoot when pregnant.
 
I think this is one of those type of things that if you have to ask, you probably already know the answer.
 
The Doc just shrugged his shoulders; we dont shoot at an indoor range , just a friends back 8 acres. No rifle rounds just handgun. It's been nice and we have a weekend with no kids and nothing much to do, i guess i'm asking cuze i do feel kinda "iffy" bout it. This is not our first baby and she is a cautious mom, still she doesn't seem too worried.
 
The Doc just shrugged his shoulders

If he's not sure don't you think not shooting might be the most cautious but wisest course of action? You say you feel iffy about it.
 
A good thread to read: http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?p=6652656

"If you wouldn't bring your newborn baby to stand three feet away from someone shooting on a range, why would you take a baby that's in utero?"

"While you certainly hope you've not caused damage YET, please do stop range visits for Momma until the little one is safely OFF the firing line."

"As they say, pregnancy is temporary. Why risk so much, for so little?"
 
I would think loud noises and vibrations are things you want to keep away from.

You don't want the baby's brain to get scrambled before it is even born (akin to a hard shaking)!

I would think loud noises (including bass booming from car stereos) would not be good for the baby!
 
When it comes to babies or children or fetuses, err on the side of caution. Don't do it.
 
When DW was expecting our first child she quit going to the range because every time a shot was fired our daughter kicked her. We figured it wasn't a good idea for her to go shooting for a while........
 
Double Naught Spy said:
YES! There are several threads here and on www.thefiringline.com on this matter.

A better question would be whether you see something right with exposing your unborn fetus to the factors of very loud noise (and related shock waves), chemicals, smoke, heavy metals, etc.

Unless you need to be shooting, such as you have to go out and get your own food from the wild or risk starving to death or because you have intruders breaking down your door, there really isn't a reason to exposing the fetus to those insults.

Will such insults necessarily harm the fetus? No. Might they harm it? Yes.

Here is a simple rule of thumb. Don't expose your fetus to anything that you would not expose your newborn child. You would not take your newborn to the gun range, would you, setting it on a bench behind the firing line as you blasted away? Probably not. So why would you expose a fetus?
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My exact thoughts. And how I handled the situation w my wife.
 
It always amazes me that this is even a question for some folks. Don't get me wrong - I love shooting. But is it really worth causing potential injury to your child?

Seriously - we're talking about nine months away from guns. Is it really that much of a sacrifice?
 
Apreciate the input, like i said I was "iify" about it, My g-friend said that she felt it was all right, really though; Sam.. comparing shooting with a newborn 3 feet away and a fetus inutero is a little xtreme. Look our pediatrician had no reservations. Just thought I'd seek some input. Thanx
 
Sam.. comparing shooting with a newborn 3 feet away and a fetus inutero is a little xtreme.
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Not really. Sound travels MUCH MORE easily through incompressible liquid than through air. There may be some dampening from going through tissue as well as the amniotic fluid, but its still a pretty bad idea.

Glad you're "iffy." Wish you were "against," but maybe "iffy" is enough to keep your baby from harm. I find with my kids that there's so very VERY much that can harm them -- some of which cannot be foreseen and avoided --- that I'll sacrifice what I need to in order to protect them from the harms I CAN foresee. You've only got the rest of their lives to wish you'd protected them when you had the chance.
 
I would advise against it

I would have to agree with most of the OP's. The sound and shock wave is not a good thing plus the lead thing too. When I was with DHS all pregnant officer's were not permitted to qual until after the birth. It was for the reasons stated above.
 
The OB told the wife and I that it was ok. She said that all the studies show that loud noise doesn't affect the fetus, that is like being at the bottom of a pool. She said that the lead shouldn't be a problem as long as long as you aren't touching anything to your mouth and are washing your hands afterwards. She said the biggest concern is the recoil once she starts getting big, because her balance would be bad. That being said, we haven't gone shooting since my wife got pregnant and I am still skeptical that it is completely safe.
 
Please, please, PLEASE play it safe. It is absolutely amazing the crap that can harm an unborn child. I can't really add anything more to what has been said here except to politely ask you to put your child first. You're going to be doing THAT for awhile anyway, may as well start now.
 
Look our pediatrician had no reservations
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To be fair, you said he "shrugged his shoulders". That's not exactly the same as having no reservations.

And even if he didn't have any reservations - why bother asking us? With the possible exception of a few of us, we're not doctors - just shooters. Strangers, even. Seems like an odd bunch to come asking for advice in ensuring the safety of your unborn child, don'tcha think?
 
Look; not like I'm gonna put all the advice i get here to heart. Like I said I just thought I would seek some input. I was iffy. regardless of the fact a doctor shrugged his shoulders and said " dont see a problem". .... thanx... prolly not gonna do it
 
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