Were you as nervous as I was your first time shooting a gun?

[ninjachica]

Oh my goodness, I was shaking!

I did not grow up around guns. Actually, I was only ever around a gun once when my dad went out shooting with a friend, something he only did that one time that I know of.

Besides that I grew up with parents that taught us love and understanding with no real lessons on the evils of the world or how to protect ourselves from it.

Recently I had to make a very difficult decision and I decided it was time to take my personal and family security into my own hands and that the most effective way to do that was to arm myself.

I was so nervous driving to the range. I couldn't believe I was going to shoot a gun. A tool powerful enough to take someone's life in an instant. It was intense. Holding the gun in my hand I had to really focus on my breathing and staying calm. I just wanted to put it down and walk away, but I couldn't. I held it, trying to listen to everything my instructor was telling me about how to do it. When he was done explaining everything I knew it was time. My legs felt like they were shaking and I couldn't stop them! I kept focusing on my breathing and the reason why I was there.
It was so intense for me. I think the next time will be better, but I still get butterflies thinking about it.

I'm wondering what other people's first time was like. I'd love to hear it.

[shooterfan1974]

I hadn't fired a handgun since my Dad's .22 revolver as a child when I rented a G17 at a range back in February. I'd always been interested & decided I wasn't getting younger. I was so nervous. I now have 2 9mm Glocks, a Ruger 10-22 for my daughter, a Mossberg 500 12 ga, and an AR15 on layaway. Yeah, I kinda got hooked.

[misunderstood]

Ur first time shooting sounds like that girls first time voting for obama in the commercial. Lol. Congats. But dont look at it like a device that can take someones life. Look more like a tool can save yours. In more tgan one way. Welcome to the club. Next thing you know you will start using common sense and eating meat. Lol.

[ADJ423]

I was pretty nervous. My dad took me out when I was 5 to show me what they could do and teach me to never touch them unless he was taking me to shoot. He let me first shoot his .22 then his .357 mag. A .357 mag is a lot of gun for a 5 year old. I learned real fast not to touch them. I have been shooting ever since. Bought my first shotgun on at 18 and my first pistol on my 21st birthday. Now I carry one everywhere except for work and will always be a responsible armed citizen.

[Kalamity023]

To be honest, I cant remember the first time I fired a gun. I remember my dad taking me to a youth shooting day when I was very young maybe 4 or 5, but I don't remember if this was the first time or not I do know we used a .22 rifle, and I remember liking it. This is kind of odd as he created the enthusiast that I am today and he has not picked up a gun in almost 5 years when I took him to the range to try out my new AR.

My dad and I have only been shooting about 3 times in my life. I do remember the first time I shot a handgun. I went shooting with my Dad and a family friend. I was about 8 and I was relegated to a Beretta 92, 9mm, a Mac-10 style semi-auto, a .357 revolver and a .22. They let me shoot one round out of the a .45 S&W (for the life of me I cant remember what model it was). I remember thinking that the gun looked like the one Wesley Snipes used in the move "Demolition Man", so I was THRILLED! This was one of my favorite movies at the time. I remember them saying "Hold it tight" and my dad was there behind me with his hands out. When I squeezed the trigger the recoil almost knocked me over. If my dad was not there I would have fallen over. It was AWESOME! We then moved to the rifle range. They were shooting an AK, 30-06. I know now that I was not able to handle the recoil, however, at the time I was slightly disappointed. Then my dad squeezed off a shot with the 30-06, which had a trigger job. He did not intend to squeeze off the round and it left a nice scope bite above his eye (The scar is still there today). So it made for a good memorable time.

That positive experience with firearms when I was a kid has foster the love I have today. Once you PRACTICE, and make the firearm part of your every day life. You will realize that it is a tool like any other. It has a specific purpose. If you take care of it, it will take care of you when you need it. The more you practice with it, and the more knowledge you will seek about it will only help you to be more comfortable with it. Kind of like a nail gun, welder, or a chainsaw (all of which are dangerous if used improperly and can cause death) Many people when they begin to carry will carry the firearm unloaded on their person while in their home to become accustomed to it. Take whatever steps you need to, in order to become comfortable and proficient. Finally, NEVER be afraid to ask for advice/help if you run into trouble. The only dumb question is the one that you don't ask right before the ND.

[Walther_Fan]

Oh yeah, I was nervous. My first time was at the range in a beginner safety class. I was scared and the gun was way too big in my hands. It was also taught by a bully. The guy yelled at us and mocked almost all of us women in the class. The Glock they gave us to shoot was huge and when I asked if I could get a different gun, he teased me for 'whining'. Then they left us take a break for lunch (8 hour class) and as soon as I got in the car I cried. My hand was killing me and the shock of using it was hitting me. But I wasn't sure if it was the shock of firing a gun for the first time, or my jerk instructor, or both. So I decided to stick it out and go in and try again. I spoke to a different man working there before class started up again, asking for a different gun. He was helpful and picked out a Kahr that fit my hands much better. He even explained to my instructor that I had blisters and shouldn't be using the Glock. My instructor didn't get any sweeter, but when we moved back into the range, I shot that gun for the first time and didn't feel scared or shocked at all. I tried to prep my daughter for her first class, about the sounds and smells, just so it wouldn't be such a huge shock for her. And I won't let anyone I know train at the bully's facilities.

[lindab]

My first time shooting for self defense was in my front yard. I didn't like it because I didn't think I knew enough about shooting. The only shooting I had done was trying to kill snakes or run off skunks. I took a course with a good instructor and it made me feel a lot better. He taught gun safety and really impressed handling and not pointing at people or sweeping people when moving the gun. He went slowly when firing and then increased speed with the second day of training. I felt a lot better after doing the training. My problem now is finding a place to practice because I think you loose too much when not practicing.

[jg1967]

Admittedly I was nervous, too, there very first time I was operating a gun. I did not grow up around guns either.

[fstroupe]

To be honest, I couldn't tell you if I was nervous or not, as I was probably six or so, shooting my grandfather's .22 revolver, my dad's .38 special, and a muzzleloader that my uncle had built from scratch. I actually remember the day fairly clearly. I was shooting across a brand new barbed wire fence. I hit the bottom strand with a round from the muzzleloader and cut it in half....the fence was very tight....that's when I got nervous lol.

[skinnyb82]

Yup. Got started late in life. I shot some POS Ruger Mark something .22LR (those things jammed so easily) at the ROTC's indoor range when I was a junior in college. Every semester they have two target shooting events to raise money for charity. My hands were shaking and I think I hit one of the targets once in the corner (out of 6 rds or so) and missed everything on the other two. I went back when I was in grad school (and had been shooting for a long time) and shot quite a bit better heh.

Sent from my SCH-R530U using Tapatalk 2