How do I teach someone to stop flinching?

[TimSr]

No need to buy another gun. Get some very light .38 spl loads and work with the GP100. My recoil shy wife loves mine. Hates the autos. Also, load it for her with a couple empties. Don't let her peek. She will see and understand what she is doing when she clicks on an empty. Stay away from compact models. they are hardest and least comfortable to shoot. When she overcomes her flinch with 38s', if she wants to graduate to the semis, then you turn your back, chamber or not chamber a round, hand it to her, and again check for flinch as she fires, or dry fires it.

 

[MIL-DOT]

You know what has REALLY tightened up my pistol shooting in the last year or two? Shooting in double-action. Sure,it's counter-intuitive, but it's held up consistently for a while now.....and in front of witnesses ! If you looked at the difference in the two groups (from me), you'd swear they were two different shooters entirely. It's night and day.
Just for spits & giggles, have your freind try some DA shooting, and see what happens.

 

[ATLDave]

I agree that DA shooting is a good training tool, even for people who aren't really trying to shoot revolvers primarily. The pull is long enough that it really teaches you that you can't just see a good sight picture and then make the gun go off... you have to keep aiming for however long it takes to discharge the gun, even if it's a tenth of a second or less. And the difficulty for a relative novice in predicting when the gun will go off can help create the mis-timed blink (i.e., blink a little too soon or too late and see the sights at the moment the gun goes off, even though the shooter's reflex is trying to prevent precisely that) that starts to build a little trust that seeing the gun go off is not harmful.

 

[old lady new shooter]

I agree with the folks recommending DA shooting. For me, the trigger pull on my 686+ is so long and so heavy that the only possible way I can execute it is smoothly.

 

[Reloadron]

Sometimes teaching a family member (wife, son, daughter) to shoot and shoot correctly is much like teaching them to drive. It can be extremely frustrating for both involved. This is where driving school and shooting school can become your new best friend. This assumes there is a local range with certified NRA instructors and courses.

Ron

 

[JohnKSa]

Some questions you need to answer first.

Does her hearing protection fit and is it working properly?
It should seal well around her ears (or in her ears) and she should experience no discomfort at all from the sound of the firearm discharge.

Is she actually afraid of shooting and firearms?
If she's actually scared during the range trip, that needs to be addressed before you start working on shooting technique.

Are you a good instructor and are you a good instructor FOR HER?
It's sort of a joke amongst instructors that husbands are often the absolute worst possible choice for providing firearm instruction to their own wives.

 

[lmstncwby]

That is interesting. I've noticed that people who don't get their hearing protection in correctly (or use electronic hearing protection at an indoor range) visibly flinch when a gun is fired near them. That is one aspect of flinching that is rarely addressed. Get the best electronic hearing protection you can. A hearing specialist told be to get one that has the fastest "clip rate". He is a shooter and strongly recommended the Peltor 6S. They do work but won't help if not properly put on the ears.

 

[Kevin Rohrer]

I start them off with a .22 revolver or a .38 firing wadcutters. I only a third of the cylinder with live cartridges, so they will see their flinching when pulling the trigger on an empty chamber. As they learn to not flinch, I increase the number of loaded cylinders.

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

The only thing I'd add to what has already been said, is to ask how firmly she is holding the guns?

New, somewhat reluctant, shooters seem to just barely hold onto the gun. This will magnify the flinch. I'd have her focus on squeezing as hard as she can with her elbows locked, as she is doing everything else.

 

[Frank Ettin]

...New, somewhat reluctant, shooters seem to just barely hold onto the gun....

Our experience has been the opposite of yours. In our Basic Handgun classes we find that most new shooters hold the gun in a death grip -- often with their knuckles going white. And that introduces a tremor.

 

[blarby]

I can't stress strongly enough letting someone else try.

Especially with loved ones, a lot of emotional factors play in to training, and you risk setting the bridge alight if things aren't working out. You get in to a cycle of anticipation, failed expectations, etc.

Good quality training from reliable and proven instructors isn't terribly expensive, and if you catch this before it gets worse ( which it sounds like it is) you'll be shooting together swimmingly in no time.

Dry firing and live fire trigger reset drills are the best ways i've found for dealing with flinch.

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

we find that most new shooters hold the gun in a death grip

People react differently I guess. I took a complete noob shooting a couple weeks ago, he lined up on the target, loosened his grip and subsequently put a round over the berm and nearly dropped the Glock.

 

[old lady new shooter]

The only thing I'd add to what has already been said, is to ask how firmly she is holding the guns?

New, somewhat reluctant, shooters seem to just barely hold onto the gun. This will magnify the flinch. I'd have her focus on squeezing as hard as she can with her elbows locked, as she is doing everything else.

On me that trashed the tendon that runs through the thumb joint down the inner forearm. I posted about it here and got lots of great feedback, the most helpful comment was from someone who said the gun should be "cradled". I also independently decided to try using my chest muscles to grip the gun instead of the small muscles in the hand, worked great and I think also helps accuracy.

 

[John Joseph]

Lots of great advice here.
Does she have fun shooting?
Having fun is critical and frustration is wearing.
If not, I'll suggest going back to either a .22 rifle or if you have one, a .410 shotgun and shooting large, fun, stationary targets like milk jugs filled with water.

 

[mstreddy]

OP, I'll be another one weighing in having her work with a .22 Semi-auto of some type.
I find that most novice shooters get past the recoil and blast fears after spending some time with a .22.
And, as JMorris, I've also used a suppressed .22 for lots of newbies. It really takes away the fear.

 

[HGM22]

I flinch, and have to fight the urge to do so. The two best things for me to do (besides the snap cap trick, which doesn't solve the problem, just lets you know its there) which may or may not have been mentioned in this thread (I didn't read it all) are to have fun with it and get a gun that requires a lot of focus to shoot.

By the first part I mean to get your brain past the dread of noise and blast, instead looking forward to it. If you tell oneself they have nothing to fear from the noise and blast then logically they have nothing to fear (and that's what flinching is). Instead, try to enjoy the blast and recoil like you would fireworks.

The second part I experienced when I got my Ruger LCR .38. I'd been shooting larger service-sized pistols which I think helped cover up the flinch. The LCR requires a lot of focus to shoot accurately and if you want to hit the bullseye you must work for it. Follow-through is of particular importance. If you are determined to shoot the gun well and to be more powerful than your flinch, then you will given enough practice.

 

[Brian Williams]

Here is something I don't think anybody said.
1. Stop trying to get her to aim or work on trigger pull
2. make it fun

Take her to an empty range preferably outside.
load up one round
put here 5 feet from the berm
throw out on the berm some reactive targets like marshmallows or charcoal briquets.
have her point the gun at the berm and with both eyes open just shoot the gun. No aiming no working on the trigger but just shooting and watching the gun
when she hits something congratulations are in order.
Continue with more ammo in the gun and progress to larger calibers as you see progress
you must watch as she progresses and compliment on just having fun

You can also have her close her eyes and then shoot with both eyes closed. This requires careful safety precautions. but it removes the anxiety of aiming and "hitting" things and lets her feel the gun.
Of course hearing and eye protection is a must