Sounds like too much arm tension. You can relax your grip and not strangle the grip, but still put too much tension in your arm in response to trying to over control recoil. Bend your elbow just almost imperceptibly and let us know if that helps.
Why the heck am I trembling? Really scared!
- Thread starter 19-3Ben
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W.E.G.
Member
Its either the jitters or the heebie-jeebies.
Need more information to be sure.
Thinking about small engine mechanics usually will eliminate it.
Need more information to be sure.
Thinking about small engine mechanics usually will eliminate it.
SSN Vet
Member
How long has it been since you had a physical....
any issues with slurred speach? Has your walking gate changeded?
any issues with slurred speach? Has your walking gate changeded?
ForumSurfer
Member
FWIW, I have another bit of advice. You are 26. You are no longer young and bulletproof. After you hit 25, your body is more responsive to how you treat no matter what kind of shape you are in. Under 25, our bodies tend to balance out poor diet. I advise everyone over 25 to get regular physicals and blood tests. Truth be told, a person is putting oneself at more of a risk by not knowing what their body is doing or eating unhealthily than if you go around unarmed. Cholesterol and diabetes cause more deaths than bad guys.
I proved that to myself recently when my gall bladder developed severe issues. Perfect health, regularly exercising at the gym and doing cardio...yet my gall bladder failed. Had my doctor not caught it, it could very well have ruptured. I went from slight gaseous feeling during my physical, to needing surgery within 5 days.
Very good advice. That should keep your blood sugar up and allow your body to cope with the adrenaline release more easily.
Although practicing with those trembling hands is a great idea. In a stressful situation your body will react by dumping massive amounts of adrenaline. Learning to control that could very well give you an edge in a bad situation, or at least prepare yourself for what your body would do in a heart pounding, adrenaline pumping self defense scenario.
I proved that to myself recently when my gall bladder developed severe issues. Perfect health, regularly exercising at the gym and doing cardio...yet my gall bladder failed. Had my doctor not caught it, it could very well have ruptured. I went from slight gaseous feeling during my physical, to needing surgery within 5 days.
Very good advice. That should keep your blood sugar up and allow your body to cope with the adrenaline release more easily.
Although practicing with those trembling hands is a great idea. In a stressful situation your body will react by dumping massive amounts of adrenaline. Learning to control that could very well give you an edge in a bad situation, or at least prepare yourself for what your body would do in a heart pounding, adrenaline pumping self defense scenario.
FLAvalanche
Member
Caffeine?
Heck I can't shoot until my 2nd bottle of Mt. Dew.
Heck I can't shoot until my 2nd bottle of Mt. Dew.
glassman
Member
Same thing happened to me a while back. Start out fine with nice groups and all of a sudden the hands start to shake and accuracy goes to hell. Stop and rest, tighten grip, losen grips...nothing seemed to work. After I left the range, the shake went away after a while. I went to see the doc who diagnosed 'essential tremor'. Google it for a better explanation than I can give you.
Sauer Grapes
Member
I was having the same problem. I figured out that gallon of coffee before shooting didn't help me any.
I also get my spring wound a little too tight when I step onto any range.
I also get my spring wound a little too tight when I step onto any range.
KingMedicine
Member
If your seriously scared, you go to the doctor... not a gun forum. Even a Doc in the box can do basic bloodwork and check you out. Thats the best best if your seriously worried about this issue.
Now if your just really confused about the issue, All the above answers could fit the bill. Blood sugar has always been the first stop for me... that and hydration.
Now if your just really confused about the issue, All the above answers could fit the bill. Blood sugar has always been the first stop for me... that and hydration.
sonier
Member
go look for a cheap ruger MKII and practice till your content, then go back to bigger things.
DeepSouth
Random Guy
^^^^YEP!!!!
Shoot 5,000 rounds of 22 and the problem will go away.
Shoot 5,000 rounds of 22 and the problem will go away.
Palehorseman
Member
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- 736
Take out a .44 mag or larger and fire some off. After that, anything smaller and less powerful will seem like small potatos.
Brass Rain
Member
I kind of have a similar thing that happens. I always end up shooting with someone, never alone be it at the local range or in a semi-remote wooded area. And everybody that knows me knows me as the gun guy. So when people are observing me shooting, I feel like they're expecting me to make one-shot groups at any given distance. So that combined with my lack of practice makes me kind of jittery and I start anticipating recoil, and it gets even worse. But dry fire practice at home, alone? Steady as a rock--perfect trigger pull. I hate it so much. 
i guess by your "19-3" prefix that you own same S&W. have a friend (female and good looking prefered) load it without you being able to see [ her, ]. tell her to load it leaving 2-3 chambers empty each time in various patterns, and close it before handing it back.
you shoot the revolver. when it only goes "click", you will readily see what you are doing wrong. symptoms include:
1-heavy recoil.
2- "pulling" the muzzle in various directions.
3- closing of eyes before hammer drops.
<$0.02,
gunnie
]. tell her to load it leaving 2-3 chambers empty each time in various patterns, and close it before handing it back. you shoot the revolver. when it only goes "click", you will readily see what you are doing wrong. symptoms include:
1-heavy recoil.
2- "pulling" the muzzle in various directions.
3- closing of eyes before hammer drops.
<$0.02,
gunnie
I had a similar issue. It was primarily due to me shooting in an EXTREMELY HOT indoor range in the middle of the Florida summer. My body was freaking out and my hands were shaking and my shots went everywhere on the target. I had to recognize the problem, realize it was due to the heat, calm my body down to conserve energy, and then I shot a nice grouping.
Good Luck
Good Luck
Wow. you guys really cam out of the woodwork to help me out. Thank you so much. It's truly appreciated.
Went to the range with my .22lr. Steady as a rock. Bumped up to 9mm. Steady. .38spl. Steady. .40cal....steady again.
The other day it was just adrenaline from the joy of finally getting back to the range after so long. Now going back a second time in the same week it was better. I also went out for a quick run (2.5 miles) before going to the range to work off some energy. It was great. I got my groups back, even with some serious calibers.
So that's the solution. More range time. I kinda figured as much. It's the solution I like best.
To answer a few questions-
I'm in good shape. At 26 I run 3.5 miles every morning with the dog, and then hit the gym 2-3 nights/week on top of that. I avoid refined sugars, simple carbs, GMOs, preservatives, and saturated fats. Haven't eaten in a fast food restaurant in probably 10 years. Everything i eat is what I make from scratch (with the exception of a few condiments like ketchup). Health is not a problem.
No I don't slur my speech, nor has my gait changed. Thank G-d. If that were happening I'd seek medical attention promptly.
Very little caffeine intake and definitely not before going to the range.
Yeti- Ok fine. You're right. If I seriously thought I had a medical condition I'd have gone to a doctor rather than gunnies on the intarwebz. But I wanted to eliminate a simple solution like 'excitement' before spending the time and money to seek the help of a professional.
Went to the range with my .22lr. Steady as a rock. Bumped up to 9mm. Steady. .38spl. Steady. .40cal....steady again.
The other day it was just adrenaline from the joy of finally getting back to the range after so long. Now going back a second time in the same week it was better. I also went out for a quick run (2.5 miles) before going to the range to work off some energy. It was great. I got my groups back, even with some serious calibers.
So that's the solution. More range time. I kinda figured as much. It's the solution I like best.
To answer a few questions-
I'm in good shape. At 26 I run 3.5 miles every morning with the dog, and then hit the gym 2-3 nights/week on top of that. I avoid refined sugars, simple carbs, GMOs, preservatives, and saturated fats. Haven't eaten in a fast food restaurant in probably 10 years. Everything i eat is what I make from scratch (with the exception of a few condiments like ketchup). Health is not a problem.
No I don't slur my speech, nor has my gait changed. Thank G-d. If that were happening I'd seek medical attention promptly.
Very little caffeine intake and definitely not before going to the range.
Yeti- Ok fine. You're right. If I seriously thought I had a medical condition I'd have gone to a doctor rather than gunnies on the intarwebz. But I wanted to eliminate a simple solution like 'excitement' before spending the time and money to seek the help of a professional.
I had a lot of problems with trembling when I shot a pistol league this past fall. Suggestions I have are make sure you don't have low blood sugar (don't eat a huge meal, though) and more importantly make sure you are not dehydrated! My shaking was always worse if I was dehydrated.
yeti
Member
That's good, it's just when you use words like "really scared" or" kind of scared," that's doctor time. Annoyed, baffled, confused, them we can handle with our wealth of medical knowledge. Scared calls for a Pro.
"Live fire jitters" was what I figured, and a lot more shooting was what I prescribed. I just wanted to be sure that if you felt it was more that you got properly check out. It has been my experience that shooting is a lot more fun if you are doing it while alive, the dead lose almost all of their fine motor skills, reloading becomes a nightmare.
oldfool
Member
once you have the basics down, handgun shooting always was, always will be, "more" mental than physical
doing poorly impacts the mental a lot, feeds on itself
me, never got the 'shakes' thataway, but do my worst when shooting with good friends and family not seen in a long time
because I think about how I am doing, and about not doing poorly...
instead of doing
don't think, shoot
the feedback factor is always there
the distraction factor does not need to be
I think OP has it nailed
(think about that Olympic pistol guy, who had gold in the bag, and blew the last shot
guy like that has all the physical skills can be had
he didn't blow the last shot on muscle memory, just lost focus)
doing poorly impacts the mental a lot, feeds on itself
me, never got the 'shakes' thataway, but do my worst when shooting with good friends and family not seen in a long time
because I think about how I am doing, and about not doing poorly...
instead of doing
don't think, shoot
the feedback factor is always there
the distraction factor does not need to be
I think OP has it nailed
(think about that Olympic pistol guy, who had gold in the bag, and blew the last shot
guy like that has all the physical skills can be had
he didn't blow the last shot on muscle memory, just lost focus)
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Yeah, but shoot/don't shoot drills are greatly simplified.
Thanks again everyone. I was just a bit taken aback that all of a sudden after 6 years of shooting (including 2 years of informal IDPA/IPSC style matches in college), I got all trembly. I'm glad this got sorted out.
Here's something from a psychological perspective:
Carrying / having a firearm bears great responsibilities.... it entails life and death consequences... and in a very true sense, you have power over life and death of another person at your fingertips...
For some... this is just to much responsibility to handle and are not psychologically prepared for it. This may be happening on an unconscious level ... manifesting itself as a "free-floating" anxiety (that is, the person on a conscious level is not aware of what is causing the fear).
Hint: Research General anxiety disorder and somatoform disorders.
Carrying / having a firearm bears great responsibilities.... it entails life and death consequences... and in a very true sense, you have power over life and death of another person at your fingertips...
For some... this is just to much responsibility to handle and are not psychologically prepared for it. This may be happening on an unconscious level ... manifesting itself as a "free-floating" anxiety (that is, the person on a conscious level is not aware of what is causing the fear).
Hint: Research General anxiety disorder and somatoform disorders.
gatopardo
Member
you mentioned
you mentioned your sights, that is a revealing piece of information, your connection with the target is the problem IMO, to establish a good target acquisition again you need to do something about the sights.
You don't mention the caliber, would I be wrong if I say it is a 40 s&w? 'cause that created an unconscious flinch in my routine since the round is so snappy, in fact the 40 s&w is snappier than a .45 acp which is a slower round.
If you for example had a scope and support the flinch would go away, so is the sight system like a map which will direct the slug wherever you would like it to go, if the slug is going somewhere else there lays the problem.
My advise use night sights, bright sights, any enhancement will help so your mind is busy with the sights rather than with the explosion or the target itself.
Here a semi with glow-on.com stuff, you could choose something else, this was my choice.
This is IMO a good example of what I'm trying to say, the attention is on the front leaf, that is the focus, plus release the trigger when you exhale automatically, remember when you put the finger on the trigger you are ready to shoot.
So if, lets say, one day you have to face an intruder at your home, and you have to protect your loved ones, you'll have nay problems opening on your assailant. here another example of glow-on.com stuff in action with the combination of an underhand tactical flashlight.
you mentioned your sights, that is a revealing piece of information, your connection with the target is the problem IMO, to establish a good target acquisition again you need to do something about the sights.
You don't mention the caliber, would I be wrong if I say it is a 40 s&w? 'cause that created an unconscious flinch in my routine since the round is so snappy, in fact the 40 s&w is snappier than a .45 acp which is a slower round.
If you for example had a scope and support the flinch would go away, so is the sight system like a map which will direct the slug wherever you would like it to go, if the slug is going somewhere else there lays the problem.
My advise use night sights, bright sights, any enhancement will help so your mind is busy with the sights rather than with the explosion or the target itself.
Here a semi with glow-on.com stuff, you could choose something else, this was my choice.
This is IMO a good example of what I'm trying to say, the attention is on the front leaf, that is the focus, plus release the trigger when you exhale automatically, remember when you put the finger on the trigger you are ready to shoot.
So if, lets say, one day you have to face an intruder at your home, and you have to protect your loved ones, you'll have nay problems opening on your assailant. here another example of glow-on.com stuff in action with the combination of an underhand tactical flashlight.
I highly doubt you have a psychological disorder. However, the cause of you trembling is most likely psychological. It's probably just subconscious nervousness or excitement.
I know that if I have not shot for a while, or am shooting a new gun, I get so excited that my hands start trembling a bit. Which really kills my accuracy at a time when I'm trying to test the accuracy of a new gun! I just have to take a deep breath, close my eyes and meditate for about 10 seconds then shake it out and I'm fine. I also start shaking a bit if the range session is especially long (200 rounds+) and then my form starts to deteriorate.
Are you sure your shooting form isn't over exerting your muscles and causing you to tremble?
I know that if I have not shot for a while, or am shooting a new gun, I get so excited that my hands start trembling a bit. Which really kills my accuracy at a time when I'm trying to test the accuracy of a new gun! I just have to take a deep breath, close my eyes and meditate for about 10 seconds then shake it out and I'm fine. I also start shaking a bit if the range session is especially long (200 rounds+) and then my form starts to deteriorate.
Are you sure your shooting form isn't over exerting your muscles and causing you to tremble?
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