[smed1869]

Hey all,

I have a friend at work that is a CCW instructor and has offered to give the class to my wife. As the subject reads, she will be 13-14 weeks prego with our 3rd baby during the class. She would like to take the class, but there are two potential safety issues that I was hoping you all could chime in on.

1 - Exposure to lead, gun smoke, etc. during the qualifications.
2 - Excessive noise for our baby in utero.

The range is indoor in the instructor's basement, but he has adquate HEPA ventilation, informing that he has '10 air exchanges per minute' with his filtering system. For the noise factor, he has offered her to use a .22 with a muffler/suppressor, so I think noise won't be a problem (provided there aren't others around shooting non-muzzled handguns).

I know it will ultimately come down to what my wife and I are personally comfortable with, but I'd be interested to hear the opinions of the instructors and other knowledgeable folks out there. Opinions from the ladyfolk would also be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Doodles]

Congrats on your coming newborn. To be safe, you might want to check with her OB-GYN about the exposures.

 

[booyah]

I'd say if you have a surpressed 22, and private range time, then I dont see too much of a problem for it

private range time would greatly reduce the air contaminants, and the noise. I would say its probably at that point not much different than a lot of other activities.

My question though is, whats the hurry? Personally I'd wait till the bun is out of the oven just to be extra safe

 

[spwz99]

my girlfriend's sister is pregnant as well and she was told no shooting whatsoever by the local gunrange (far from an obgyn, i know) because of the noise exposure.
We didnt worry about double checking with her doc, though. Better safe than sorry.

 

[cammo]

Personally, I'd skip the range portion until after the baby is out. Or, I would at least get several opinions from several practicing CCW instructors. I bet a lot of ob-gyn's would not know squat about it.

A nice evening at the range then dinner afterwards might be just the thing to chase away those post partum blues!!

 

[TheFreeman]

Kudos on the kiddo! I would wait. Better safe than sorry on something like that.

Have her spend this time studying the laws and such in your area instead.

 

[gilraen]

If she's the only person shooting at the time, and the gun has a suppressor, I don't see a problem. (And I've had 3 kids, so I know the worries.)

There are a few things that are poisonous enough that you don't want a single dose. (Thalidomide, anyone?) But I think she and the baby would be safe.

Congrats, btw. And you thought two was hard work!

 

[pax]

I would not use an indoor range if it's at all avoidable. Air filters are rarely all that good, and even with good air filtering, there's still lead on every exposed surface in the building.

Take that same suppressed .22 outdoors to get her qualified. And have her avoid the range after that until after the baby is born, because once she's got her permit there's no longer any urgency to live fire work, and good reason to avoid it until the risk is lower.

Either way, have her shower and change clothes as soon as possible after shooting.

And always, with little kids in the house: change your shoes before you enter the house after you've been to the range, esp if you regularly use an indoor range. Tracking lead onto the carpet where the kids crawl is avoidable, but few people remember to avoid it.

pax

 

[Sejune]

Congrats on the new baby! First, I am not an instructor. I am a nursing student As for the hearing, a baby developing in the womb doesn't develop hearing until about the 24th week of pregnancy. That being said however doesn't mean the baby won't react to the vibration from the shots being fired.

Here is a good article on the subject, and should hopefully answer many of your questions.

Shooting while pregnant

 

[threefeathers]

Sejune, thank you for posting that article, i will use it with my students.

 

[OldVet]

:bier:
Sounds like the instructor has covered the bases. Let her have the .22, and maybe the baby will be a natural-born "son of a gun"!:haha:

 

[Paco]

Here is what we did when my Wife was prego. She asked the instructor if she could go first and be the only one on the line. This way the range was fairly fresh and not as loud. Luckily the Instructor let her do it.

It is only 50 rounds, at least here in TX, and not all at once (only 3 to 5 at a time).

Congrats and good luck to the Wife!

 

[puffer]

Sejune, thank you for posting that article, i will use it with my students.

DITTO

Puffer

 

[puffer]

I am a NRA TC Inst. & a WA State Hunter Ed. Lead Instructor.

!. In both cases, as a part of our "firearm Safety training, we warn about the "health hazards" of shooting & pregnancy, & HIGHLY SUGGEST, that they check with their Doctor, prior to proceeding.
2. When we Train on our "cub's" Indoor or Out door ranges, we REQUIRE a Signed Waiver ( as per the Range's SOP ( note several other ranges we train on, also require this))

IMHO, I would advise waiting until after the birth. Also, I would exercise all "hygiene Procedures" as stated by PAX.

Puffer

 

[Diesel Man]

Always one in the pipe:

 

[bladenbullet]

I would not use an indoor range if it's at all avoidable. Air filters are rarely all that good, and even with good air filtering, there's still lead on every exposed surface in the building.

Take that same suppressed .22 outdoors to get her qualified. And have her avoid the range after that until after the baby is born, because once she's got her permit there's no longer any urgency to live fire work, and good reason to avoid it until the risk is lower.

Either way, have her shower and change clothes as soon as possible after shooting.

And always, with little kids in the house: change your shoes before you enter the house after you've been to the range, esp if you regularly use an indoor range. Tracking lead onto the carpet where the kids crawl is avoidable, but few people remember to avoid it.

pax

there may be concerns after she delivers also if she is nursing...i would go for the outdoor range after delivery personally...

 

[NC Bullseye]

I'm also an NC instructor and I have to ask, is there a compelling reason that she can't wait until after the birth to get a CHP? Is there any reason NOT to be safe rather than sorry later?

While it may be just fine to shoot while pregnant is it worth the risk of finding out down the line that if you had just waited your child would have been fine?

Having to shoot in a real self defense situation is one thing, but to shoot just to qualify is totally different.

I'd say wait the few months. Is the child's health worth the risk? Will the friend NOT give her the class later?

 

[smed1869]

Thanks all for the replies.

There is no hurry for her to take the class. She could take it with my instructor friend anytime. It is absolutely better being safe than sorry.

If 50 people replied saying that lead exposure in a well-ventilated indoor range is hands-down not an issue, then we might rethink it. But given the overall response, I think we'll go with our instinct which was to wait.

The only trouble with waiting is that then we'll have 3 kids to try to schedule her taking the class around, and she plans to nurse for 1 year, so it just becomes more of a hassle to get it done and pushes it back quite a bit. Regardless, it's better to never have to worry about any potential negative effects, so we'll just wait, like many here have said. Outdoor range after birth sounds like the way to go.

She will probably be in the 'rarely carry' category anyway, but she wants to take the course and I'm going to be fully supportive of that.


Thanks again folks!

 

[limatunes]

Thanks all for the replies.

There is no hurry for her to take the class. She could take it with my instructor friend anytime. It is absolutely better being safe than sorry.

If 50 people replied saying that lead exposure in a well-ventilated indoor range is hands-down not an issue, then we might rethink it. But given the overall response, I think we'll go with our instinct which was to wait.

The only trouble with waiting is that then we'll have 3 kids to try to schedule her taking the class around, and she plans to nurse for 1 year, so it just becomes more of a hassle to get it done and pushes it back quite a bit. Regardless, it's better to never have to worry about any potential negative effects, so we'll just wait, like many here have said. Outdoor range after birth sounds like the way to go.

She will probably be in the 'rarely carry' category anyway, but she wants to take the course and I'm going to be fully supportive of that.


Thanks again folks!

Wise choice!

I shot ONCE while I was pregnant but it was early in the pregnancy I didn't know it at the time. After I found out it was dry-fire practice only from then on out.

It's just one of those things you don't want to risk.

 

[r0rtiz]

Is it absolutely necessary?

I'm also an NC instructor and I have to ask, is there a compelling reason that she can't wait until after the birth to get a CHP? Is there any reason NOT to be safe rather than sorry later?

While it may be just fine to shoot while pregnant is it worth the risk of finding out down the line that if you had just waited your child would have been fine?

Having to shoot in a real self defense situation is one thing, but to shoot just to qualify is totally different.

I'd say wait the few months. Is the child's health worth the risk? Will the friend NOT give her the class later?

+1
My wife and I had our second child about three months ago. As such we haven’t been to the range together for some time now. I cannot imagine there being any risk given all of the precautions that you are taking, but as a father I would never want to be guilty of knowingly putting my loved ones in a situation where the was even a remote chance of being injured unless it was absolutely necessary. Is the CCW absolutely necessary? I would wait until after she is done breastfeeding the baby.

Just my opinion.