Describe for us, in your own words, the experience of being shot. Translate the searing kiss of hot lead into words for those of us who will never know it otherwise.
What’s it like?
I’ve been shot with a BB gun several times. Kind of stings, but no big deal. Not a real firearm, of course.
Pressure and a thud. Kinda like being hit with a hammer. Then a slight burn, gradually but quickly transforming to a dull ache and then a searing pain. Then it hurts like hell. Then it goes back to a sharp throbbing pain. It sucks.
I took a ricochet on a firing range once. It hit me in the ankle and partially penetrated my boot. It didn’t penetrate the skin but did break two bones. At first, it felt like someone had hit me with a hammer. I didn’t seem terribly unpleasant right away, but after about 30 seconds, it began to sting and throb with an incredible intensity. I was fortunate enough not to need surgery but did spend six weeks in a cast.
Lesson learned: Never shoot next to a little man (about 5’4") shooting a .44 Magnum Desert Eagle. He hit an overhead beam because he couldn’t control the recoil and double-tapped the triger.
Sewalk: I’ll be sure never to do that!
[Larry King]
We hear from wartime anecdotes how the victim never heard the shot that fell him- did you hear the shot that got you?
What happened after that? Was the shooter arrested? Did it really immobilize you or were you still able to move around after wrapping a dirty rag around the wound like on TV?
Did it leave any cool scars?
[/Larry King]
I’ll second Turbo Dog on the “being hit by a hammer” feeling. Or maybe a baseball bat. The force of the impact basically shocks you so that you don’t feel much of anything for a few seconds-long enough to look down and wonder “what the crap was that?” and then you see the blood. It does suck big time. Apart from the initial searing pain, like a burn, I think the worst is the throbbing at night that keeps you up. I have a dime-size brown scar on my left lower side (approx. three inches above my hipbone) and a quarter-sized one, not as neat, on the corresponding side of my back. They’ve faded, but you can still see them if you look.
At least in my case, I didn’t hear it, but since I was distracted at the time, I don’t know if it would have made a difference.
What about those of us who’ve been stabbed, huh? Do you wanna hear anything about that?
I fell down a flight of stairs once …
got hit in the upper-arm once with a .22. Stupid little punk gang banger decided to shoot me. All I remember was that it burned and the bullet went straight through. I got him back.
Also, I’ve been shot with BBs. No big deal there.
I work at the shooting range at a scout camp. Little kids often shoot me w/ bb’s, that kinda sucks.
I’ve never been shot, but my best friend has been shot twice. Both times by members of his family (being drunk and/or stupid).
He tries to avoid seeing them now if at all possible.
–sublight.
He had to be shot twice before arriving at that conclusion?
Well, he had to wait until he finished high school before he moved out.
If it makes any difference, he’s hospitalized many of his older brothers in return. He, however, just used his fists.
He’s much better now, honest.
–sublight.
Does rock salt in the tuchas count?
I will not steal watermelons from the watermelon patch.
I will not steal watermelons from the watermelon patch.
I will not steal watermelons from the watermelon patch.
I will not steal watermelons from the watermelon patch.
I will not steal watermelons from the watermelon patch.
*
*
*
*
I will not steal watermelons from the watermelon patch.
Yeah, I had a hangnail once. It really sucked.
I have never been shot by a real firearm i shot myself with a pellet gun in the hand accidently once. It didn’t penetrate the skin, but it left a huge blood blister that stayed for a week and hurt like hell.
If you don’t mind explaining, how/where/why did you get shot?
Robbery? War? Police? Angry Ex? Accident?
I worked as the shooting sports director at a scout camp. The scarriest thing that ever happened was this kid rolling back off his mat (from prone), sitting up, and pointing the gun right at my chest and repeatedly jerking on the trigger saying “this thing won’t shoot, this thing won’t shoot”.
They always told us to never yell at campers…I yelled.
I got a graze from a .22 LR across the left deltoid when I was about 11. Hurt like hell, but was more of a very bad burn/sear than anything else.
I also took a ricochet in the face on two separate occasions at indoor shooting ranges (about six years apart). The first one was from a .357. Busted the frames on my RayBan Shooters, but they did their job. The second was from a .45 ACP. Put a bad scratch on my Gargoyles. Now I wear Oakleys. I hope I don’t have to find out how they hold up. Being shot in the face really sucks, even if it is at significantly reduced force.
Both ricochets had pretty similar effects in terms of damage to me. Think being hit in a pair of shatterproof glasses with a small headed ballpeen hammer. The glasses shoving back into my into my brow/flipping forward on my cheekbones was where most of the pain came from.
And let that be a lesson kids: Always wear your eye gear. The bruising certainly beats the mangling and possible death that could occur otherwise.
I have to say I’d be very interested in hearing this as well. Having been punctured by many sharp things, but none bigger than a doctor’s needle, I’m curious what it feels like. How big a blade? How serious was the injury?
I never want to be shot or stabbed, but I can’t deny an intense curiosity as to what both feel like. If I could guarantee no permanent damage (oh…like DEATH, or paralysis!), I’d probably have one if not both done to me.