Anyone else notice that time at the range sees to be one of the best stress reliever around? Why it is I don't truly know, personally I believe the focus required to repeatedly hit a target plus having to regulate breathing and body movement helps release stress. But that's just a hunch. Anyone else notice this, shooting seems to be stress reliever?
-
Having trouble using the site?
Contact support
Shooting as a stress reliever
- Thread starter walters900
- Start date
To me its like meditation, Nothing else exists but me the wind and the target, The best way to describe it is to be in a bubble.
Shit.. I thought I was the only one.
While going through my bitch of a Divorce, The exact things you said helped me relax, focus, breath, control....
While going through my bitch of a Divorce, The exact things you said helped me relax, focus, breath, control....
Yeah, I just went through one myself... I could certainly use some time back at the range but I just haven't felt up to the work. Need to load ammo, just haven't gotten back into it yet. Don't have nearly as much to spend anymore either, and probably won't until I move in a year or so.
I did take a few rifles to a friend's house and we shot some targets with that with an integral .22 and I must say it was the most fun I had all year. I certainly need more of it. It allows me to focus and it's just me and the target and the rifle. But I was also around other people and that helps too.
I guess I'll just have to force myself to do it at some point, but yeah, it's more than just stress relief, it is a lot like meditation. And it's one of the few things I've stuck with since 8yo.
Huh, I always thought it was cuz I masturbate when I shoot, even dry fire. But ya, I guess so.
So you are working the small caliber stuff then?Huh, I always thought it was cuz I masturbate when I shoot, even dry fire. But ya, I guess so.
They are different though. One is more about getting lost in the focus and control and the other is more of a zen thing, being a part of something as amazing and beautiful as the outdoors and focusing on the hunt. At least to me it's that way.
Working with the pump gun/shotty is always relaxing.Huh, I always thought it was cuz I masturbate when I shoot, even dry fire. But ya, I guess so.
R
Huh, I always thought it was cuz I masturbate when I shoot, even dry fire. But ya, I guess so.
How do the cat and the dog feel about this ?
For me, it's making obscenely loud noises and having the recoil hit me a little. A suppressor will never be on my must have list.
As for the targets, when I miss I am a little peeved so that's not as relaxing as I would like.
Bigger targets may be the solution... Life size elk in AR500 would be how much???
As for the targets, when I miss I am a little peeved so that's not as relaxing as I would like.
Bigger targets may be the solution... Life size elk in AR500 would be how much???
No matter the level of stress I'm under, a range trip makes it all better. It is downright therapeutic....even when my target does not look like Hillary Clinton
Are the noises from the rifle or are you masterbating Deaux . Seriously shooting always adjusts my attitude . I just learned of Dharma . One's true purpose in the Universe . I'm not completely sure that shooting is it and I wish I could afford to try .
Ooommmm , bang . Oooommm , bang . Ooooommmm , brrrrtttttt . He he
he .
Met a gentleman at my range that is chief of heart surgery at a top Boston hospital.
He had a new to him Surgeon action .308 in chassis atlas bipod with a nice Nightforce on it. It was his new to him, bought used, rifle he was just learning to shoot. He also happened to be foreign born from a country that is not gun friendly to its citizens.
Anyway he told me he liked shooting as it was his relaxation. I think thats pretty neat that guy that holds beating human hearts in his hand finds relaxation through shooting.
Sadly his typical Boston anti gun co workers told him he should stop his hobby as shooting was what "the lower class people" do in the US.
As a kind of funny side note after everyone welcomed him to his new hobby I think he was a little overwhelmed. He drove away forgetting his new rifle cased in a Pelican on a bench.
He had provided his phone number so I called him but he was already on his way back in a panic realizing he left his rifle behind.
He had a new to him Surgeon action .308 in chassis atlas bipod with a nice Nightforce on it. It was his new to him, bought used, rifle he was just learning to shoot. He also happened to be foreign born from a country that is not gun friendly to its citizens.
Anyway he told me he liked shooting as it was his relaxation. I think thats pretty neat that guy that holds beating human hearts in his hand finds relaxation through shooting.
Sadly his typical Boston anti gun co workers told him he should stop his hobby as shooting was what "the lower class people" do in the US.
As a kind of funny side note after everyone welcomed him to his new hobby I think he was a little overwhelmed. He drove away forgetting his new rifle cased in a Pelican on a bench.
He had provided his phone number so I called him but he was already on his way back in a panic realizing he left his rifle behind.
D
Deleted member 10043
Guest
It's a game of concentration and a little meditation. Even when reloading. It is also all about the guns. Pay attention and shoot safe.
Shooting stuff at point blank range with a 12 gauge with #8 bird shot is a great stress reliever. Kind of like when we were kids and our dads gave us a sledgehammer in a landfill and we went to town! Yeah, I'm a redneck kid I know.
Obviously, his peers have no idea what the hell they are talking about. I get the same kind of reactions when I’m around people that talk about hunting. Everyone thinks it’s billy bob redneck that does such low life kinds of things. It really brings out their ignorance because we all know shooting and hunting is expensive as hell. It isn’t your typical redneck by any means. Not saying they aren’t out there but you kind of have to have a certain social status to even begin to do these things. I’ve met people from all walks of life doing it. Doctors, lawyers, guys from NASA, current mil/LEO to garbage men, teachers and so forth. Literally, all walks of life. And it is indeed super expensive. I’m trying to figure out how some people I know shoot all the time. I’d like to go more but I have so much going on with wife, kids, work, house and so on that I stay strapped for cash and time! Maybe one of these days I can get back into competing and such.
As far as the relaxation goes, you are not alone. I to find that it centers me, at least while I am there, but it soon goes away on the drive back home or having to unpack all my gear. Lmao. I love going but absolutely hate packing all my shit up to get there. Haha.
Driving to/from the range down a narrow country road with a creek on the side helps me. I get there just before dawn an listen to mother-nature prior to hanging targets an shooting. Some days are much better when I hang 1/4 size photos of domestic enemy's. The drive back is most pleasant when I can look at the photo's, stop an hear the water running over the small dam while watching mother-natures off spring be their self's. Some places have their rewards.
"Gunpowder Therapy". Out of all the stress management techniques I have tried this works the best. I always feel better leaving the range. Even if I am pissy because I shot poorer than my potential I still feel better then before I went to the range.
Last edited:
I like that, "Gunpowder Therapy". I think I might have to start using it describe this phenomenon, if you don't mind.
Shooting decently powered calibers at 1000 yards on a nice day when there is no hurry can be a totally zen like experience & leave you happy & calm.
Shooting a good 1911 and taking your time can have the same effect as well.
Shooting a good 1911 and taking your time can have the same effect as well.
By all means. I don't own it, but it is a very accurate description. I find the meditation and having to relax and put yourself in a "zen trance like state" an excellent management for the day to day bullshit and a way to let go of whatever is eating at you that day, even if its just for a few hours. Beats crawling into a bottle.
*edit. In response to walters900. W54 posted while I was typing
*edit. In response to walters900. W54 posted while I was typing
Last edited:
This reminds me of a range trip I had during my Divorce. My target of choice those days, was scaled down pictures of my soon to be Ex. And the end of a great Zen like day, pick up my pictures and go home. Well, Around noon the following day,I get a call from the Club President, telling me that I left a "target" up at 200 yards. Lucky for me we are friends and he knew what I was going through. I hate like hell to think what would have happened if someone else found the " target".
No stress relief at all. Almost all my shooting is competition related so every trip to the backyard for practice has a set of goals and par times to beat.
I think Trump's stress would be relieved if he shot Rosenstein. Trump has not actually told me that. I am just speculating.
I think Mueller is relieving his stress by making up every flimsy indictment he can think of.
Comey's stress would be relieved if he could install Her Ladyship Hillary Cunton in the White House.
Obama's stress would be relieved if he could make all white people move back to Europe, but keep their tax revenues.
I think Mueller is relieving his stress by making up every flimsy indictment he can think of.
Comey's stress would be relieved if he could install Her Ladyship Hillary Cunton in the White House.
Obama's stress would be relieved if he could make all white people move back to Europe, but keep their tax revenues.
You people are disgusting. Uh guy falls off the map for a few hours and WHAM !! This is what he get's? Brutal Bastards !!! I'm tell'n ya. Where's @Kristian_Jensen when ya need him..........
You people are disgusting. Uh guy falls off the map for a few hours and WHAM !! This is what he get's? Brutal Bastards !!! I'm tell'n ya. Where's @Kristian_Jensen when ya need him..........
Picking up his new/latest welfare check ? (He still hasn’t answered my question about if he is “that guy” (?).
J, I think you chased him off
I hate to admit this but trap shooting is better stress relief than rifle shooting. The time element makes you shift your focus imediately to shooting, the targets are moving and reactive plus you're working with a pattern instead of a bullet so hits are pretty easy.
One time a clay flew right up in to my sights. I didn't have to move a thing beside my finger. I got both clays with one shot.
It wasn't dialing in my dope, making a wind call and then waiting for a lull. It's reaction and hand eye coordination.
One time a clay flew right up in to my sights. I didn't have to move a thing beside my finger. I got both clays with one shot.
It wasn't dialing in my dope, making a wind call and then waiting for a lull. It's reaction and hand eye coordination.
I prefer movers myself. Makes one have to think for their self instead of just being brain dead. The faster the better,...
Awesome first post. I crank off to relieve my stress, but running sound good, too.
There’s been a spate of great first posts. This one is no exception. I think he was volunteering to be a mover.
I always think of what my Dad said to me when I was 6, "Son, you will always be doing this for yourself. Take your time, make each one count..." Throughout all of the extreme tradegies in my life, shooting has always been a stress relief for me. I have only competed against myself, whether laughing outrageously or aggravated beyond belief...When I settle in, focus on the target, start the firing sequence it has never mattered what I was doing. Archery, black powder, pistol, small bore or high power, when in the bubble, the world falls away. No bills, deadlines, jobs, disease, injuries, assholes or issues...focus, breathe, pause, squeeze, send it...my blood pressure drops almost as much as when I smell salt water at the ocean. No matter whether broadhead, minie, paper patch or jacketed, whether punching paper, haybales, or putting food on the table or defending my family... We, as shooters are blessed with capabilities that the masses will never understand, the timid will never know, the powerful and cruel will always fear....I am honored to know you all...
I quit shooting for a few years because it seemed to bring back bad memories and feelings. But a couple of years ago God granted me the privilege of running into somebody I worked with a couple of decades ago. My friend, after hearing about my struggles, suggested that I get back behind the rifle... best fucken advice I'd really ever been given. Well, other than the shut the fuck up advice.
For me the only time I feel comfortable and at peace is behind a rifle. And not just anytime but when prone, locked in with a sling. Gets me to a one with god an nature. For a little bit that fact fuked with me. Lucky for me I know a behavioral modification specialist who helped me deal with that. After learning I wasn't alone and how I felt wasn't unusual, that guilt was gone.
Unfortunately, do the life changes I don't have the opportunity to go to the range is often as I like. But, when stress gets up there I still grab the pellet gun and shoot in the backyard.
For me the only time I feel comfortable and at peace is behind a rifle. And not just anytime but when prone, locked in with a sling. Gets me to a one with god an nature. For a little bit that fact fuked with me. Lucky for me I know a behavioral modification specialist who helped me deal with that. After learning I wasn't alone and how I felt wasn't unusual, that guilt was gone.
Unfortunately, do the life changes I don't have the opportunity to go to the range is often as I like. But, when stress gets up there I still grab the pellet gun and shoot in the backyard.
It took 4 hours to come up with this awesome post??
Something tells me it's going to be much longer before we get another one from him.
There’s times where I noticed I’ll be very irritable, pissed off, and overall unpleasant person, and then I’ll realize that I haven’t gone shooting for like 3 or 4 weeks.
Shooting precision rifles scratches that itch even more. And going to a match hits it even better. Nothing like some competition and marksmanship
Shooting precision rifles scratches that itch even more. And going to a match hits it even better. Nothing like some competition and marksmanship
Classic example of dredging right here wonder how much they are reading through and what they are looking for specifically.
Just thinking we should get Dirty D to post an eye bleach requiring picture for every one they revive they might get the picture
Just thinking we should get Dirty D to post an eye bleach requiring picture for every one they revive they might get the picture
How do the cat and the dog feel about this ?
rutt row
I developed a Zen Shooting Program for Veterans that centers around the Breathe, Relax, Aim, Squeeze principle. I asked the local VA mental health to help develop a relaxation therapy side to help those individuals with my same interest; crickets after several attempts to contact them.
Similar threads
