pain after gunshot wound

[Stomper]

I love the term "accidental discharge."

Followed by, "it's your baby!"

 

[rjmt]

You put your hand in front of the barrel when you're clearing it?

I had never had a hang fire in 50 years of shooting
didn't know it existed in modern factory ammo
after several seconds I thought I was safe, just a dead round, I've encountered those before
my 2 fingers were in front of the barrel for about 10 msec as I swept my hand up from my side - pistol still held down at 45 deg
10 msec in my entire 70 years of life
hand is still disabled, muzzle blast cauterized the muscle for my ring finger
use a hook like this for heavy lifting

 

[Flopsweat]

About 10 years ago I had a kidney stone. Worst pain I ever had (including my crushed foot). It felt like someone was kicking me in the side. I thought at first it was a pinched nerve, so I took some Oxycodone I had (ironically, left over from my foot) - that didn't help at all. So after a couple of hours I called my kids at 5AM and asked them to take me to the ER.

The ER diagnosed it was a kidney stone and an XRay confirmed it. They gave me a shot of Dilaudid and that didn't help. Then they put me on a morphine drip. First time in decades that I felt no pain whatsoever - I was happy for about 4 hours. The stone must have passed by the time that wore off.

Just the same - I was able to walk & talk, and I probably could have driven myself to the ER, I just didn't trust that I could and thought it was better that someone else did.

Interestingly, when I burnt my arm badly in 2018 I felt very little pain, even when the ER cleaned the burn.

Morphine is amazing stuff. They gave me some during my second heart attack. Not only does it kill the pain way better than any of the new "safer" stuff, it sucks the fear right out of you. I was joking around with the ER staff while they were prepping me for emergency surgery.

Pain from impact, like barking you shins, banging your head, smashing a finger etc. will abate very quickly for me if I just relax and ignore it. I generally take a deep breath - which can happen reflexively anyway - then let it out and relax while assessing my surroundings. Then I quickly examine the wound to assure it's not too bad, and go about my business. I used to almost focus on the pain, which of course in hindsight will only make it worse. I seem to be able to block chronic pain for long periods of time too. No idea how I do that. I think a lot of people can do that.

 

[RVTECH]

I had never had a hang fire in 50 years of shooting

I did once, but it went off fairly quickly, kind of like a flintlock firearm delay. I am sure it was probably a reload of mine but it was long ago and I can't remember (or the caliber!)

and this story is a good reminder to me to treat that round as "live" until it has been removed from the firearm and properly disposed.

This is very true!

A while back I had a FTF 9mm round in my PCC (old primers).

While giving it a bit of time pointed down range I ejected the rounds and left it lay on the ground for a while then picked it up, chambered it and still FTF.

Later at home I 'pulled' the round and put the empty case in my CZ 75, pulled the trigger and it went BANG!

 

[Capn Jack]

Morphine is amazing stuff.

Gives the world a reddish tinge and vastly improves the looks of your nurses.

 

[po18guy]

Back in '71 or '72, a high school buddy was involved with some, ummm... interesting folks. One morning early he answered the door and one of those folks shot him several times with a .38 Spl. Instinct told him that he could fight the guy and die, or go lie down and wait for help. He did the latter, and lived. He described the sensation of being shot like being poked in the gut repeatedly with a finger. Later on, different story.

 

[American123]

my son and I were discussing this tonight after watching a TV show where a person was shot in an extremity and fell to the ground incapacitated
2 years ago, I took an accidental discharge to my left hand - a 9mm went through my hand and separated 2 fingers off my hand
I pressed my hand against my side and walked back up to the house - felt no pain - only amazement that my hand was bleeding
as a former combat medic from '69, I advised my son how to care for my hand and we waited 30 min for the ambulance to show up
I sat in a chair on our gravel road for 30 min with my son, had intelligent conversations, made jokes and still experienced no pain
but my wife was uncontrollable and in panic - blood all over the kitchen
pain did kick in about 45 min later
I had seen this in the Military and asked the trauma surgeon about this at Emanuel Hosp
She said my body experienced nerve pain overload and shut down the nerves, allowing the body to still function
I was able to function for 45 min without pain
but she said every person is different with pain tolerance

so - in a self defense situation - how can you expect an opponent to respond after being shot?

View attachment 1185509 View attachment 1185510

Psychological stop vs physical stop.

"I've been shot" - lays down, overwhelmed, psychological stop.

Physical stop: you no longer have the physical ability to continue because the bullet has severed or obliterated the body's physical means to do so (spine, CNS, major bones supporting weight, etc)

 

[Member 34319]

Real question is, when the adrenaline wore off, did you basically fall dead asleep where you stood?

I practically blew part of my face off before my son was born. I didn't feel it. Didn't really feel anything, maybe a little when I thought it was worth attempting to pull a 4" shard of glass from my forehead. ER visit went well. Got home, cleaned the blood off everything, hit the couch and slept for 12 hours. Wife said I was out cold.

 

[Member 53328]

I had never had a hang fire in 50 years of shooting
didn't know it existed in modern factory ammo
after several seconds I thought I was safe, just a dead round, I've encountered those before
my 2 fingers were in front of the barrel for about 10 msec as I swept my hand up from my side - pistol still held down at 45 deg
10 msec in my entire 70 years of life
hand is still disabled, muzzle blast cauterized the muscle for my ring finger
use a hook like this for heavy lifting

View attachment 1185904

All it takes is 10 msec. I have a family friend who had an "accidental discharge" with his Glock 43. Put a round in his leg. Apparently it was the Glocks fault…. Guns are tools that have mechanics (they can fail) although it's rare for a Glock. Come to find out he had his finger on the trigger when he was clearing his pistol after I grilled him about it. Safety comes first. No matter how little or how much time it takes. Complacency kills.

 

[Flopsweat]

Real question is, when the adrenaline wore off, did you basically fall dead asleep where you stood?

I practically blew part of my face off before my son was born. I didn't feel it. Didn't really feel anything, maybe a little when I thought it was worth attempting to pull a 4" shard of glass from my forehead. ER visit went well. Got home, cleaned the blood off everything, hit the couch and slept for 12 hours. Wife said I was out cold.

My first heart attack I literally fell dead when the adrenaline wore off. They had EKG stuff hooked up to me and recorded zero heartbeat and respiration before they started CPR on me. I was just laying there on the floor taking the Big Nap.

 

[The Heretic]

Morphine is amazing stuff. They gave me some during my second heart attack. Not only does it kill the pain way better than any of the new "safer" stuff, it sucks the fear right out of you. I was joking around with the ER staff while they were prepping me for emergency surgery.

Pain from impact, like barking you shins, banging your head, smashing a finger etc. will abate very quickly for me if I just relax and ignore it. I generally take a deep breath - which can happen reflexively anyway - then let it out and relax while assessing my surroundings. Then I quickly examine the wound to assure it's not too bad, and go about my business. I used to almost focus on the pain, which of course in hindsight will only make it worse. I seem to be able to block chronic pain for long periods of time too. No idea how I do that. I think a lot of people can do that.

I have chronic pain 24/7/365 and it has gotten worse over time. I screwed up my neck/back when I was 17 when I flipped a car end for end, twice.

Some days it is annoying, other days I can barely walk. Almost every day I need to take OTC painkillers to moderate the pain enough to where it isn't annoying. Sometimes I have to take a prescription muscle relaxant to sleep - I get muscle spasms & throbbing pains on my right side most days and sometimes it keeps me awake. Usually I can deal with it - but it is annoying.

The morphine reminded me of what it was like to not have any pain at all. Unfortunately I do not know of any pain med that doesn't have some side effect when taken regularly long term. I am considering CBD, but it has a side effect of interacting with my cholesterol med (statins). So I make due with tylenol/aspirin, sometimes Robaxin, chiro/massage visits.

 

[rjmt]

All it takes is 10 msec. I have a family friend who had an "accidental discharge" with his Glock 43. Put a round in his leg. Apparently it was the Glocks fault…. Guns are tools that have mechanics (they can fail) although it's rare for a Glock. Come to find out he had his finger on the trigger when he was clearing his pistol after I grilled him about it. Safety comes first. No matter how little or how much time it takes. Complacency kills.

that question came up if I had my finger in the trigger guard accidently
no, I had just ejected the mag and the Glock was at an angle - I was looking into the trigger guard and saw the trigger in the rear position when it went off

 

[Flopsweat]

I have chronic pain 24/7/365 and it has gotten worse over time. I screwed up my neck/back when I was 17 when I flipped a car end for end, twice.

Some days it is annoying, other days I can barely walk. Almost every day I need to take OTC painkillers to moderate the pain enough to where it isn't annoying. Sometimes I have to take a prescription muscle relaxant to sleep - I get muscle spasms & throbbing pains on my right side most days and sometimes it keeps me awake. Usually I can deal with it - but it is annoying.

The morphine reminded me of what it was like to not have any pain at all. Unfortunately I do not know of any pain med that doesn't have some side effect when taken regularly long term. I am considering CBD, but it has a side effect of interacting with my cholesterol med (statins). So I make due with tylenol/aspirin, sometimes Robaxin, chiro/massage visits.

Sounds awful. Do you have joint pain also? Statins cause me severe joint pain that cannot be mitigated by Vitamin D, Glucosamine and Chondroitin. I've spoken with others who have had similar experiences. I'm not suggesting you stop taking it, just providing some data that might be helpful at some point.

 

[rjmt]

that question came up if I had my finger in the trigger guard accidently
no, I had just ejected the mag and the Glock was at an angle - I was looking into the trigger guard and saw the trigger in the rear position when it went off

and I am not afraid of the pistol that shot me - I have fired hundreds of rounds through that Glock in the last 2 years with no malfunctions

 

[Member 53328]

and I am not afraid of the pistol that shot me - I have fired hundreds of rounds through that Glock in the last 2 years with no malfunctions

Oh I'm not scared of Glocks either. I have one pointed at my d!ck from the moment I wake up to when I go to bed at night. I have full confidence in Glocks. I just personally would have just handled the hang fire differently.

 

[rjmt]

Oh I'm not scared of Glocks either. I have one pointed at my d!ck from the moment I wake up to when I go to bed at night. I have full confidence in Glocks. I just personally would have just handled the hang fire differently.

well, so would I now!
I spent time studying the inner working of the Glock after the incident
it's a wonderfully safe firearm, I just dislike the trigger pull
I'm an old 1911 guy, even in 9mm, but bought the Glock so my son would learn about them

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mentioned in past posts about getting hit twice by 7.62x39 while in Vietnam. Once in the stomach and once in the leg. Also, had one grazed my left bubblegum check (I out ran that one. I felt no pain at all from any of them even though it seemed like forever before a medic got to me.. Always chalked it up to the intense shock of the round hitting flesh. The surgeons cut from top to bottom on my calf to allow the muscle to expand and not cut off blood flow. This was 54 years ago and the leg is only now weakening leaving me with a limp.

 

[The Heretic]

Sounds awful. Do you have joint pain also?

Not in general. My spine causes a lot of problems, but generally not chronic pain in other joints. Most of the pain, besides my spine (neck and lower back) is muscular, especially on my right side.

 

[The Heretic]

Mentioned in past posts about getting hit twice by 7.62x39 while in Vietnam. Once in the stomach and once in the leg. Also, had one grazed my left bubblegum check (I out ran that one. I felt no pain at all from any of them even though it seemed like forever before a medic got to me.. Always chalked it up to the intense shock of the round hitting flesh. The surgeons cut from top to bottom on my calf to allow the muscle to expand and not cut off blood flow. This was 54 years ago and the leg is only now weakening leaving me with a limp.

Went to college with an older vet who had been hit by 12.7mm AA - walked with a cane and severe limp, but he walked.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Went to college with an older vet who had been hit by 12.7mm AA - walked with a cane and severe limp, but he walked.

That's a win.