[MNnice]

I made the big mistake of starting my wife with the same .38 special I use with the same hollow point 138 grain ammo I use and the recoil was so bad she hurt her wrist and said she’ll never shoot it again. Be careful.

[GailA]

Hubby made sure my first trip I had the right size .380, knew I’d never be able to handle his 9mm Ruger. Years later when OA got so bad I had to move to a revolver, Tarsus Ultra Lite, my hands are small.

BTW anyone interested and can afford to open a Range/Gun store, Top Brass in Millington, TN closed a month ago. 40+ yr business. TN is very Gun friendly state, open carry, life time permits. Gets better in January.

[circlecity]

“I made the big mistake of starting my wife with the same .38 special I use with the same hollow point 138 grain ammo I use and the recoil was so bad she hurt her wrist and said she’ll never shoot it again. Be careful.”

Yep. I learned to start beginners with rifles, preferably, but not necessarily, a .22. And DO NOT use a short barrel or “snub nose” pistol when introducing them to hand guns.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Another thing people do is let their sense of "humor" get the best of them. Playing jokes on a new shooter of either sex is a bad idea but will probably damage the relationship if you are doing it on a first time female shooter.

Women are bombarded by society with the message that "guns are for guys" and a girl who shoots either wants to be a male or is in some other way unnatural.

So the fact that she came along means that she is willing to push back against that conditioning but it also means that she might be on the edge. Playing practical jokes (something that I tend to strongly agree with Robert Heinlein about) is often enough to push her back over the edge.

So if you are unable to keep your sense of humor under control ask someone else to be her teacher.