Good choice in home protection weapons. Shotguns are great.
I’ve never understood the “kick” thing though. I own two 12Ga. Mossberg 500 pump shotguns. They look identical, although they were manufactured 12 years apart.
The newer shotgun will bruise my shoulder each and every time I fire it; the older shotgun has absolutely no kick at all. I could be shooting a 22 for all the kick that’s there.
Could be the choke - more = more perceived recoil
Because we have no outdoor ranges in my suburban area, I recently paid for a shotgun training class at an indoor range to practice with my Remington 870. The local indoor ranges don't allow shotgun fire anymore due to people spraying all over the firing line.
After an orientation, we shot a .410, 20guage, 870 12guage, and a semi-auto 12guage (that was fun).
Point is: We were instructed to shoot from the hip (keeping an inch or so from the body), under the armpit (for a little better aim), and the shoulder (best aim using the forward site). From the hip and under the armpit, your arms automatically swing back and absorb the recoil, unlike the shoulder position that kicks your upper body.
I was surprised I hit the target from the hip first time. Your horizontal aim is precise, it's just a matter of vertical aim. If you don't trust your vertical aim from the hip, I recommend a UTG 2-1 flashlight/laser combo (model ELP-38) that attaches to your barrel. You can use small felt pads if you don't want to scratch your barrel.
The flashlight is blinding in the dark of night (lights up a living room!) and the laser is close enough for daytime. Got the unit from Amazon for less than $100. There are more expensive military grade units, but I'm comfortable with this for home defense. It's solid and well built and won't move once torqued down.
Shoot from the hip/armpit and don't worry about the shoulder impact. Unless you are using slugs, you don't need much of an aim. That's the whole point of a shotgun.