You've been shot,. . Now what?

[WANT A LCR 22LR]

I've seen extensive discussion / training on holsters, draw, grip, sight picture. . . on and on, but nothing on what to expect / do when you have actually taken a hit. Is there anything to prepare for? Change of tactics? Something else?

There seems to be the assumption that once the BG gets hit, he goes down most of the time and the encounter is over. However, there is the assumption that the GG will remain standing and not take a hit.

A while back there was a city council meeting where a irate gunman fired on the council. ( this was the one where the gunman spray painted a red symbol on the wall and later the purse lady took a swing at him.) The council president sort of tipped over when a shot was fired in his direction even though he was not hit. Could it be that we are so used to TV / movies that when someone is shot they freeze and tip over. ( 60's wild west movies come to mind )

I know from the amateur auto racing world, new drivers tend to stop driving the car once it has spun thinking they are just along for the ride. Never stop driving the car until you have popped the belts and have left the car! Even if you are off into the grass sliding backwards you can still drive the car and save the situation.

 

[DaleA]

'You've been shot, now what?'

Let's limit this to past experience or speculation.

In other words, no need to go out and get practical experience just for this discussion.

 

[federali]

If I recall my stats, you'll most likely survive being shot. I think it's important to tell yourself that you'll be okay and you'll make it. Police academies like to tell the story of an officer who equated being shot with dying. Some years later, this officer took a hit in the arm and indeed succumbed to the injury. The mind can will itself to live and apparently, also will itself to die. Of course, you'll need to get yourelf to an emergency room or at least summon help. CCWs should always have a cell phone on them.

 

[warrior poet]

To be frank, until it happens to you, you don't know. Hopefully, you're wearing some kind of body armor to protect your vitals. All the planning in the world can't stop a fatal wound. That said, if it isn't a fatal wound, well, do the best you can. Practice with your non-dominant hand might be crucial if it is damaged by the BG's fire.

 

[jolly roger]

When I got shot I didn't even know it until somebody said I was bleeding...seriously. Then I got MAD. Did not tip over and freeze. No one with the proper training should ever freeze unless they were unfortunate enough to get shot in the central nervous system. Not much you can do about that...I was dang lucky. Shot in calf. Hurt like a BAS**** after the adrenaline wore off Piece of buckshot during a domestic stand off. Then the guy capped himself after we shot back, hit him, and ran him off his porch. Lasted all of 20 seconds tops. Didn't even have time to grab shotguns and no rifles then. Stuff happens QUICKLY.

 

[BGutzman]

Im not a doctor or any sort of medical person so dont count on this as expert advice.

Youve been hit, secure your weapon apply direct pressure with hand while asking someone to call 911 or calling it yourself. I myself carry a packet of some lava rock stuff designed to stop severe bleeding... I hope I never have to try it out..

 

[BrittB]

Same here. I got shot in the arm by a .22 and didn't even know it until a minute later when I saw blood. I too was ****** but it never did hurt.

I think back to a friend of mine who was in the Army in Iraq. His Humvee was hit by a IED and he tood a chunk of metal the size of your thumb into his lower back. He knew the bomb went off and it numbed him at first and then he lost feeling in his legs and fell down. I don't think it was until much later that pain started kicking in because the Medic was right there and did an outstanding job. As he was lying there, he told his buddies to grab his camera and start taking pictures which they did. Years later, he still has medical issues but but he can do most anything he wants plus he also has the chunk of metal and the pictures. He's a great guy and a good friend of which I feel lucky to know.
Point is, don't worry about it. If it ever happens, what you need to do will kick in automatically.

 

[MLeake]

Haven't been shot, and would like to keep it that way.

I have, on the other hand, been hit hard enough to result in mild concussion, and imagine the results could be similar.

In which case, all I could say is just keep trying. Performance may be degraded, but shouldn't cease unless you suffer a truly incapacitating wound.

 

[fastbolt]

Consider reading Force Under Pressure: How Cops Live and Why They Die by Laurence Blum.

If you're a cop you can attend one of his 8-hour I'm Shot seminars. He usually has 2-4 cops as guest speakers who have been seriously wounded during the course of shootings.

I've been to his lecture twice and will probably go again, having heard new things from guest speakers each time. Very serious and valuable experiences and insights.

I'd think the book is going to be interesting even to non-LE, though.

 

[tony pasley]

Got hit felt a slight thud and mild burning but didn't know I was shot until I tried to get up and relocate and fell flat on my face.

 

[Sport45]

The council president sort of tipped over when a shot was fired in his direction even though he was not hit.

If someone is shooting at me I'm hitting the ground or otherwise taking cover as fast as I can. I'm certainly not going to wait to be hit. What do you see wrong with the council president's move above?

 

[Crazy88Fingers]

Apply pressure to the wound with a cloth (a gentleman should always have a handkerchief handy), wet it if you can. If you've been injured in a limb, try to keep it elevated to slow the blood flow. Do not use a tourniquet unless you feel you are in serious danger of losing the limb. Sit or lie down someplace safe, control your breathing, and stay awake. You should also be calling 911 somewhere along the way.

 

[jhenry]

Shoot back of course. My personal rule of thumb is that if you shoot me I am going to shoot you back.

 

[C0untZer0]

You guys should have listened to me when I told you to consider bullet resistant clothing as part of your tactical thinking.

Well now that you're shot it's a little too late to go and and buy a bullet proof vest.

I hate to be one to say "I told you so", but...

I told you so...

 

[codyb1991]

A lot of what to do if you get shot is in the hunter safety class... if your state requires you to take it before buying a hunting license. Apply direct pressure on the wound, elevate the wound above the heart, apply disinfectant if possible and wrap a field dressing around the wound tightly until help arrives... could be wrong but that's what I'd do

 

[Nnobby45]

In other words, no need to go out and get practical experience just for this discussion.

Unless you want to start a good thread by knowing of which you speak, instead of starting a silly thread prompting responses by folks who haven' the slightest idea how they'd react if shot. This is really a discussion about how people would like to think they'd react.

 

[codyb1991]

I agree. Never been shot before

 

[armsmaster270]

Return fire until the threat is ended. Take care of wound until help arrives. Probably there have been numerous shots fired calls to the police but call them yourself and tell them you have been involved in a SD shooting BG is down or left you are at intersection/address have been wounded in the ------ & need medical your weapon is holstered. Do it fast If the perp calls first he will say you were the aggressor and he shot in SD. Never been shot myself but have shot a glue sniffer that tried to stab me. (Don't bring a knife to a gunfight.)

 

[rose728751]

Never been shot. But got hit by a piece of shrapnel the size of your thumb nail in the upper right thigh about 1" below my wa bows, kinda picked me up a bit and knocked me over , yes it burned, but no blood at first just clear liguid and than after about 5 minute later, thats what it seem like maybe less time, than a trickle of blood. Doc said another inch and a half it would have come out the other side. got lucky more ways than one, didnt hurt much though kept on going till we got a medic

 

[Sefner]

A lot of the cases I've read in which a person involved in a self-defense situation is actually hit have a lot of similar characteristics...

Usually they don't know they are hit until after it's over.

The people that get hit and know it don't remember pain, they usually remember an "impact". One cop that was shot in the face did not remember pain, but said it felt like the hardest punch he had ever received. He thought it was a punch until he felt his teeth sideways in his mouth. Source for that is a Pro Arms Podcast.

Everyone who lived after knowing they were hit remembered thinking to themselves "I am not dying today". As others have said, if you think you're going to die, you're right. The tenacity to keep fighting and surviving the encounter is what is going to get you through.

Remember, most pistol wounds are not fatal (80-85% of handgun wound victims survive). First aid is an awesome thing, but a lot of GSW victims die from internal bleeding, not external.