Week 6: Choosing a Pregnancy Carry Gun

You're now entering the period of pregnancy which is reported by mother's like yourself to be the most uncomfortable and miserable of the entire pregnancy (short of labor, of course). You may not look pregnant. You may not even feel pregnant. You may, however, feel as though you are dying from the inside out. If you do, you're not alone. If you don't, I'm supremely jealous of you. You may also only experience mild symptoms that are completely livable or last only part of the day and can be easily taken care of with a little extra rest and peppermint tea. If that is the case, I'm both very happy for you and jealous. :D

Bloating, morning sickness, breast tenderness, headaches, fatigue, cramps and a slew of other symptoms are commonly reported between now and somewhere in the beginning to mid second trimester.

Some women, like myself, also experience what I would call "symptom sensitivity" regarding things carried around their midsection. What I mean by this is that pressure around the abdomen can make the symptoms and discomfort worse. Belts, stiff-waist slacks or jeans are enough to make the nausea, cramping and discomfort that much more unbearable. If this is your case, the best result, then, is to cease from carrying anything in that location and moving instead toward comfy elastic-waist slacks.

But what does this mean for carrying a gun?

It means you do the best you can. If you can stick it out and are dedicated despite your misery you can certainly continue to carry around the waist, but if not, you can seriously consider a carry system that is not centered around the waist as discussed in Week 5.

Also, it may be time to consider what kind of gun you are carrying or going to carry throughout the rest of your pregnancy.

Bear with me as I go against conventional wisdom and recommendations for a few moments as I advise on armed pregnancy guns.

Picking a Gun For An Armed, Expectant Mother

In general, I recommend firearms are that are easy to handle and have a good capacity, can be surely and solidly gripped and easily operated. I generally recommend AGAINST your tiny, little, pocket guns that have low capacity and are not fun to shoot except for as extreme concealment firearms, backup guns or, as you will see, while pregnant. It has been said, and it is true, that having a small gun on your body is better than not having the larger gun you left at home because it was too uncomfortable for carry.

Some people will ask why I don't recommend tiny-frame pocket guns for carry in general and the answer is that a good combat handgun has a full grip; decent, easy to acquire sights; a capacity greater than seven; a good sight radius (distance between the front and rear sights) for longer range accuracy and can easily be controlled for fast follow up shooting.

Those things cannot always be said about your tiny little pocket firearms. In general they have much smaller grips; small, low-drag sights; between two and seven rounds of capacity; a short sight radius and are often much harder to control because of their jumpy nature upon recoil. While some have mastered the art of the pocket pistol and even succeed in shooting to competition accuracy and speed with them your average concealed carrier who dons one does not have that kind of time and expertise with them.

Most of the time, the reason people do not put in the time and energy to get good with these tiny pocket guns is because they can be very uncomfortable to shoot and large round counts through them can not only be painful but literally damaging to the human hand, wrist and elbow. Most people who get proficient with them do long sessions of dry-fire practice (something we will discuss shortly) or use a heavier model of the same firearm with weaker loads to protect against that damage. The latter is not always available to all civilians in an economic crisis.

That being said, these tiny pocket guns are on the market for a reason. They are lighter than some wallets, smaller than some palms and still great little fighting guns when you need them. And when you can no longer carry a large-frame firearm anywhere lower than the bottom of your ribcage they become extremely attractive to a woman in need of such a gun.

During pregnancy your body and clothing may demand you pick a smaller, more concealable and easily carried gun. In the event that this does happen (and it may not), you may find yourself prone to leave your normally carried, larger firearm at home.

So what do you want to consider in a pocket pistol for a pregnant woman? The same things you would consider in purchasing any other firearm, just in a much smaller form.

Size:
It's true, you are looking for a smaller firearm to carry, but is there such a thing as too small? Yes! If the firearm limits the ammunition capacity to less than five or drops the caliber to less than .380 ACP I would say the firearm is too small. You should still be able to get your first two and a half or three fingers on the grip and be able to reach and operate all of the controls easily. This is, after all, still a fighting gun.

Caliber:
Handgun calibers, in and of themselves, are pretty horrible man-stoppers and once you drop below .380 ACP you are getting into dangerously low terminal ballistics. While many people have still died from being shot with smaller calibers such a .25 or even .22 it is generally accepted that your service calibers (9mm, .40 S&W, .357 Mag, .357 SIG, .45 ACP, etc) preform better (not best) against other human beings. You are already limiting capacity, try not to limit caliber if you can.

Capacity:
Gun fights are won with what's already in the gun and many a police officer has been found dead with an empty gun and a spare magazine in hand. This means they were attempting to do a reload and were gunned down in the process. While your average gun fight ends in about 2-3 shots that doesn't mean you won't be on the high end of those statistics and need 5-7 shots to stop a determined attacker. In the trainings I have been to the average number of shots expended per attacker is 2-3. This means if there is more than one attacker the shots needed to neutralize the threat increase by at LEAST two shots per attacker. This means, one attacker? Two shots. Two attackers? Four shots. Three attackers? Six shots. And this is assuming these are very well-placed shots. Knowing what I know, training how I've trained and having read what I have read about ballistics, stopping power, and gun fights I'm not entirely convinced that sixteen rounds of ammunition is sufficient for a single attacker but statistically 5-7 rounds of a decent caliber should send a clear message that you are not going to be a victim.

Recoil Control and Follow Through:
Follow through is defined as applying the fundamentals of shooting to include, stance, grip, sight alignment and trigger control, through a shot and into the next. The more recoil you have to control through each shot the longer it is going to take to get back on target and ready to shoot again. There are large caliber pocket guns that have very decent capacity, but the recoil in them is astonishing. Granted, in a life-or-death situation recoil is not going to be something you are going to be worried so much about but it doesn't mean it shouldn't be considered while you are picking out that pocket pistol. The larger the caliber also usually means a drop in capacity which is something to consider.

There are three final things you, as a pregnant woman, must also consider while picking out a smaller, more comfortable carry pistol:

1. You are a woman.
2. You are pregnant.
3. You are pregnant.

1. You are a woman. In general, though it sucks, we women do not have the upper body strength of men. A man can generally control a small pocket pistol far easier than a woman can by the very nature that he has big strong hands and arms. To even the playing field as much as possible do work on strengthening your hands and arms through the use of an exercise ball or equipment such as a grip master (I have one in both the 5 lbs and 7lbs models) and continue (or start) some kind of exercise while pregnant (after consulting with your doctor, or course). Swimming, light weight lifting, etc, can keep your upper body fit and strong to control that little pistol.

2. You are pregnant. This means you won't be able to go to the range and shoot to get the kind of practice you would expect to get on an average carry gun. You are going to want to get something you already know or suspect you can handle well. If you are used to a .380 don't jump to a .357 or .45 ACP, especially in that little pocket pistol. Keep it within the calibers you have confidently mastered and take comfort in those few extra rounds of capacity you'll likely get. Also, combat your inability to go to the range with at least an hour of dry-fire practice a week.

3. You are pregnant. This means a hormone known as "relaxin" is coursing through your body loosening your ligaments and muscles so that your abdominal muscles can stretch and your hips can widen and make room for your babies birth. This hormone does not stop at the waist, however. Many women experience clumsiness and even grip, back, arm, knee and ankle issues which can make it even more difficult to control a large caliber, small-frame firearm. Again, keep the caliber a comfortable one that you are confident you can handle. Confidence can go a long way to ensuring you are ready if (God forbid) you need your firearm to protect yourself and your growing baby.

As a general rule, .380 or 9mm pocket guns seem to have the best balance between capacity, caliber, size and recoil control.

S&W 360PD

My choice during my first pregnancy (and now that I'm pregnant again) has been my S&W 360PD.

Because it has a scandium frame it weighs only about 14 oz. and it is small enough to fit into a generous pocket or even a nice shoulder holster. Being chambered in .357 MAG I have the option to load it up with .357 defense loads for carry and do any practice with .38 Special. Though, I must say, that with such a small, light firearm, it doesn't much matter how light of a load is put in it. It still isn't comfortable to shoot it. I am not, however, trying to win any competitions, I'm just trying to find a semi-comfortable way to protect myself and my growing child while pregnant and I'll take a small five-shot revolver over strong words and a mean look any day of the week.

Below I have compiled a list (that will very likely continue to grow as I remember different models of guns or get recommendations from other wise individuals) of some good quality, small-size pocket pistols that may be considered if you do feel you need a smaller, more concealable firearm:

Ruger LCP
KelTec P3AT
Ruger LCR
S&W J-frame Revolvers (especially in an aluminum or scandium frame)
SIG 238
Taurus 738 series
S&W Bodyguard 380
Kahr P380
Kahr PM9


What's going on with your baby?

This is also the time to note that your babies external ears are starting to form. The inner ear (the part that constitutes hearing) won't form for another six to ten weeks so you still have a little time before you have to worry about the noise issue. It is coming, however, and knowing at what exact stage your growing child is developing is crucial in understanding when such limitations take effect. Unless you know you exact conception date or have had an early ultrasound to determine almost the exact gestational age (the later the ultrasound the harder it is to determine exact gestational age) of your baby it would be best to err on the side of caution and stop all trips to the range around your eleventh week of pregnancy. If you are fortunate enough to know your exact conception date it's time to wrap up any shooting without a silencer between twelve and thirteen weeks.

Guns Were Designed To Kill And So They Are Evil. Right? Wrong.

For a long time I struggled with this one. No matter what kind of logic I have shared with some people they come down to this final conclusion: "Guns are designed to kill. The intended purpose is to take life and I will not have an instrument of death in my home or near myself or my family." Then usually they follow that up with, "And I think anyone who does is sick."

That is a tough one, for sure, and when that gets thrown out there it's also usually where everyone agrees to disagree and go their separate ways or they start name calling and slinging mud.

Gun advocates know it's a cop out response and gun haters know it's the Ace in the hole. For people on the fence about the gun issue, however, they're not sure how to process that information.

Is an object with the sole purpose of killing a healthy thing to have in my home; around myself, my spouse, my kids? Am I being a bad individual by exposing my family to something so macabre in its invention?

It's a very serious question for people who have no experience with or around firearms and who aren't sure whether or not they want that kind of experience. These people (perhaps you're one of them) vote on all of our gun rights and an argument as strong as "I'm protecting my family from evil by not having guns" can have a strong emotional sway. As I've said, I struggled with an answer for quite some time, until, after a little more research and time and sleepless tossing and turning in my bed an answer slowly formed in my over-active brain. It may not be the best answer, as I will freely admit my own fallacy, but it's my answer and my educated opinion.

To answer any question like this you have to break it down. First, we have to find the operating statements. Guns kill, killing is evil, therefore guns are evil.

Now we have to work out each phrase individually.

Guns Kill.
Well, yeah. You got me. If someone is shooting a gun at something their intention is not to tickle it. The firearm was invented as a means to shoot a projectile at an enormous speed which results in holes, damage and wounds in living tissue that can result in death. We won't deny this.

Moving on...

Killing is evil.
This is where I ask you to pause. Is killing, in all shapes and forms, evil? I submit to you that it is not.

Your average human today is so isolated from killing that he or she fails to see it's necessity to life.

Let's look at killing from a global and natural standpoint. Nature is ripe, if not teeming with killing. It is, in fact, natures balancing mechanism. Without bats killing mosquitoes and other bugs they would multiply to unbearable proportions. Without the deer population being controlled through killing by predators such as dogs and large cats their numbers would increase dwindling the supply of eatable herbs for other herbivores. Even in the ocean the process natural killing keeps the oceans in balance without which our entire planet could suffer. If anything killing (not just death) is a vital part of nature's life cycle.

Animals kill for food, to protect themselves and their young and to defend their territory. Contrary to what many people believe, man is not the only species that kills for the fun of it. Some animals do indeed kill for pleasure. Animals of the cat kingdom, being the most notorious killers for pleasure, will often kill for no other reason than because they can even going out of their way to go on long hunts just to kill and then discarding their spoils after playing with them. Ants will also indiscriminately kill as will chimpanzees and even dolphins. Not to mention we are often stumped to find a friendly dog or horse or other beloved pet randomly turning on another animal or human and killing. We try to explain it away but the fact of the matter is, animals kill.

To take it a step further people will often say, "Well, animals do not kill within their own species." Not so. Male cats will kill any young cubs they come across. Chimpanzees will randomly snatch other young chimpanzees and start a feeding frenzy. Dogs will happily make a meal of any injured members of the pack. Pigs will allows runts of the little to starve to death. Ostriches will trample their own eggs and the list goes on and on. Either through neglect or direct consequence, animals kill within their own species.

Does this make them evil? I guess that depends on your personal definition of evil. Evil implies maliciousness and immorality which needs a moral standard with which to be judged. Is there a moral standard for animals? If not then how can an animal be evil? If it's not evil then how are those killings justified or do they need to be justified? Is it permissible--dare I say natural--for animals to kill because they want to or because one of their kind is ill or because they can?

But what about humans? If you accept the widely believed notion that humans are evolved animals then the question is not, "Why do we kill?" but rather, "Why don't we kill more?" From nature's perspective we humans are a bunch of softies. Instead of kicking our sick to death, eating them or leaving them to die we put them in hospitals and care for them. Instead of eating our young we care for them and nurture them. Instead of killing or abandoning any member of the pack that ceases to be useful we tend to them, help them, feed, cloth and house them. We are even just as compassionate to the animal kingdom, going out of our way to rescue injured animals, fix them up and release them back to their natural habitats when their own species have left them for dead. We humans do not follow natures prescription for balance.

We are also horrible killing machines. On the physical scale, humans have it very bad. We are one of the weakest species on earth in terms of brute strength. We have no killing teeth, no claws, no protective fur. We even aren't that fast. We can't fly. We can't breathe under water. We are, again, a bunch of softies. The only things we have been able to do to ensure our place on the food chain are build ourselves cocoons (cities, towns, houses) from the nature that is set out (and much better equipped) to kill us and invent weapons.

From the first stone that was thrown by hand to the modern day missile, we humans have been mastering the means to use projectiles to kill from a distance. Bows with arrows, catapults, slings with stones and guns with bullets.


If you see how fragile humans are in the grand scheme of things and you acknowledge the brutality and viciousness of nature you start to embrace the idea that the human inventions of things that kill is not only NOT evil but necessary to our very survival whether we killed to defend ourselves from other stronger animals looking to kill us or for food. I think we can all (by the very nature that we still exist) appreciate the invention of weapons.

And so the response becomes, "But we no longer have to kill for food or protection of our existence and so firearms are no longer necessary."

This, again, is not so. There are those of us who live in rural areas who still have to deal with the occasional predatory animal that will kill either a human or a human's livelihood. Defending personal life and means of life are still viable for humans to this very day and I suspect as long as there are bigger creatures out there it will always be that way.

So now I bring you back to the question of evil. Is the killing of animals in defense of a human life or way of life evil? There are some who would say yes and I'd very much like to understand their thinking on the matter. If animals can kill other animals without being deemed evil, why then should humans be considered evil when we kill for the same reasons? They simply can't be.

Some might then concede and say, "Okay, we'll let farmers and people who live close to the wild have firearms but there is no use for them in cities or populated areas." And now we come face to face with evil. The good of man fighting against the evil of man. We humans do have a moral separation from the animal kingdom. Unlike animals we are NOT bound by our natures alone and we choose to break those moral laws and when we do we cross over the boundaries of good and right and into the realm of evil. Greed, jealousy, revenge, or just because we want to we end other human beings' lives.

Some people think that if we all just loved enough there would be no need for weapons. I wish that were true. But because we humans are not animals and we are not bound by a natural order and balance. Because we can choose to break moral law there will always be someone who will prey on the love and good will of people who are trying desperately to do the right thing and be good people. When those good people are defenseless, evil reigns.


And so we use those tools--those weapons we fashioned to protect ourselves from nature--to protect ourselves from our fellow man. We employ men and women to do these jobs on a regular basis on a national, state and local level. We use these weapons to keep in check those who fear only the consequences of the evil they wish to do and we use them to immediately defend life against those in the process of trying to harm it. In America, some great leaders have seen to it that the average person has the means to protect him or herself from the evils of their fellow man. Does that make us evil? No. It makes us natural.

There isn't a creature alive that doesn't fight for its life with all that it has. A cub, even while being torn apart by it's father lion will scream and claw to the best of it's ability. Wounded dogs will still bite and fight to be spared the execution of the pack. How natural is it then that we humans use what we have invented for protection to protect us? How UNNATURAL is it then for another man to attempt to tell us we don't have the right to use what we have intuitively crafted in our own defense?


Are guns evil because they are constructed to kill? Absolutely not. They have no motive or moral imperative. They can and have been used for evil, yes, but they can and have also be used to overcome that evil and to protect and wouldn't they then be called good?

It's natural to want to protect one's own life and the life of those he loves. Some choose to do that with a gun and there is nothing evil in that. If one should choose not to defend himself or his or her own family with a gun I know of no one who will not respect that decision. We only ask not to be disrespected for ours.

Week 5: Pregnancy Carry Options to Consider

You may have just found out your pregnant. You may have also just started to "feel" pregnant or have symptoms of your pregnancy such as morning sickness, extreme fatigue, breast tenderness, etc.

Whether you are experiencing these things or not, if you have decided to continue to carry a firearm throughout your pregnancy this is the perfect time to start thinking ahead to the next nine months and what it might mean for you.

Right now you may still be able to wear a belt and feel comfortable doing so. You may even carry in a shoulder holster, a thigh holster or ankle holster and feel confident in your choice, but now is the time to recognize that these things are going to change. There is going to come a time when a belt is no longer an option, when a thigh holster (especially a good one which is kept from sliding down the leg via a garter around the weight) is inaccessible and an ankle holster is unreachable. Even thunderwear holsters that are hung around the waist below the belly are going to be extremely hard to access around your protruding belly.

It's safe to assume that everything from the waist down is going to be uncomfortable or inaccessible (especially in the immediate time frame you are going to need it if needed for self defense). It's time to think of alternate options and try them out while you still have the means to carry in the method that you trust and are comfortable with... Your FAST gear, if you will.

Your best options are going to be carry methods utilized above the waist or off body carry methods. A few to consider are as follows:

• Shoulder holsters
• Vest/shirt/undershirt or clothing holster (holsters incorporated into clothing) 
• Purse/bag holsters

(As I come across any new methods of carry I will be sure to add them).

Research the options and consider what might work best for you (and fear not, I will be sure to document how I've found these options to work for me during my pregnancy so that you have someone's experience to reference). Since some of these holster options might take some time to order and arrive you may want to consider purchasing that holster option for later down the road (keeping in mind your growing body) and try it out so that when it comes to the time when you HAVE to carry in that new method you are already comfortable with it and don't have readjust. Who knows, you might even find something you love even when not pregnant!

But.. Aren't Guns Inherently Dangerous?

In my last big blog, "Guns, Shooting and Pregnancy" the main thrust of the article was addressing the components of a firearm and whether they are dangerous to a pregnant woman.

Though most people who read this blog are already pro gun and understand the message I'm about to write there are some who come across my writings, whether they be here or on my Limatunes/life blog and are genuinely horrified that a woman, a mother, a PREGNANT mother would have a gun anywhere near herself or her child because, in their mind and beliefs, a gun is a dangerous thing in and of itself.

So, why am I writing this if the majority of readers are already pro gun? Because there are some who are on the fence and this might be the balanced piece that gives them a little more information with which to make up their own mind.

I've seen it time and time again in mothering or pregnancy forums, blogs and articles, a young woman who never really had cause to stop and think about the evils and violence in this world gets pregnant and suddenly her eyes are torn open. She realizes that she is now responsible for another little and very defenseless life. She also realizes that her previously fit and nimble body is changing into one that is labored and weighted down. She is vulnerable and she knows it. She wants to protect herself. She considers a firearm for this purpose but is afraid of the previous spoon-fed notion that guns are, in and of themselves, very dangerous things that should be avoided. How does she decide whether or not a firearm is for her?

The place to start on this road to discovery is to point out what a firearm is at it's very core: an inanimate object. It has absolutely no power or means of action above and beyond what it's user bestows upon it. Not even your antiest of anti-gunners can deny that. A gun is only as dangerous as the person using it.

So, let's get even more basic and define danger and dangerous. Dangerous is defined as a potential to do harm. A person's comfort with an object or activity can dramatically change one's perspective of danger. A mountain biker who frequently bikes trails that are no farther than a few inches from a great precipice may have no real sense of danger is doing so whereas a casual observer may look upon the activity as one of great danger. Consequently, someone who has spent their life hunting and shooting for sport may find firearms no more dangerous than a shoe whereas someone else is petrified by the very sight of the object.

An object (unlike an activity), however, has no inherent danger. It is neither dangerous NOR safe. A pillow, used in the wrong fashion can be dangerous, even murderous. A car, a shoe, a kitchen knife, a broom, all have a potential for danger if applied in a dangerous fashion or misused. When left to themselves they are not dangerous but neither are they safe. We make sure young children don't sleep with pillows so that there is no chance of suffocation. We tell our children to walk with scissors and knives pointed down. We are careful to not leave our children in parked, running cars. We pad the corners of coffee tables while our little one's learn to walk. We make sure our children are looked after while bathing and swimming. We understand that while an object may be seemingly innocuous, there is a potential for harm when misused.

A firearm, is also one of those objects. It has no potential for harm unless misused or ignorantly used. It is neither safe nor unsafe. An unloaded firearm is little more than a paperweight made of plastic or steel. A loaded firearm is also only as dangerous as it is accessible to untrained/ignorant or neglectful or mischievous hands.

There are those who say firearms have a moral or psychological imperative in influencing a persons actions or thinking. As one woman put it, "And isn't an ever-present gun a constant reminder of potential (but statistically unlikely) dangers, like robbery, rape, and murder?" This is only as true as someone's experiences and predispositions to think in those terms. Just like someone who is exhausted might feel drawn to sleep upon seeing a bed or someone who is hungry might feel an urge to eat upon seeing a restaurant or someone who is dirty may feel an urge to bathe upon seeing a shower, a person with murderous intentions may have a surge of those feeling upon seeing a means with which to carry out their desires (a gun, a knife, poison, etc). This is where morality and self-control come in to play, and in the absence of those, the legal system which does a darned fine job (despite what some think) from keeping those kinds of people from getting their hands on firearms. And the blessed truth is that very very few people actually have murderous feelings and intentions. Even in the throws of the most heated anger your average person still does not consider murder as a viable option to resolution and is not predispositioned or influenced to act on any thoughts of violence beyond punching a door, yelling or throwing a pepper shaker across the yard.

Likewise, those who have had bad experiences with a firearm may be reminded of it's hurts (someone who witnessed someone being shot or was a victim of gun violence) but even those negative associations can be overcome.

A person who does not have those feelings, negative impulses and desires sees a gun as no more than a gun and has no associations of violence with it. It has no influence over them. The good, law abiding people who go through the multitude of background checks and paperwork to legally purchase their firearms and carry them have no such intentions or impulses nor are they influenced in a negative way by merely possessing or carrying a firearm.

A firearm is as safe as you make it and has no power (physically, mentally or emotionally) beyond what you give it. If you feel you are able to properly and safely utilize a firearm as a self-defense tool and do so responsibly then there is no reason why you should not be able to master a firearm as effectively as you've learned to master your toaster oven.

Weeks 1-4: Deciding to Carry

These days, due to advanced sensitivity in home pregnancy tests, women are finding out earlier than ever that they are pregnant.

I found out I was pregnant with my first at about 3 1/2 weeks which was the same for this pregnancy.

At that early in the pregnancy there is usually very few, if any, symptoms. Perhaps a little breast tenderness, bloating or nausea but in general the symptoms are usually very mild and almost nothing needs to change in the way of dress and carry.

If you are new to carrying a firearm you may be wondering if it's safe or even if a firearm is a good option for you. You can find more information about all of those things in the following blog posts:
Guns, Shooting & Pregnancy.. Is it safe to carry or shoot a gun while pregnant?
Aren't guns inherently dangerous?
Are guns evil or an evil influence on myself and my family?

If you are not new to carrying and have already decided to carry a gun during your pregnancy and if you carry around the waist (which is the most popular place to carry) and find yourself to be feeling especially bloated and uncomfortable feel free to unbutton that top button on your jeans and loosen a notch on your belt. A cautionary note would be to make sure your holster is providing proper retention if the belt or waist-band is loosened and that it's not to loose to the point where you can't draw your firearm smoothly and effectively.

If applicable, you may also want to invest in a pair of pants that are one size larger than what you would normally wear. Let's face it, you aren't going to be getting any skinnier in the next 36 weeks so you might as well spend as much time as you can being comfortable and you may find that that one-size-up pair of pants will be your best friend post postpartum (at least until you get back to your pre-pregnancy size and weight). A better fitting pair of pants will also be easier to carry in.

Switching to another method of carry is also an option, if only temporarily. Ankle carry, fanny pack, shoulder or even purses are all options for the pregnant mother provided care is taken to make sure your firearm is secure against unauthorized persons gaining access to said firearm.

It's also a good idea to keep track of what is developing with your baby each week. Pay close attention to any ultrasounds you receive and ask lots of questions. Knowing the exact stage of development for your unborn child can help you better gauge when noise may become a factor in stopping shooting or training.

Right now, according to babycenter.com there is a lot going on in your uterus during this time including fertilization, implantation and the development of everything from the placenta, amniotic sac and the organs that will eventually be your baby. Hormones are churning. This is a delicate time for you and your little one and getting enough rest and making sure emotions remained control are crucial for everyone much less those who carry firearms. Being able to keep a cool head and think with a clearly are important. Sometimes the increased fatigue and changes in the body can cause dizziness, forgetfulness or extreme mood swings which can have devastating results when firearms are involved. Be sure to talk to your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe as they could be related to much deeper problems that he or she might be able to help you stabilize. As your body goes through these changes keep evaluating yourself and your decision to be armed and your physical and emotional ability to carry a gun.

If you feel you need to put the guns away until you feel more stable, don't let anyone tell you that you are making the wrong decision. If that is your decision, however, remember that pregnancy is a vulnerable time for a woman and consider replacing your firearm with some other tool of self defense such as pepper spray or even a stun gun.

Take care of yourself and be safe.

Guns, Shooting and Pregnancy

Before we dive into how to deal with being armed while pregnant we need to deal with the topic of guns and pregnancy.

One thing a woman learns almost the moment she gets pregnant (or perhaps even before she gets pregnant) is that there are a multitude of things that are restricted or moderated while pregnant. Alcohol consumption, eating fish, certain activities, all of these things change in favor of a healthy pregnancy and baby. A pregnant woman learns to ask, "Is it safe?" before taking up any new activity or even continuing with older activities she may have never considered to be unsafe before.

You can imagine, then, how natural it is for the gun-toting woman, upon learning she is pregnant, to ask, "Is it safe to continue to carry a firearm throughout my pregnancy?"

Now, I am no doctor. Let's get that out of the way right now. But if there are two things I know it's guns and google. That knowledge combined with at least one successful pregnancy and some medical advice thrown in makes me feel confident enough to advise on the matter.

In order to answer the question as to whether guns are safe to carry while pregnant you have to break it down to what might be considered dangerous about the firearm you are currently or wanting to carry while pregnant.

First let's break down the gun and its components and see how they might be harmful (if at all) to a pregnant woman.

A gun is made of a variety of materials. Steel, plastic, a type of polymer, aluminum and other various sturdy metals such as scandium. Often there can be grip panels made of other materials such as wood, vinyl, plastic or even exotic stones. Unless one has an allergic aversion to any of these materials or is hit over the head with them, the materials in your average pistol are no more dangerous than the pot you cook with, the car you drive in or the plates you eat from. No threat to pregnancy in the materials.

Now it's time to consider the ammunition. Ammunition consists of a casing usually made out of brass or aluminum, a primer, a powder charge and a projectile or bullet. The projectile is commonly made of lead with a copper jacket encasing the lead core. Obviously brass or aluminum is not harmful (again, unless you are allergic or hit over the head with a large quantity of said materials). We have brass fixtures in our homes, aluminum is extraordinarily abundant and primers, unless you live in a home wherein someone reloads are never separated from their casings. Copper is used in plumbing and cookware and is perfectly safe. BUT you saw it. There it was, the magic word that stands people's hairs on edge: LEAD.

LEAD CONTAMINATION AND GUNS

It's well known that lead is dangerous and can cause developmental and neurological problems. So to begin our talk about lead and guns we have to talk about how lead gets into the body. The two most common methods of lead getting into the body is through aspirating it into the lungs (that is, breathing it in) or ingesting it (eating or drinking it). Eating lead-based paint chips, breathing in lead dust from remodeling a house, handling lead and then not washing your hands before eating: these are common ways lead enters the body. Lead poisoning CAN happen through the skin as was evidenced by the lead-based makeup common in older Japan. However, this is extremely uncommon these days and takes long-term exposure through almost constant contact with lead particles. Almost any doctors office (or even construction company) can give you pamphlets on lead poisoning and how to avoid it on a daily basis around your home.

But what does that mean for you and your gun? Given the criteria for how lead gets into the body (aspiration or ingestion) lets look again at your average cartridge which is, again, a lead core encased in a copper jacket. Because the lead core is encased in copper that means the lead cannot be directly handled. Because it is not in dust or powder form it cannot be aspirated and unless you peel away the copper jacket and start chewing on the lead core (a feat in and of itself) you are safe from lead contamination from standard pistol ammunition.

In the interest of full disclosure and safety there ARE cartridges wherein lead makes up the entire projectile and is totally exposed. To be extra safe you may want to be sure your cartridges are jacketed or be sure to wash your hands carefully in COLD water after handling ammunition and especially before eating. It is very easy to tell the different between solid lead and jacketed ammunition. In solid lead ammunition the bullet or projectile is a dull gray color. In jacket ammo the bullet or projectile is copper in color.

Lead Projectile Ammunition

Copper Jacketed Projectile Ammunition

If you are particularly concerned about the lead in ammunition you can also purchase lead-free ammunition that does not have the lead core and even limited lead particles in the powder.

Where lead contamination (or even poisoning) and guns start to mix is when you get on the range. When a gun is fired the firing pin strikes the primer which ignites the powder that explodes, forcing the projectile down the barrel.

Not all of the powder is ignited and with every shot a bit of the powder and residue of the explosion is blown back onto the shooter. This is known as Gun Shot Residue (GSR). GSR is often talked about on crime shows when evaluating whether or not an individual has fired a gun. However, contrary to the television shows that only show GSR on the hands, it actually gets everywhere. It is more concentrated on the hands but actually gets all over the shooters face, clothing, arms, and even into hair. This residue can and often does contain lead particles. It is inhaled as the shooter breaths and if not washed off after a range session can seep into the pores on the skin. In addition to lead particles in powders, when the lead core of the bullet strikes a solid back stop it can fragment into tiny particles. If the range is not properly ventilated these particles can be aspirated by the shooter.

Frequent shooters who spend most of their time shooting on indoor ranges should get their lead levels checked annually and keep informed on the maintenance schedule of the range to be sure that filters are being changed often and ventilation systems are properly maintained.

I worked for a year at an indoor gun store and range and while all of the employees had slightly higher than average lead levels we were all well within the range of normal (which is considered anything under 10) and we were all in the range on a daily basis breathing in lead particles and I do have to admit that a LOT of snacking went on without washing our hands (we lived dangerously).  Even with all of that lead exposure most of the employees who were tested had levels between 4 and 6. The national average for the US is somewhere around 2 according to the CDC. Those employees with levels around 6 were taken off range duty until those lead levels went down.

I have, however, met shooters who have shot daily on old ranges that were not well ventilated in a time when the country was still relatively naive about lead and its effects. These shooters did not properly wash before eating or even going to bed and ended up with lead levels up to 16 and began experiencing the physical effects of lead poisoning and needing medical assistance to get those lead levels back under control.

Because of the understanding of the dangers of lead while shooting any reputable indoor range is required to have proper ventilation systems in place and in good working order and this is almost a non-issue for outdoor ranges.

SO WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN FOR A PREGNANT WOMAN?

In all probability, if you went out to an outdoor range every week of your pregnancy and shot your firearm and were careful about washing your hands, face and clothes as soon as possible afterward and did not consume food or drink until you had washed, you would more-than-likely not see a single point rise in your blood lead levels. Wearing gloves and a mask would protect you even further. There is, however, still an exposure that you would not get if you were not shooting.

Will that lead exposure be enough of an exposure to hurt your baby? More-than-likely, no. There is, however, no scientific data to indicate how much lead exposure is "safe" for a developing fetus and it's a risk that many pregnant mothers have chosen not to take. Not to mention that many ranges will not allow pregnant women shoot for the lead and noise pollution which becomes an issue somewhere between 13 and 16 weeks of pregnancy (we will cover noise pollution in a later post).

For those pregnant women who are forced to qualify with firearms (police officers or military personnel) for their job, rest assured that your exposure to lead is minimal and you can ask your superiors to put you on the firing line first (before the lead particles are airborne and stirred up), allow you to shoot and leave the range as soon as you are done. This is also an important request for any pregnant women who may be taking a firearms class. If your qualification or class is held on an open outdoor range, stand upwind where you can get plenty of fresh air and lead particles will be blown away from you if possible. If it is not possible to stand upwind then at least find distance from the firing line as often as possible for some fresh air and be sure to wash your hands, arms and face in cool or cold water (this keeps your pores from opening) carefully before eating or drinking anything. And keep all food and drink secure away from the range so that particles do not get in or on your food or drink.

Also, for those who are forced to use a firearm in self defense while pregnant, again, rest assured that the lead and noise exposure to your unborn child is minimal at best and probably far less taxing on either of you than the stress of the circumstances surrounding the shooting. 

I do, and will continue to shoot on a more limited basis until around that 13 week mark but an unfired firearm is safe to carry for the duration of the pregnancy.

Carrying a Gun and a Baby

I have gotten a number of emails from mothers and father and even interested parents-to-be on the mechanics of carrying a baby and a gun. I've tried expressing that it is not as intimidating as it appears and finally I made a video to show just how easy it really can be.

There are a few things, however, I would like to emphasis when it comes to carrying a child and a gun.

Firstly, I want to address safety. Contrary to popular belief, most gun owners are very responsible, safe people who have the very best for themselves and their families in mind. But! We all know that mistakes occur and this is why I have come up with a few ground rules beyond the regular four rules of gun safety to insure my child is completely safe in my care (both from the bad guys and from accidents).

1. When dealing with firearms, do so in another room, separate and safe from your children. We all know that kids can grab, move, jump, yank at the most unexpected of times and even if they don't get their hands on a gun, something they do can startle a parent into being careless enough for an accident to occur.
2. Put your holster on, put your gun on, get them set, then go to your children and don't touch your firearm or holster again unless you cannot avoid it. Don't fidget with or adjust or work with your gun or your set up while your children are around (see no. 1).
3. MAKE SURE your holster is of good quality and that the trigger guard of your firearm is completely enclosed. Small fingers and toes, toys and do-dads can get into small spaces and while you are wrestling with diaper bags, children, toys, bottles, pacifiers, wipes, temper tantrums, owies, band-aids and sippy cups, you might not always notice the hazards that can slip into an exposed trigger guard. Anything within your trigger guard other than your finger when your sights are on their target is BAD. Conversly, a gun cannot fire if the trigger is not pressed. Keep your trigger guard guarded with a quality holster and avoid accidents.

Finally, years of media coverage of childhood firearms accidents and Million Mom March speaches and even the NRA's Eddie Eagle campaign have instilling in us the understanding that children and firearms do not mix. We are so convinced of this that even pictures of a mother holding a child with a gun on her hip make us cringe, no matter how pro-gun we proclaim to be.

Yes, it is true, children and firearms do not mix, but that does not mean they cannot coexist safely with the proper supervision of parents and the strict adherence to safety rules.

This video has already been the subject of some tense comments about safety and even that while it is understood why I would want to carry a firearm it might not be a good idea to do it with a child in tow.

According to some, it's okay to protect myself. It's okay for my husband to protect himself. It's even okay for my husband to carry to protect me and my child. But it's suddenly not okay for me to protect myself AND my child at the same time.

Hmm.. I'm not quite sure I understand the logic behind that one.

I started carrying a firearm in defense against those who wish to do evil to me. People can understand and even empathise with that. People even cheer my willingness to defend myself. My child does not yet have the ability, physically, emotionally or legally, to take that responsibility on himself. He is reliant on his mother and his father to provide for him in all areas, including his protection.

Statistics from February, 2007 state that 300,000 children are abducted or reported missing each year in the US. In the same year, in the US, 248,300 women were assaulted or raped. Both my child and myself are targets for violent crime. My husband can't always be around to defend us. The police response in our neighborhood can be as much as twenty-eight minutes.

Let's pause here.

Before you read on, let's go back to the police response time.

Twenty-Eight Minutes!!

It takes an average of three minutes to suffocate a human being. It takes approximately one minute to grab my child and put him in a car. It takes less than twenty-eight minutes to get over twenty miles away in any direction. That means before the police even arrived to assess the scene of the crime, a criminal could kill me, kidnap our child and be twenty miles away before the police even BEGAN the search for the fugitive.

I want you to stop and think about that.

Some will criticise me for having a firearm and a child together under a supervised situation so that I can defend myself and my son in the event it is necessary. I don't necessarily mind the criticism. I have pretty thick skin, I know I am responsible and I know that I will be prepared in the event I should have to be (God forbid).

I am not a paranoid person (as I've said before). I do not wait for bad things to happen to me. But I know, more than some, that bad things happen in the most unexpected of times and places. I won't stand by and let those bad things happen to me and my baby just because someone thinks it's a little overboard to carry a baby and a gun.