doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com need help - lost depth perception & can't hit anyt

long story, but I officially now have zero measurable depth perception, and it can never be recovered, as tested by my ophthalmologist. and by my insurance agent after my third at-fault accident in parking lots. and by me misjudging a skydiving landing and seriously breaking stuff I REALLY did not want broken.

I also went from a decent wingshot to not being able to hit ANYTHING in the woods and on a skeet range.

even though I 100% have known I lost 100% of depth perception for quite some time, it was just this week that I put 2 and 2 together and realized my shooting problems started immediately after my last brain injury. i do not have a freaking clue of anything i can do to be able to shoot flying again. I would like to ask all of you if you have any knowledge of something that can help me. the human brain is an amazing thing. even thought brain damage hosed up my depth perception, it can surely find a work-around for the problem. with the thousands of years of experience here and all of the folks who are or know shooting instructors, I figured this would be the best place to seek guidance.

so any experience, advice, or ideas would be greatly appreciated!!!

skunk out

Skunk out

YES
#1 is to try
#2 is to help you judge distance

1st. Use a Red Dot Scope, easily mounted on Rem 1100
(single sighting plane).
2nd. Get lifesize replicas of your quarry and learn there
visual looks at different distances by SIZE

Word of Encouragement, If you can type you can shoot

Mike

You have my sympathy, although I can offer only unrelated anecdotal evidence. I lost my sense of smell for perhaps two years after getting the mother-of-all sinus infections. I had gone water skiing in a small lake that was running unusually warm that year. Complicating circumstance was the fact I am allergic to most antibiotics. That infection raged for most of a summer, unchecked. Losing the sense of smell is a huge handicap, I had to have my wife sniff food before I put it on the grill to be sure it was OK. I could make out two odors during that time, gasoline, and vanilla, although neither smelled like I remembered them before the infection.
My doctor was of no help. Little by little, I recovered most of it, but, I would guess there is some degree of permanent loss. You can't believe how glad I am to be able to recognize the smell of bad fish or rotting meat, however.
I hope your depth perception makes a comeback. You won't be hitting much while shooting, without it.

Best,
Ted

Is your problem due to a visual loss? By that I mean loss of an eye or eye injury.

You can learn to hit without depth perception, in time. There are many wingshooters with one eye, thus eliminating depth perception for them. One of my best friends has such poor vision on his left eye that he basically has no depth perception, according to him. He asks me all the time if the target is a standard or a midi. He shoots in the 90s regularly at sporting clays.

I am sorry for your loss, but what on earth possessed you to jump out of a sound airplane anyway? I assume by "skydiving" that you meant you jumped of your own free will.

SRH

I have always shot shotguns with one eye closed, essentially eliminating depth perception. I am by no means an expert shot, but shoot well enough to make sporting clays, skeet, and trap enjoyable. Just work at it and, if possible, find a good instructor to help with the learning process.

I can help you, but our locations prevent that. I have several vision deficiencies that have affected my wingshooting, but I persevere with much success. I have a history of competitive International Skeet, NSSA skeet, NSCA registered sporting clays, flyers, you name it, but my deficiencies have limited but not eliminated these pleasures. I shoot crossover guns, guns with sighting accessories, whatever I need to compensate. It isn't over yet, even though I have no depth perception and am all but blind in my normal shooting eye. I wish I were closer to you so we could help each other.

Sent you a PM

I would suggest contacting Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, Pa. I feel they will info. that can help you. Good luck, Pligrim

thank yall very much for the replies.

I lost my depth perception due a concussion I got squirrel hunting, of all things. long story. I ironically, at the time of that concussion I was wearing a full body brace due a broken back I suffered in a different skydiving wreck. I don't know how to explain it because I never could have understood it before it happened to me, but my brain has formed a "work-around" to help with my brain interpreting the visual input I get every day. it is only a partial work-around for static things, and get something moving like a shotgun target and it breaks down

does anyone know any one-eyed shooters, shooting coaches who have worked with one-eyed shooters, or just good shooting instructors in general?

ted - hang in there and keep working on it. I lost 100% of my senses of taste and smell due to a different brain injury. I now have at very best 30-40% of my sense of taste and maaaaybe on a good day 10% of my sense of smell back. however, I listened to a segment on npr not long ago in which a doctor described retraining her brain to interpret smells after she lost 100% of it due to a brain injury. she discovered by accident that she could barely detect certain candle smells and developed a routine to actually exercise the area of her brain that interpreted smells. she has been making steady gains ever since. so keep working on it!!!