It is easy to supress the blink reflex with "normal" calibers such as 38 spl, 9 mm, 40 and 45. Even more if the barrel is not too short or the blast/flash of the load too marked.
With proper grip control and stance, recoil isn't an issue. And I never had to get someone to wear special (double) ear protection, the blast isn't large enough. Better to wear eye pro as well, as you should do anyway in all cases.
IMO, the psychological part is HUGE... relax, do it all in your mind before, keep calm through the shooting process, and blinking and flinching go away.
It is GREAT to see that front sight tracking.
Now, magnum calibers and heavy loads are a very different animal. You have to really fight the blink and flinch reflexes.