Urgh this is difficult. No wonder the low whistles are so popular… 
Yes, playing Irish flute is freaking hard. Hang in there.
“Never, never, never give up.”–Winston Churchill
Well, admittedly low whistles are easier to get started on.
But I can name many more great flute-players than I can great low-whistle players. I’m surprised at how challenging the low D whistle really is, and I have a great one, (MK).
True, CT, I can’t play the low-whistle at all. The stretch is too big, holes are too big, and I need to spend all possible time trying to play the dang Irish flute.
Keep at and you’ll soon change your mind.
That being said one is no substitute for the other.
Each is an instrument with its own charms.
ew, diffi cult, it is!
Just stick with it. Time and practice are your friends.
an’ ya might as well enjoy 'em
‘cause the practicin’ is gonna drive the other ones away…
difficult? no.
challenging? yes.
its all how you look at it 
but what would life be without challenges.
and a worthwhile one, to boot!!!
keep at it! play at least 15 minutes daily…
Yes, well I guess it is all about perspective 
. Anyway I’ve been putting in about 2 hours a day and I have the time to keep doing that for a month or so, so we’ll see if any progress is made by then… 
Think in terms of about nine months to get consistent tone, etc. Not for the faint of heart
but worth the trouble. We’ve all gone through this. Patience.
Wrong approach ! Say ; “If they can do it, I can do it” downside of learning the concert flute is that we all tend to listen to the “better” players and that means that the goal is virtual unobtainable. These players however only make up 20 % of the existing players that play for fun and “craic” We will never be a Matt Molloy but heck we will have a lot of fun in trying to play his tunes. Keep at it every day and like I’ve read earlier, we’ll talk in about 9 months. All the best and keep at it!
Ron
Seconding Jim Stone. 2 hours a day for a month is a great start, and you should notice a difference, but if you expect to be “getting there” in that time you will probably be badly disappointed. (Everyones mileage differs, of course.)
In a much earlier phase of life I was a secondary school teacher, and became aware that part of the art of teaching was hiding from the kids just how far they had to go before the results were worthwhile. If you are learning alone you can’t do that, but it will be easier if you are a) ready for a long journey, and therefore b) get into the way of enjoying the steps you are taking now rather than living for where you will be after another 60, 600 or 6000 hours of practice.
And welcome to the trip!
Anyone with a picture of Buddah in their avatar is probably worth listening to…
Arbo
yes, and avoid the winter sunrise ones 
thanks for the encouragement guys. Don’t worry, I definitely don’t expect to have gotten there in month. (I do, however, expect to stop falling down from dizziness every time I try to play a scale 
)
I’m not learning entirely alone, I do have an Irish flute teacher, who has been very helpful.
Hi, I can only encourage you to keep going. As a new player not of a flute but a low D Whistle it is hard. However, my low D has some slight adaptions. It has a pad on the 4th hole and 6th hole a bit like a flute has along it. The beauty of this is that the stretch that some of replies talks about is not so far.
Good luck keep us posted how you are going, keep your cool
bye 
…didn’t think ya did, couldn’t resist teasin’ ya though
smaller opening in the lips, much smaller
Welcome to the adventure.
While you’re practicing, taking lessons, and generally doing everything right, don’t forget to have fun. Even when tone, endurance, range or pitch aren’t where you think they should be, playing is still the most fun one can have with one’s pants on.
pants?
and they help how?