It seems that no one who has posted is actually a large snake owner. So I thought I would give my input.
1) HOOK TRAIN you snake, this can't be stressed enough. Conditioning your snake to "understand" that it is feeding vs non feeding time is a must.
2) If you don't feel comfortable holding a large snake DON'T OWN ONE. Large constrictors are VERY intelligent animals and are not just a throw in a cage and stare at type of animal to brag to all your friend with "look what I have". Proper exercise for these animals is key to keeping them lean and healthy. Those who seem against holding your large snakes seem to have a phobia or bad experience vs actually knowing and understanding about the animal, which is sad.
3) NEVER let the snake start to wrap around the front side of the neck near your trachea. Applying pressure at this point can cause either asphyxiation or possible breaking of the spinal column. Avoid wrapping on both sides of your neck as well. With enough pressure same thing can happen here as well.
5) Different people have different rules when it comes to the amount of feet per how many people. Telling a person to have 2 people in the room with a 8+ foot snake is ridiculous to say the least. It all has to do with the species your dealing with. I don't need 2 people to hold my 8 foot blue beauty. For bums I would say 10' is a good place to start with having 2 people in the room but it really depends on the girth and weight of the animal as well. Assuming we are talking a healthy animal 9' to 10' is a good place to start thinking about having a secondary person around. Also experience plays a role in this as well. Since the OP is new having someone in the room with you would help and keep you calmer.
6) Holding the snake on your shoulders, traps, and back of your neck is perfectly fine. Avoid the "classic draping techique. Normally used by inexperienced people who are overwhelmed with the snakes weight. Like Robyn said most of the squeezing people feel is from them being unstable and not balanced, due to improper handling to begin with. If your handling properly and giving it enough support and balance you can avoid this.
Examples of holding a large constrictor:
As you can see in all the pics the snake is NOT touching both sides of the neck at once. Only the rear and a side so squeezing would not effect the holder. ALL of these are NON snake owners holding my personal pet coached by me on how to properly hold him. The body is fully supported as to make the snake feel secure and stable.
I hope this sheds some light some light for the OP, that you CAN handle your snake safely, just be smart about it. No need for neglect b/c it gets big. Big snakes need some loving too! =)
Burmese in picture is 8-9 feet long and around 25-30 lbs.
Threaded Mode