'96 Saab 900 Turbo tough 2nd gear?

[ph4de]

Hi,
I just got this '96 Saab 900 Turbo and i love it! but it's my first time driving stick, and I had a few questions. It seems like when i shift into 1st or 2nd gear, it's a lot more rough feeling than the later gears, is this normal? Also, i accidently tried putting the car in reverse once after parking, without using the clutch (yuck... bad sound), and i was wondering how terribly bad this was for my transmission? Basically, im worried and I don't want to ruin my new baby because I'm learning stick =|.