Advice for removing hooks

Ok so im only a couple weeks into fishing. Till now ive only caught a few small fish, nothing to write home about. I went out yesterday and caught the biggest fish I've ever caught. This thing was massive for me. It was a smallmouth bass. like 20" and felt like 3-4lbs. Anyways, i guess I never realized it, but right then and there i was alone, and I had this big fish on the line and i kinda panicked lol. I wasn't really sure or comfortable with dealing with it.

I debarb my hooks to make them easier to remove, but this was a brand new jig and I forgot to debarb it. So I was struggling to get the hook out. I wasn't sure if I could put my thumb in its mouth cause it looked like it had small teeth. Anyways, long story short I took a stick and hit in the head 2 or 3 times to try to dispatch it as quickly as I could. It worked. I took it home and cleaned it. But yea, am i good to put my thumb in its mouth? Or are there any good tips on getting hooks out as quickly as possible or is it just practice? I think ill be more of a catch and release style type of guy. I dont really like killing the fish. I still feel bad about it.