Not enough air

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I have (played) with the adjustments but still not a real major difference. I still think it is the equipment. Two years ago we dove in cozumel with rentals. The reg I had was breathing pretty wet and had to suck to get a good amount of air. After descending to the bottom all of us were downstream of a swim through the dm wanted to go to so we all had to kick against a current to get to it. By the time i got there I was getting no where near the air that I needed. I truly thought I was gonna die, 60' under in cozumel. I motioned to my divebuddy (wife) to call the dive and safely ascended. Once everyone got back on board the dm asked what happened. He gave me his regulator if I wanted to do the second dive. Man that was a tough thing to do after just thinking you were dead but I knew i had to try it. So I did. Perfect dive with no problems and used the same amount of air as the others.
Other divers were like man that takes a lot to get right back in the water after an incident like that. They are right it does. That is one of the reasons I still think it's the equipment.
I just had my regs serviced but still the same results. I'm gonna take them back and tell them to change the pressure settings allowing easier (more) flow as others have said. If that doesn't work its off to the doc for a checkup.
Thanks for all your help,
Doug
P.S. I hope no one has to experience that feeling I had. I'm sure some have and they know exactly what i'm talking about.
 
It seams like no matter what brand of reg i am breathing it's like I just can't get enough air out of it and then i get a little and sometimes a lot anxious. Is it possible I just need more air than normal? Some regs are rentals which I understand could be a problem but even my personal regs before and after service are like this.
Thanks,
Doug


I have (played) with the adjustments but still not a real major difference. I still think it is the equipment. Two years ago we dove in cozumel with rentals. The reg I had was breathing pretty wet and had to suck to get a good amount of air. After descending to the bottom all of us were downstream of a swim through the dm wanted to go to so we all had to kick against a current to get to it. By the time i got there I was getting no where near the air that I needed. I truly thought I was gonna die, 60' under in cozumel. I motioned to my divebuddy (wife) to call the dive and safely ascended. Once everyone got back on board the dm asked what happened. He gave me his regulator if I wanted to do the second dive. Man that was a tough thing to do after just thinking you were dead but I knew i had to try it. So I did. Perfect dive with no problems and used the same amount of air as the others.
Other divers were like man that takes a lot to get right back in the water after an incident like that. They are right it does. That is one of the reasons I still think it's the equipment.
I just had my regs serviced but still the same results. I'm gonna take them back and tell them to change the pressure settings allowing easier (more) flow as others have said. If that doesn't work its off to the doc for a checkup.
Thanks for all your help,
Doug
P.S. I hope no one has to experience that feeling I had. I'm sure some have and they know exactly what i'm talking about.

I am a bit confused Doug. Are you saying that the ONLY reg you have ever used without issue was the one DM's mentioned above? You stated that the brand didn't matter in the past (except that one DM's reg) and neither did getting your own very nice reg serviced in your first post. I hope I don't sound like a jerk but I doubt it's the gear consistently. It may have been the gear once or twice before, especially with rentals, but I think something else is going on now. It's just not likely that every reg you have tried, except for one, breathes poorly. It is more likely that every reg you have tried, except for one, has caused anxiety and that brings me back to you. You are the only obvious constant in this equation.

The incident in Cozumel you explained is CLASSIC and very common. You are in a strange country, underwater, swimming against the current, in strange gear, following a DM you don't know god knows where, and you aren't in the best shape. I have been EXACTLY where you were and it caused me to feel anxious and like my reg couldn't give me enough air. Just thinking about the incident makes me anxious. Incidents stick with us and likely your several incidents are stuck. Almost every anxious diver I have encountered has blamed his regulator for "not delivering enough air." My guess is the DM could gave used your reg without issue while you were using his.

Be safe Doug and good luck!:D
 
scubadobadoo,
What i'm trying to say is that just about all the regs i've used feel like i'm not getting enough air and that I have to breathe real hard to get that air. Even the DM's reg. Some are more drastic than others.
I thought that breathing was suppose to be easy and not a task per say. I will get this worked out, I love diving to much not to, hence my screen name.
Regards,
Doug
 
scubadobadoo,
What i'm trying to say is that just about all the regs i've used feel like i'm not getting enough air and that I have to breathe real hard to get that air. Even the DM's reg. Some are more drastic than others.

It's definitely YOU and not the regs.

It's almost impossible to "overbreath" a reg to the point where it doesn't deliver the amount of air you need.

As others have said, slow down, relax, work on reducing anxiety.
 
It seams like no matter what brand of reg i am breathing it's like I just can't get enough air out of it and then i get a little and sometimes a lot anxious. Is it possible I just need more air than normal? Some regs are rentals which I understand could be a problem but even my personal regs before and after service are like this. I'm trying to find out if it's the regs, me, or both.
Any help is greatly appreciated.

If you feel like it's hard to inhale, it could be the regulator, what you're wearing or how you're diving

You can share air with an instructor or DM and see how their reg feels. Chances are excellent that whatever they're using breathes just fine.

Another thing to check is anything you're wearing (including your BC and any hoses/straps/etc.) Anything that restricts the expansion of your chest and/or abdomen will make it feel like it's hard to breathe or "not getting enough air".

The last thing is your position in the water. Regulators will only breathe easily when the regulator is at or below the level of your lungs. This means "horizontal" give you easy breathing, while being vertical or diagonal (common with new or overweighted or improperly trimmed divers) will make any reg breathe hard.

Terry
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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