You can do it.
$159 and how I learned that diving is not for me.
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A couple of thoughts.
One is that it is good that you did decide to go get instruction it sounds as if you where diving prior to this "without any problems' that may be because you never had your mask dislodged, and freak out in the ocean as opposed to a controled enviroment.
so good for you to have the brains to go get proper instruction.
As for your instructor it sounds like he may have just lacked patients or did not know a solution for your problem.
I the classes I teach I find that the only real skill a person may have problems is the mask clearing, or removal.
I have found that the number one reason for this is because the student is a nose breather. for them to breath through their mouth is not their normal habit, I would suspect that having a head cold really bothers you because you can't seem to breath through your nose.
however if you pinch your nose or wear a mask it isn't a problem.
since your instinc says breath through the nose you probably get some water up your nose and this then freaks you out, or may cause the mamalian reflex to kick in, I do think that this is the bases of the problem
my solution:
on the surface without a mask practice breathing through your reg not your nose, make the contious effort.
then still without the mask bend over and put your face in the water
once you are comfortable with that still in shallow water kneel down on the bottom with mask in hand [what we are doing here is training you to breath through your mouth while there is water in your nose, so take your time] once you are ready put your mask on and leave it there, remember there is no difference with the mask on full of water and just hanging out underwater without a mask., now you can choose to either stand up or to clear your mask
I will assume here that you have gone over how to clear, if not just ask and i will give your several ways to try it.
once you master this in shallow water where you can just stand up any time, then deep water will be the same.
you can practice this on your opwn with a mask and snorkle, just do all the same procedures while breathing through your snorkle [not attached to your mask of course. this way you can practice on your own as long as you want in a public pool or ocean.
there is the rare case of a person not liking water on there face, or in cold water the mamalia refflex kicking in and not letting you breath. if you feel that the reasons for the difficult are either one of these let me know and i will give you some solutions here as well.
don't give up on your training because i seems that you are doing the diving anyways and even though it isn't comfortable stick with it, so that you will be around for a while.
as for your instructor, don't be to quick to blame it on him, he may have been moving along to quickly for you, if you pull him aside before or after a pool session, i am sure he will give you the extra help you need. I too have found that if i instruct a group about what we are going to do and then tell everybody to descend, and someone there says oh wait i am not ready because i did not feel comfortable with the skill we are now building on, it can throw me off. i don't respond quite the same way he did, i would say wait on top or something, but it would be hard to give you that attention right then. the attention should have been given right after you struggled with the mask clearing the first time, or even before when you where doing partial mask clearing., i might suggest that you just need to speak up rather than quit.
if you are freaking at the swim with no mask on stage then you have gone through the shallow water partial mask clear. the deeper water full mask clear, and as you said the deeper water mask removal. someone should have steped in at either of the earlier stages... either you or your instructor I am sure there where signs of discomfort
One is that it is good that you did decide to go get instruction it sounds as if you where diving prior to this "without any problems' that may be because you never had your mask dislodged, and freak out in the ocean as opposed to a controled enviroment.
so good for you to have the brains to go get proper instruction.
As for your instructor it sounds like he may have just lacked patients or did not know a solution for your problem.
I the classes I teach I find that the only real skill a person may have problems is the mask clearing, or removal.
I have found that the number one reason for this is because the student is a nose breather. for them to breath through their mouth is not their normal habit, I would suspect that having a head cold really bothers you because you can't seem to breath through your nose.
however if you pinch your nose or wear a mask it isn't a problem.
since your instinc says breath through the nose you probably get some water up your nose and this then freaks you out, or may cause the mamalian reflex to kick in, I do think that this is the bases of the problem
my solution:
on the surface without a mask practice breathing through your reg not your nose, make the contious effort.
then still without the mask bend over and put your face in the water
once you are comfortable with that still in shallow water kneel down on the bottom with mask in hand [what we are doing here is training you to breath through your mouth while there is water in your nose, so take your time] once you are ready put your mask on and leave it there, remember there is no difference with the mask on full of water and just hanging out underwater without a mask., now you can choose to either stand up or to clear your mask
I will assume here that you have gone over how to clear, if not just ask and i will give your several ways to try it.
once you master this in shallow water where you can just stand up any time, then deep water will be the same.
you can practice this on your opwn with a mask and snorkle, just do all the same procedures while breathing through your snorkle [not attached to your mask of course. this way you can practice on your own as long as you want in a public pool or ocean.
there is the rare case of a person not liking water on there face, or in cold water the mamalia refflex kicking in and not letting you breath. if you feel that the reasons for the difficult are either one of these let me know and i will give you some solutions here as well.
don't give up on your training because i seems that you are doing the diving anyways and even though it isn't comfortable stick with it, so that you will be around for a while.
as for your instructor, don't be to quick to blame it on him, he may have been moving along to quickly for you, if you pull him aside before or after a pool session, i am sure he will give you the extra help you need. I too have found that if i instruct a group about what we are going to do and then tell everybody to descend, and someone there says oh wait i am not ready because i did not feel comfortable with the skill we are now building on, it can throw me off. i don't respond quite the same way he did, i would say wait on top or something, but it would be hard to give you that attention right then. the attention should have been given right after you struggled with the mask clearing the first time, or even before when you where doing partial mask clearing., i might suggest that you just need to speak up rather than quit.
if you are freaking at the swim with no mask on stage then you have gone through the shallow water partial mask clear. the deeper water full mask clear, and as you said the deeper water mask removal. someone should have steped in at either of the earlier stages... either you or your instructor I am sure there where signs of discomfort
Wyno
Contributor
I have recently been certified and had a very good experience with my instruction. We had 8 Pools sessions to learn our skills, me and the family didnt have a problem but there was one that had a problem with mask clearing, she had a very hard time getting that down, but after being taken to the shallow end on several occasions with just her and the instructor and coming in to get in on extra pool sessions she did finally over come her mask clearing. I think the most important thing that helped her was the time and patience that not only the instructor but also a good LDS that didnt mind her coming in to get that extra help she needed.
To all of you that offered kind words of encouragement and reassurances my most sincere gratitude. I would like to also thank each of you for the offers of personal assistance. I am extremely saddened/depressed by this event and not being able to dive.
Walter and AquaTec provided very on point insight and suggestions. I am confident that had I a few minutes to practice and experience the no mask breathing thing in the shallows that night I would be fine. I can clear and flood the mask all day long. My instructor was not willing to work with me in the shallow end. In fact we concluded class about 45 minutes early. Additionally, I sailed, dare I say excelled, through every other drill with ease. My buddy and I were already going ahead of the curriculum by buddy breathing and 2nd/octo switching during our free swim time towards the conclusion of our class. On night #2 I found myself in a situation where I had to fight to save myself from drowning. Regardless if I was really in fact just an easy rescue by my instructor and I am over dramatizing (maybe), I did not think as I struggled in the darkness, that I was going to go home to see my family that night unless I could get that mask back on and cleared. I cannot see myself intentionally putting myself into that situation again. It scared me. I said it. I am scared. Not the coolest or DIR thing to say but I AM SCARED. Prior to this event, I dove, trained and approached this undertaking with extreme enthusiam and confidence. However, diving is not fun when your focus turns to not dying.
I realize this situation is my fault and will not blame anyone else. I chose to use this LDS and not follow my gut feeling. After several instances of having their professionalism and commitment to my education called into question (dont even get me started on this), I still ignored my gut feelings. I should have dropped the first night. Historically, I am an achiever and not a quitter. It wasnt even a matter of economics in my choice of LDS but rather their ability to start my training ASAP and get us into the water. I also thought because they are a large and widely known LDS in several southern US cities that I was somehow better off with them. Bigger isnt always better. MY mistake.
The worst part of this for me, is I have let my buddy down. He either has to continue without me, which SCUBA is something we intended to do together, or drop the class and loose his cash outlay as well. (He feels equally disappointed in this PADI center/instructor).
Thanks again.
Walter and AquaTec provided very on point insight and suggestions. I am confident that had I a few minutes to practice and experience the no mask breathing thing in the shallows that night I would be fine. I can clear and flood the mask all day long. My instructor was not willing to work with me in the shallow end. In fact we concluded class about 45 minutes early. Additionally, I sailed, dare I say excelled, through every other drill with ease. My buddy and I were already going ahead of the curriculum by buddy breathing and 2nd/octo switching during our free swim time towards the conclusion of our class. On night #2 I found myself in a situation where I had to fight to save myself from drowning. Regardless if I was really in fact just an easy rescue by my instructor and I am over dramatizing (maybe), I did not think as I struggled in the darkness, that I was going to go home to see my family that night unless I could get that mask back on and cleared. I cannot see myself intentionally putting myself into that situation again. It scared me. I said it. I am scared. Not the coolest or DIR thing to say but I AM SCARED. Prior to this event, I dove, trained and approached this undertaking with extreme enthusiam and confidence. However, diving is not fun when your focus turns to not dying.
I realize this situation is my fault and will not blame anyone else. I chose to use this LDS and not follow my gut feeling. After several instances of having their professionalism and commitment to my education called into question (dont even get me started on this), I still ignored my gut feelings. I should have dropped the first night. Historically, I am an achiever and not a quitter. It wasnt even a matter of economics in my choice of LDS but rather their ability to start my training ASAP and get us into the water. I also thought because they are a large and widely known LDS in several southern US cities that I was somehow better off with them. Bigger isnt always better. MY mistake.
The worst part of this for me, is I have let my buddy down. He either has to continue without me, which SCUBA is something we intended to do together, or drop the class and loose his cash outlay as well. (He feels equally disappointed in this PADI center/instructor).
Thanks again.
jeffsterinsf
Contributor
That is the coolest, most DIR, and most mature and intelligent thing I have read on this board.
Anyone needs to be able call a dive, any time, for any reason.
That type of attitude will keep you much farther from any trouble than your counterparts. Sorry to hear that, at this time, you are not comfortable with the instruction to help you past the fear. Don't blame yourself, you are paying the instructor to provide instruction. If there wasn't supposed to be immense value to the instruction, you'd just have to take a test at the end
I hope that you try again, with a different instructor, when the time is right for you.
Regardless of the exact style of the instructor, some skills build on others. A student needs to be comfortable at one stage before progressing to the next. Some students require more practice and gain confidence and proficiency at different speeds.
Mouth Breather old
Contributor
You big coward!! Be a man!!
Just kidding...it's very cool to be able to admit a limitation. The only times I ever found myself in trouble while diving is when my ego got in the way of my wanting not wanting to be "uncool".
Limitations don't always have to be permanent. It took me several days to get over the freak out that occured everytime I took my mask off underwater. Now at the start of every single dive I remove my mask and regulator, hold them at arms length, then put them back on, just to prove to myself that I can do it.
You sound like a pretty level headed and thoughtful guy...I think you overcome this hurdle if you want to.
Dectek
Guest
A way to overcome this problem can be done without a large body of water and can even be done while sitting on the edge of your tub.
The two main freakout factors are: breathing in small amounts of water through your nose and the water directly on the eyeball.
Both of these are not natural feelings and can easily be overcome.
In the privacy of your own bathroom or back yard and at your own speed, try this:
Fill your mask with room temp water and tilt your head down and put the mask on.
Breath through your mouth....you may get a little trickle of water in your nose. use just a little amount of your exhaled breath to make your nose positivly pressured. NOW THAT YOU DID NOT DIE!! See how many breathes you can take comfortably. First try two or three and then you could work all the way up to being bored.
Once you feel like you can handle the breathing though your mouth and not your nose.....OPEN YOUR EYES
STILL ALIVE?.......good...do it again...when you start to think of this skill as NO SWEAT....your little problem has gone away.
BTW: An older mask that does not have the nose pocket or has a big nose pocket works better
The two main freakout factors are: breathing in small amounts of water through your nose and the water directly on the eyeball.
Both of these are not natural feelings and can easily be overcome.
In the privacy of your own bathroom or back yard and at your own speed, try this:
Fill your mask with room temp water and tilt your head down and put the mask on.
Breath through your mouth....you may get a little trickle of water in your nose. use just a little amount of your exhaled breath to make your nose positivly pressured. NOW THAT YOU DID NOT DIE!! See how many breathes you can take comfortably. First try two or three and then you could work all the way up to being bored.
Once you feel like you can handle the breathing though your mouth and not your nose.....OPEN YOUR EYES
STILL ALIVE?.......good...do it again...when you start to think of this skill as NO SWEAT....your little problem has gone away.
BTW: An older mask that does not have the nose pocket or has a big nose pocket works better
RooLuvsToDive
Registered
As a new diver myself, I can certainly identify with you and your troubles with the mask! I too, have had much difficulties with removing the mask underwater but luckily my instructor worked with me and let me skip those skills until I was more comfortable with them. I practiced and practiced and practiced on my own by wedging myself under a pool ladder at 5 feet, then taking the mask off repeatedly underwater until I felt fairly comfortable with it. I did use the snorkel to breathe sometimes, and it worked great in replicating the use of a regulator. It just took time and finally, last week, I took the mask off twice at 12 feet.
I swear, I NEVER thought I could/would do it, but I did! Two weeks ago I almost walked out of the pool and quit because of my frustrations...needless to say, many tears came when I finally hit my car! ;-0 I mean, why did I need to scuba dive?? But when I realized that my instructor was not going to make me do anything that a human cannot do (HE IS A GREAT INSTRUCTOR, by the way!) and that sucking a bit of water WAS NOT going to kill me, I did just fine.
Just keep trying if you really want to dive! I think of it as learning to drive a car....at first, we all wondered how we were supposed to do all these things that they were asking us to do?!? Now, we just zip along at unbelievable speeds!
Good luck to ya! I'll let everyone know how I do in my OW this weekend! :sunnyday:
I swear, I NEVER thought I could/would do it, but I did! Two weeks ago I almost walked out of the pool and quit because of my frustrations...needless to say, many tears came when I finally hit my car! ;-0 I mean, why did I need to scuba dive?? But when I realized that my instructor was not going to make me do anything that a human cannot do (HE IS A GREAT INSTRUCTOR, by the way!) and that sucking a bit of water WAS NOT going to kill me, I did just fine.
Just keep trying if you really want to dive! I think of it as learning to drive a car....at first, we all wondered how we were supposed to do all these things that they were asking us to do?!? Now, we just zip along at unbelievable speeds!
Good luck to ya! I'll let everyone know how I do in my OW this weekend! :sunnyday:
art.chick
Contributor
Go to the YMCA. There is no profit-motive there, just a commitment to teaching skills methodically at a slow pace. I have been assisting instructors over the past year & my role is to take the students aside who are having trouble with a skill in the pool & go over it until they are confident & comfortable. If your instructor had an assistant, she could have calmly worked you thru your fears.
The type of fears we face in the water are PRIMAL in nature. It will not work to tell someone that there is no time to feel constricted by the equipment or choked by having something in their mouth! I would have failed a course that forced me to move fast when I was struggling to learn new skills.
You are in no way a "quitter" regardless what you decide. YOur buddy will just have to understand that he will have different buddies until you are ready to roll. Fear of disappointing another diver has led too many people to make bad decisions. No good buddy puts his own desires over the safety & comfort of those he dives with.
My guess (based on what I have seen my own instructor do with guys who could not stand these quickie classes) is that you will take a breather, find a class that lasts longer, pass it with flying colors & join your buddy later down the road. 3 years from now, you will hardly believe that was you having such a tough time in the pool! This sport really is worth the trouble it takes to learn. The beauty & excitement, the peace & the alternative sensations, the comeraderie & ongoing education are stimulating, awe-inspiring, & life-changing. If there is any interest left in you, give it another chance when you are ready.
The type of fears we face in the water are PRIMAL in nature. It will not work to tell someone that there is no time to feel constricted by the equipment or choked by having something in their mouth! I would have failed a course that forced me to move fast when I was struggling to learn new skills.
You are in no way a "quitter" regardless what you decide. YOur buddy will just have to understand that he will have different buddies until you are ready to roll. Fear of disappointing another diver has led too many people to make bad decisions. No good buddy puts his own desires over the safety & comfort of those he dives with.
My guess (based on what I have seen my own instructor do with guys who could not stand these quickie classes) is that you will take a breather, find a class that lasts longer, pass it with flying colors & join your buddy later down the road. 3 years from now, you will hardly believe that was you having such a tough time in the pool! This sport really is worth the trouble it takes to learn. The beauty & excitement, the peace & the alternative sensations, the comeraderie & ongoing education are stimulating, awe-inspiring, & life-changing. If there is any interest left in you, give it another chance when you are ready.
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