A non-diving question for technical divers:

[KeithG]

Sharks! Aren't you afraid of the sharks? Won't they eat you?

This is always the first response I hear from a non diver. Glad I do not have to explain about that scary technical diving to them.

 

[kotik]

Sharks! Aren't you afraid of the sharks? Won't they eat you?

This is always the first response I hear from a non diver. Glad I do not have to explain about that scary technical diving to them.

That is definitely the most common reaction I get from non-divers. What's interesting is that lots of times that comes after I've told them I'm cave diving...

 

[Karen18]

I haven't heard the shark one yet, but I have been warned about alligators.

 

[Quero]

I'm not sure if explaining the risks to your immediate family does anybody any good. I don't think you can prepare them for the worst, so maybe ignorance is bliss? (NOTE: I'm single and without kids so I probably have a different perspective on it.)

The only one I try to shelter with ignorance is my 85-year-old mother. She lives about an hour's drive from High Springs, so when I'm there for a visit and I go to dive at High Springs, she says, "You're not diving in those caves, are you? Those caves are so dangerous. People die in them all the time." There's just no point in trying to explain to her how my training is what I use to stay safe, that the ones who die are those who enter the caves without training or who don't adhere to their training--she just gets frantic at the thought of me going into the caves. So I say, "Don't worry. I'm diving in the springs," which is technically correct, but still a dissimulation on my part. I believe that in her case, ignorance is bliss. I don't hide my activities from my children, though. (I do have to be careful with FB posts since my mom reads them, LOL.)

 

[CamG]

I try to be a ambassador for the springs and speak of the beauty, fossils, rock formations, and the risk of pollution.
When my friends and family ask I give them more if they press then I give them what they asked for.
When my wife a OW diver pressed me I told her for OW you train x amount, for cave / wreck / deco you train xxxx amount.
We have found a balance in my dive season and training dates but I will admit sometimes of the year I am spending a lot of time away from home.

My co-workers are convinced that I will just not be in some monday.
I am reading books and they always ask if the author is alive or dead?
Several of them have actually learned a fair bit and are starting to get it.
Unfortunately if you work or live with me you are going to learn about diving it is my obsession since 2007.

Simply with caves it is focus on the beauty communication, Wrecks it is the history, the rest is just what you have to do to dive them safely.
Most people given enough time understand a bit even if they think you are crazy.

CamG

 

[victorzamora]

To the truly uninformed, I always get the "OMG, SHARKS!! YOUZE GONNA BEE EATEN!!" From the slightly less uninformed, I do explain some of the dangers of diving (mostly because they already know it's dangerous) but I make sure I inform them that, while it's dangerous, nearly all of the risk is mitigated by proper training. And then I lie and tell them that the training in their certification courses is more than enough to keep them safe, as long as they practice. I also use some funny statistic to back up the safety of recreational diving.

To the more informed, and to those that have some technical yearning, I do explain some of the technical aspects of diving. I mention Oxygen Toxicity (as a way to bring up "air" vs "oxygen" bottles) and Narcosis (to bring up Trimix diving). I talk about soft vs hard overheads, and how all of your training is specifically how to get yourself out of any situation alive, even if alone. I mention that cave training is done (another lie) only by the most experienced and respected divers, and that (this is the truth again) that I'm fully confident that my instructors could get me to where I needed to be in terms of physical and mental preparation for any situation. If someone still seems to be frightened, I make an extra point to talk about how only the extreme few get into truly technical diving...but that for those that do, the rewards is truly worth the effort and the risk. The beauty and the serenity at those locations that so few have been to is worth every second of arduous effort to get there. I also explain how strict my instructor was on safety drills. I explain how I swam out 1300' with no lights and no visibility, from way back in a cave, with a buddy, when one of us "randomly" ran out of gas (because of the instructor) and how we had to make navigational decisions in that visibility and in those conditions. I explain to them what my instructors told me: The only two things you need in a cave are: 1) breathable gas, 2) continuous guideline. I then explain the redundant air supply, "thirds", and lost line drills. I explain that the only thing that could possibly keep me in a cave forever was a mental mistake, and that as long as I was focused and aware that I would always be fine. All of that is wrapped up with a: "But that is only for REALLY experienced divers that have TONS of time and training. Recreational diving is incredibly safe when done right, and very safe even when done fairly wrong.

 

[HIGHwing]

I don't feel the need to justify myself, but I also don't feel the need to put myself in the position of justifying myself.

 

[Wookie]

I take kind of a different approach. Although I do not sugar coat the dangers of diving, I do not consider that diving, for properly trained and experienced divers diving "standard" technical profiles to be "dangerous", and that's how I explain it. Then, I try to equate the dangers to something the questioner might do, like riding a motorcycle without a helmet, or walking in Manhattan or crossing a street. I empsasize the adventure and romance of seeing a shipwreck that fewer than 100 divers have been on, or being in a cave that fewer than 1 in 100 divers (I'm in that 99th percentile, but I can speak intelligently about caving) have been in.

 

[rjack321]

I'm frequently diving way beyond where my wife is remotely comfortable. She is intro trimix and cave trained plus a former hyperbaric nurse, so she actually has a decent understanding of the risks. She sometimes asks what I have or will be doing to mitigate them. Since I work in risk management and communication, I actually enjoy and welcome these conversations (nice that she's my spouse too).

 

[tstormdiver]

Living in the Midwest, most around here have no clue about scuba diving,... let alone cave or technical diving. I try to do & say what I can to allay the fears of those that I am around. At work, I am a control systems operator. A thankless & very stressful job that most do not want. Personally I love the challenge it brings on. My superiors are always bringing up the "what if's" if I don't return from one of my many trips to the FL caves. I remind them of the 2 yrs of training I went through. As for family,... most try to ignore what I do. I do give my mother the courtesy of a phone call each day (if able) after I finish up my diving for the day. I also explain that I know the risks of the dives & that I have been trained to deal with them (or at least most of them).