Sure is.
I would like to know why beginner divers panic & do such drastic move against what they have been thought not to do in the OW class. If anyone who has gone through such situation & survived, please share your story here.
I have not gone through a situation anywhere near what that person went through in that video, but I do ten to panic sometimes (I still consider myself a new diver). I think it's due to my claustrophobia. Honestly, especially while getting certified, every second of every dive my brain was thinking "stay calm, you're fine, don't panic, everything's okay". It was constant and really took the fun out of it, but I kept telling my self that I would become more comfortable and this would go away. All the classroom and pool training in the world won't get someone over their claustrophobia and when you start to panic, it takes a lot to keep it in check and follow taught procedures. Imagine getting your drivers licence, but then going down a hill on the highway at 100mph when all of a sudden you lose your breaks...that's what it feels like.
There was one instance, I think it was my 5th dive or so after certification, when I was in Boracay and had a mild attack. We were at around 40 feet, swimming along in a line. I was constantly checking up to see where the surface was, just because it made me feel more secure and comfortable. All of a sudden I felt like I wasn't getting any more air. I told myself there was no way my tank was empty, but still I felt like nothing was coming out so I stared up at the surface ready to bolt. I never really figured out if it was just me panicking, but afterwards they thought that looking up while swimming, may have made it difficult to for the air to pass through and just made it feel difficult to breathe.
Anyways, my finger was on my BCD ready to inflate and bolt to the surface. My DM saw me and came over and did a VERY good job of calming me, making his air available and just making hand signals to make sure I was okay. I wish I could remember his name (he was a local Filipino guy) so I could give him kudos.
