Can you hold your breath while Diving?

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If you watch videos of people spearfishing on scuba, you may notice that the diver suspends breathing on the final approach and while lining up the shot and then a big exhale after the shot - often anyway. Sometimes they stop for a while, if you are trying to shoot under a ledge, you want to avoid blasting the inside of the cave with bubbles. You really want to be careful if you are stalking a fish that is above you and moving higher, you have to force yourself to remember to exhale.
 
If what I hear from freedivers is true, then another thing to consider is the possibility of low oxygen blackout. Apparently, if you hold your breath a lot, over a period of time, you can build up a lot of CO2 in your system & deplete O2. From what I am told, while you are at depth, a depleted O2 level may still allow you to function, because the partial pressure of the O2 in your system is still within workable limits, but as you then ascend, the partial pressure drops & if it goes low enough, you can pass out on the way up. I would assume that berating normally for a while before you ascend should solve this problem, but I am no expert on this subject. You might want to consult some freedivers about that sort of thing. It's one of the concerns that they focus on. Me, I just have a bit of hearsay second-hand knowledge floating around in my head, so all I can really tell you is to ask the questions. I don't have good answers on that one.
 

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