discouraged...

[airsix]

One of my very experienced buddies commented that there are those who were born to dive, and those who were not. This hit me kind of hard. I'm clearly a "not", but I want to work through it b/c I'm a grad student in ocean engineering and diving will likely be a part of my career.

Oohhh!!! That comment just makes me want to POP the arogant POS right in the nose. There are NOT people born to do or not to do ANYTHING! Some things are easier for some, but that doesn't mean the rest can't do them just as well with a little work. Aptitude only gets you part way. How bad you want it determines sucess or failure, NOT aptitude.
You can ABSOLUTELY get past this. In fact, if you go forward with determination you can and WILL become a better diver than your "buddy" who was "born to dive". It may take some resolve to face your aprehension, but if you do that and keep practicing you will be amazed at what you acomplish. One of the most rewarding feelings in life is to reach the point where you find pleasure in something you once feared. Do not give up! The reward for sticking it out is too great.

-Ben

 

[Wayward Son]

My wife had an instructor who came up with this "some people just never will be divers" crap.

She had some lifelong issues regarding water to get over, but she wanted to dive. Rather than help her work on those issues, he choose simply to discourage her, despite the progress she was making due to my working with her independantly. We finally requested a different instructor, she got certified & is turning into a good diver. She's logged about 15 dives now & is enjoying the hell out of it.

Anxiety is mostly a mental thing, and yes, it can be dealt with & overcome. You need to undertand what raises your anxiety levels and what to do about it when it happens.

I love to dive, but I have had drops where I haven't been out in a while & the viz was bad. As I descend into the murk below I can tell that it's raising my anxiety levels a bit. It's simply an involuntary reaction to the severely reduced viz conditions. All it takes is for me to recognize it when it happens, stop, relax & breath slow & deep a few times. Then I'm ready to get on with the dive.

Remember: YOU control the dive. Anyone can call any dive, at any time, for any reason. If you can't go down without exceeding your comfort level, go back up. If you're down & get too cold, or for any other reason uncomfortable with the situation, end the dive & go back up. You decide, you control.

It's normal for people to have some anxiety when doing new things. Adequate skills & confidence in those skills goes a long way to removing the anxiety. Gear that fits properly, a warmer/clearer setting, and mental focus on what you're doing at the time. No reason to give up, without making the effort to deal with it.

You may yet decide that this is not for you, and that's perfectly OK.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

I too was an anxious diver when I learned and there are times I still have to deal with some anxiety. Your experience was a positively brutal one for a new diver, you can have fun in cold water with low vis my students and I do it regularly. Others have mentioned gear that fits and they are right, especially when it comes to your exposure protection. Get a pair of 3-finger gloves if you are going to dive in cold water they make a huge difference. Make sure to get a hood that fits well and covers most of your face, the head and hands lose a lot of heat and keeping them warm will make you feel warmer longer.

You don't mention how much air you came back with on that dive but if you had over 500psi you should be very proud of yourself. It's unusual for a new diver to get through a dive that long in water that cold, many experienced divers don't last more than 30 minutes. Whoever was running your dive was not doing a very good job, they should have seen how cold you were and ended the dive long before you were too cold to keep your regulator in your mouth. That's part of being in a leadership position; they need to make leadership decisions in certification situations among others and they clearly failed. That dive should never have lasted more than 25 minutes. It not only discouraged you it was also dangerous though there was probably no way for you to know that since it was your check-out dive. The DM was right that you need to solve underwater problems underwater but the situation they had you in was detrimental to your ability to function within your training. Had you not started to experience signs of hypothermia your ability to deal with the problem at hand would have been better. The only real mistake you made was not telling them you were too cold to continue the dive earlier. I understand a student's unwillingness to abort a check-out dive and I watch my students carefully when we dive cold water so I can make the abort decision if they are reluctant to. It takes a lot of planning and coordination to make a cold water check-out run smoothly but it's done all the time and student's actually enjoy those dives.

Don't give up on yourself, I aborted my third check-out dive when I was learning and I had to dive an extra day because my instructor didn't think I was comfortable enough in the water to be certified. I did the same thing you did, shallow dives, lots of skills, etc. I did 50 dives before I started feeling comfortable with my skills and that fear instilled in me from my certification weekend started to lessen. I still have occasional anxiety issues but I just stop and take deep breaths until the feeling goes away. If the feeling doesn't go away I abort the dive; every diver has the right to abort any dive for any reason at any time. You can do this, it may take work but you can do it. Divers who experience some anxiety tend to be more careful than those with no fear issues, careful is a good thing. Don't give up on the cold water, it can be as enjoyable as the warm

Safe diving!
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[auberg]

My 2 cents.

My instructor said to me after the 3rd pool session that he could see that I was "terrified" of the water. Not that I hadn't done all of the skills, He saw I had serious fear. He also saw that I had the will to complete what I had started, so he moved me through the course. We did our OW dives last weekend and other than being a HUGE gas hog, I completed all of the skills without any problems. The thing that made all the difference, was at the pool I was using a rental BC. In the OW dives, I was using a BC that fit me a lot better. Having your own regs, BC, and probably in your case, a better fitting suit, will give you the trust and confidence to dive without nearly as much anxiety. I was nervous on my OW dives, but the more time I had with my equipment, the more trust I had, and the less anxiety.

Hang in there, If I can do this, anyone can. This means you too.

Have fun

 

[toodive4]

Anxiety is a problem if it is left untreated. There are many levels of anxiety from Mild to Severe - which may require medication. Since I'm not a doctor and have no idea where you fall in that spectrum I can not offer you final solutions... but...

... as a Scuba Instructor I can tell you that I have trained many people including some who took my class to overcome their fear of water. That's right - people who wouldn't even get into a swimming pool are now diving under my tutelage. I'm not blowing my own horn... as this can be accomplished with any Instructor willing to take the time to work with you.

My question is can you identify the cause of your anxiety? Was it the cold? Was it the low visibility,? was it fear of completing a particular skill such as mask removal? or was it some combination of all of the above? Your comment about the Instructor "lecturing" you about handling problems is an improper approach that would only add to your anxiety. It sounds to me like your instructor needs some lessons of his own. Some divers are ready for open water after 5 classes - some 15. A good Instructor at a reputable shop will take whatever time is needed to get you where you need to be. While they do this, it is not unreasonable for them to ask for additional compensation for their time, but it shouldn't cost you a fortune.

I have not yet met a person who couldn't overcome their anxiety issues by working with an Instructor that genuinely cared about their students success. I'm in MD, so if you are nearby, feel free to contatc me... if not, I'd suggest seeking out a more understanding Instructor that is knowledgable in dealing with anxiety issues in diving.

Ken Barrick,
SSI AOWI

Hi all,

Question for divers out there who have had "anxiety" problems...

Is it possible to overcome this?

I had a bad experience for my OW...lips froze after 45 min at 40 degrees in 5 foot vis...I started breathing in water and the DM took me up from 40 feet. And promptly got a speech about "fixing problems underwater", although I'm not sure what I could have done to stay warmer- my rental suit didn't fit well. Anyway, I've done 10 dives since then, each time practicing skills on the platform to get more comfortable and staying relatively shallow. I feel like I'm getting more comfortable, but the OW thing still haunts me.

One of my very experienced buddies commented that there are those who were born to dive, and those who were not. This hit me kind of hard. I'm clearly a "not", but I want to work through it b/c I'm a grad student in ocean engineering and diving will likely be a part of my career. Sooo......is it possible to get over the anxiety??? I want to be a good diver so badly, but I don't want to keep beating my head against a brick wall if I'm just not born to dive.

thanks for all input.
smash

 

[scubafool]

I have come up more than once & asked myself if I ever should do that particular type of dive again. I have changed equipment, I have improved my skills, I have worked on my mental proccesses, & always, I have got back in the water. I am far, far, from a natural born diver, but every issue I have I have been able to get past. You can too.

As others have said, try some dives in conditions vastly different from the dive in question. Work your way back to that type of dive very slowly, and when you feel stress start to build, back off & try again.

I imagine that there are some people who just aren't meant to be in the water, and no amount of practice or willpower can change that, but the vast majority of us can be competent divers if we approach it the right way.

 

[Canadian_Diver]

Hey Smash, don't be discouraged... even folks with 100's of dives under their belt get anxiety from time to time. As long as you always remember to STOP, BREATHE, THINK, ACT.... you'll be alright.

I wasn't there, but it sounds like your DM/Instructor is one of those 'God Complex' divers. He should never have had you out doing your cert dives in visibility that bad, temperatures that cold in only a rental wetsuit, and most certainly not given you heck for calling off a dive. DON'T EVER let anyone tell you your a wussie or talk you down for calling off a dive. The smartest and best divers will call off a dive if they feel something isn't right, or they just aren't happy.

The BORN TO DIVE motto is a bunch of BS in my own humble opinion. Anyone can dive and be good at. Some just need a little more practice and experience than others. With a good instructor and some dive experience, anyone can dive.

One of my instructors is a great example. He couldn't even swim up until about 5 or 10 years ago, and he was well into his 40's!! He taught himself how to swim, took up diving, and eventually became an instructor.... and a DARN good one at that!!

Keep at it my friend, don't ever let someone tell you that you're not 'made' for something. None of us are specifically built for something.

Good luck and good diving!!! :thumbs-up

Hi all,

Question for divers out there who have had "anxiety" problems...

Is it possible to overcome this?

I had a bad experience for my OW...lips froze after 45 min at 40 degrees in 5 foot vis...I started breathing in water and the DM took me up from 40 feet. And promptly got a speech about "fixing problems underwater", although I'm not sure what I could have done to stay warmer- my rental suit didn't fit well. Anyway, I've done 10 dives since then, each time practicing skills on the platform to get more comfortable and staying relatively shallow. I feel like I'm getting more comfortable, but the OW thing still haunts me.

One of my very experienced buddies commented that there are those who were born to dive, and those who were not. This hit me kind of hard. I'm clearly a "not", but I want to work through it b/c I'm a grad student in ocean engineering and diving will likely be a part of my career. Sooo......is it possible to get over the anxiety??? I want to be a good diver so badly, but I don't want to keep beating my head against a brick wall if I'm just not born to dive.

 

[jakubson]

Hi all,

Question for divers out there who have had "anxiety" problems...

Is it possible to overcome this?

I had a bad experience for my OW...lips froze after 45 min at 40 degrees in 5 foot vis...I started breathing in water and the DM took me up from 40 feet. And promptly got a speech about "fixing problems underwater", although I'm not sure what I could have done to stay warmer- my rental suit didn't fit well. Anyway, I've done 10 dives since then, each time practicing skills on the platform to get more comfortable and staying relatively shallow. I feel like I'm getting more comfortable, but the OW thing still haunts me.

One of my very experienced buddies commented that there are those who were born to dive, and those who were not. This hit me kind of hard. I'm clearly a "not", but I want to work through it b/c I'm a grad student in ocean engineering and diving will likely be a part of my career. Sooo......is it possible to get over the anxiety??? I want to be a good diver so badly, but I don't want to keep beating my head against a brick wall if I'm just not born to dive.

thanks for all input.
smash

To overcome anxiety, you have to be motivated. By reading your post, i would say that you are definitely motivated.

My guess is your anxiety is mainly related to breathing in water on your first dive. 45 minutes in 40 degrees - I know I could NOT have done that my first dive and maybe could not even do that now - I got plenty cold at 60 minutes with 47 degrees last month. In fact, since it was my first cold water dive in 16 years, I almost lost the regulator at about the 45 minute mark - I had to concentrate on biting down harder.

I agree that it would be nice if you could get to some warm water for some practice dives. Once you realize that you DO know how to dive, and get rid of the general anxiety, you can work on the specifics of how NOT to have the bad cold water experience again. A few cold water hints:

1. Anticipate. When you start to get chilled, terminate the dive before your lips freeze.
2. Gear. Of course, a better fitting wetsuit will help. Pour hot water down your wetsuit just before entering the water. Also, splurge on a custom mouthpiece (SeaCure - $30). It is molded to your teeth, and you can hold in the regulator with less effort.

 

[Trisha]

Next time someone says he's a "born diver" -- ask to see his webbed feet.

What are your short-term goals? When I go out on a dive I have 2-6 things I want to do, whether it's see certain fish or practice skills or whatever. This lets me concentrate on something I enjoy, and gives me points to reflect on after the dive.

Dives are as good as you make them, just don't scuba with someone who raises your blood pressure.
Good luck!

 

[Bill51]

At 5’6” 110 lbs, you’ve probably got no extra body fat so after 45 minutes at 40F you were probably starting to get hypothermic and I’m guessing your blood sugar level had started dropping trying to keep you warm. Unless you were taking a military course to test your ultimate stamina, the instructor had NO business keeping you in those conditions that long unless you were in a well fitting dry suit.

I’ve seen people start into hypothermia without ever going through the shivering stage, and you don’t mention that, but the poor coordination that appears as an early symptom would raise anyone’s anxiety level if they were in a strange new underwater environment at the same time. It scares me when it happens and I’ve been there too many times on cold water dives.

While diving may never be part of your ocean engineering in the future, I’m glad to see you getting your feet wet and learning a little more about the ocean up close and personal before they throw all the book stuff at you.

If you’re going to finish up your OW before you move here, DEMAND that no open water sessions last more than 20 minutes max – or come on down and keep warm here. I know of no civilian certification requirements that have a test for cold water endurance.