Hi there fellow members,
Almost finished with the divemaster course (yay!). Completed the other four endurance tests well but yesterday I got stuck on the stress test! I feel quite comfortable with my dive skills (good technique, buoyancy control, etc) but something about the multitasking while sharing a regulator makes me lose control of my breathing pattern. So a few questions for those of you who have passed this:
1) Does anyone have a similar experience on this test and can give me a few pointers on how to not lose my calm and keep focused on the tasks?
2) How many times did it take you?
I assume by the "stress test" you mean the "equipment swap".
The answer to question 2 in my case is once. However I had been diving for a long time and had a lot of dives under my belt, as did my buddy. Not everyone comes into the course with the same baggage. In particular you need to buddy breathe during this exercise IIRC and some newer divers never learned it.
The answer to question 1 is to stop viewing it as a stress test and start viewing it as a test in RELAXATION. The more you relax and view it as a game, the easier the test will be. Calling it, or viewing it, as a stress test will put you in the wrong mind-set, imo.
The three keys to making it easy on yourself are:
1) go slow
2) communicate with your buddy
and
3) consider the order of things.
#1 is obvious. The key to doing things right the first time is to go slow. Just like many things in life, if you don't have time to do it right, you don't have time to do it twice.... so take your time.
#2 communication is key. Only start with a step when you and your buddy are both ready for it. Coordinate. Make sure your buddy understands when you are ready to act and make sure he/she understands when they need to wait for you to be ready.
#3 The order of things can make a big difference.
a) As far as I remember, you need to swap out all gear except the suit and weights. So if you start with easy stuff like the fins then you can get in sync with each other. The task is to get it done. There is no requirement about the order of things.
b) The mask, IMO should be last unless both partners are sure the other's mask fits them. A leaking mask will complicate everything that comes after that so do it last. Also, this is the only task that really needs to be done simultaneously. All the other tasks can be done one diver at a time.
c) Finally, since the exercise involves buddy breathing then practice it with your buddy before the test. The time to get on the same page with them on the tempo and protocol for buddy breathing is not during the test; it's before the test. It might be a good idea to get an instructor to show you how to buddy breathe the way it was taught before it was scrapped from the OW course. Inventing a wheel can be fun but using an existing wheel is more efficient.
In order to score 5 points it needs to look "purposeful", "problem free", "routine" and "fun".
Making it look "purposeful" is easy if you get on the same page with your buddy about the order of things before the exercise.
Making it look "problem free" is easy if you practice buddy breathing and keep the tempo low.
Making it look "routine" is easy if you avoid confusion (see purposeful). Agreeing to hand-signs ahead of time will help on this front. Your instructor will be looking for team work and communication.
Making it look "fun" is easy if you get your mindset to "game" instead of "stress test". If you make a mistake, don't be afraid to roll it back and try again. Muddling through a mistake is weaker than resetting with good communication and trying again. Mistakes can happen. It's what you do about it that your instructor will be looking for.
R..