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What do you need to teach someone wearing contact lenses compared to someone who does not? What instructions are recommended for example when taking off mask (so as not to loose the lenses...)?
Interested to hear from other instructors but also from other divers .
We have our divers remove contacts during the pool sessions. We do a lot of no mask work with eyes open. Some students wear an old pair so if they float away it doesn't matter. We suggest they bring along their glasses or extra contacts for the drive home.
When I have a diver who is nearly blind without their contacts a staff member is assigned to them for close-up demos of whatever they have trouble seeing. Nobody else can see well underwater so they are only at a real disadvantage on the surface. Our dive sites are midwest quarries and low visibility isn't unusual. All of our divers do zero vis exercises in the pool, divers without contacts have a head start
When we go to open water they leave the lenses in and just close their eyes or squint enough to retain the lenses for the mask drills. They are comfortable with their ability to function maskless by then and there are only 2 drills taking all of about 30 seconds to complete if that.
Ber :lilbunny:
I don't teach, but I do wear contacts/glasses. I don't wear my contacts for diving, I wear a perscription mask. Both my primary mask and my backup are the same script. The glasses/contacts stay in the truck.
I do wear contact lenses .... and I am an instructor too.
When I was a student I was told to keep my eyes shut during the mask removal exercises .....
When I teach and I have to demonstrate the mask removal exercises ...... I keep one eye close and the other open just a little bit (to monitor my students). I also tell my students to practice the mask removal exercises with their eyes closed.
What do you need to teach someone wearing contact lenses compared to someone who does not? What instructions are recommended for example when taking off mask (so as not to loose the lenses...)?
Interested to hear from other instructors but also from other divers .
I wear the "dailies disposables", and I wear them only for diving. If I lose them no big deal. My dive can continue if I lose them but it's harder to read my computer. During my cert classes years ago, I let my instructer know that I was wearing contacts and asked could I do the mask removal and clearing last, at the end of the class. He obliged me with that request each time. It shouldn't be a big deal.
If you've got hard ones, they are easier to loose if you get water in your eyes. Have your doctor give you a pair of "weekly" throw away soft contacts. (like a "demo pair").
you'll find that they work better in the water than the hard ones.
As for doing pool sessions and skills, I agree with the above that it's best to remove them.
I wear glasses but put on "Dailies" when diving, if I lose them it's no biggie.
I have opened my eyes underwater with them on and they stayed in. Last time I did a maskless drill it was for cave diving and it was done with eyes shut in touch contact for ten minutes.
while i was doing my OW and AOW i simply closed my eyes during the skills (PADI). I can't see it as a requirement to have your eyes open for these skills and it's actually harder to do the required skills with your eyes closed.
I'm assuming as a dive centre or different certification system you are doing more no mask work? if it's simply pool skills then putting in and pulling out contacts is quite simple and doesn't take long for someone who's worn them more than a dozen times, providing somewhere to wash your hands would be the only requirement, you should ask the students to bring their own solution and holders.
as for asking divers to not wear contacts, it's a case by case basis... for OW and perhaps AOW the divers might not be confident enough underwater to cope in open water without contacts, or maybe even in the pool! an instructor who pressures someone to take out their contacts to do skills in my mind could be adding extra stress to students, which isn't something I'd agree with.
I wear disposable lenses. I've never had a problem with having my eyes open in salt water during any mask off practice. When swimming with no mask for any distance or switching masks, just squint slightly if there's any concern with lenses popping out. I've never had any lens come out.
I had a question about contacts before and considered buying a pair of prescription masks. I just spent a number of dives practicing skills and doing various mask off drills to see if I could get a lens to dislodge. I never had anything happen, so I decided to stick with contacts.
It's worth trying it yourself before deciding to go with contacts. It will also serve as a confidence builder with contacts in general.
-Mitch
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