Fear of Deep/Open Water

[Downing]

Thanks for the advice. It seems like I just need to take it step by step.

Bingo!

Too many firsts on that trip led to diver overload. You've recognized the issue, and you know how to deal with it. Sounds to me like you're on your way to becoming a great diver.

 

[NorCalDM]

Where I live scopolamine is a non-prescription, behind-the-counter drug. Scopolamine was recommended by my physician who knew that I would be scuba diving off a boat. Of course, consult your GP. I had three different anti-nausea drugs, and the treatment regimen was to start with scop. It that didn't work or had bad side effects, switch to drug 2. If still no joy, switch to 3. If that still doesn't work, it doesn't matter 'cause the trip will be over by then.

Scopolamine was prescribed to my wife by her physician who was also informed that she would be diving and after she had issues with it and she questioned her physician we found out she didn't know much about the drug but the pharmacist did!! We found out about the side affects by reading the paperwork that came with the drug and four or five of the side affects matched what was going on with her. If it works for you great sounds like your had a plan! Several of the group we dive with have quit using it as well. Also if possible find a physician that knows something about diving.

 

[TubularTurtle]

I've found that watching my depth gauge as I descend helps calm my nerves significantly. It helps me forget about the abyss and lets me control my descent. my .02

 

[TSandM]

Oh, you're diving Monterey -- that gives you LOTS of options. You can shore dive the Breakwater, which I assume you have already seen, or you can go to Pt. Lobos and dive Whaler's Cove. You can dive the cove by descending right off the boat ramp and swimming down, or you can surface swim until you can just see the bottom, or until you can only see it once you're underwater . . . you can increase the difficulty bit by bit until you are completely comfortable with a blind descent. The topography of the sites makes it easy to do this!

 

[NorCalDM]

This was out in Monterey, California. So the reef was about 75 ft down, and yes, there was just a big void below. Couldn't even see the DM's bubbles, just some jellyfish.

The Monterey/Carmel area has SO many shore diving options that give you a chance to work on your skills and not have the pressure to dive because you paid for the boat trip. Surprised the DM was in the water, usually stay on the boat suited up for emergencies only. If would like PM me and I could give you some names of sites that are good for working on your skills but are interesting sites as well. If you are going to dive in this area you have to get use to the changing viz/conditions.

 

[mrbeast1414]

The Monterey/Carmel area has SO many shore diving options that give you a chance to work on your skills and not have the pressure to dive because you paid for the boat trip. Surprised the DM was in the water, usually stay on the boat suited up for emergencies only. If would like PM me and I could give you some names of sites that are good for working on your skills but are interesting sites as well. If you are going to dive in this area you have to get use to the changing viz/conditions.

Yes I second that. Pretty much every single dive I have done it has the been the worst conditions possible. For my open water cert dives, less than 5ft viz! But I still had a great time because, well, I'm just a kid and I didn't know any better. It was funny, when I surfaced I was like "That was awesome! The conditions were great!" My instructor: "THose were pretty much the worst conditions I have ever seen at Breakwater."

Then at Pt. Lobos my deepest dive we had to abort the 2nd time because the viz was under 2 ft. But the first was my first free descent into water 75+ feet of water. I had no problems at all. I think this was because of a few reasons.
1) I was super comfortable even though it was only my 6th dive. This was because I have my own equipment, I had a buddy I knew, and a trusted instructor who new the dive site inside and out.
2) I am a kid who loves to dive and doesn't really worry about what's below, just fascinated by everything passing by.

 

[robbcayman]

That happens to a lot of divers. Just don't push it too fast, it takes time to feel comfortable. Remember, you're not in your natural element when diving, so it's normal to feel this way.

That's like a guy saying he's new to rock climbing and he wants to scale K2 on his second day. It can be too much too fast and the nerves kick in and rightfully so. Just start out by staying close to shore until you are comfortable. Over time your comfort level will change and you will lose the feeling. It's a common cliche, but dive within your comfort limit.

 

[fiveupstove]

Something seems a bit odd to me now. This was actually supposed to be my dry suit certification dive. I did my night in the pool just fine, and the instructor asked if I wanted to do the ocean dives from the shore (as originally planned) or from a boat (extra fee). I thought the boat would be fun so I chose that, and needless to say it didn't go as planned. When trying to go down the line, the instructor went down before me with another guy but came back up and saw that I wanted to abort. He didn't say too much afterwards, but offered to have me try again in the future. Did he act professionally in this case, having me do a boat dive at this stage, or did he figure that I knew what I was doing?

 

[TSandM]

Well, if you did all the skills in the pool fine and appeared confident, I suppose he gave you credit for more comfort than you actually had. And you appear to have done the same, since you agreed to go. Personally, I would never test new gear, even now, off a boat. In fact, I had brand new regulators to dive when I did my boat dives on December 31st, and left them at home. Boat dives cost too much to run the risk of discovering something new just isn't working for you!

 

[Quero]

Something seems a bit odd to me now. This was actually supposed to be my dry suit certification dive. I did my night in the pool just fine, and the instructor asked if I wanted to do the ocean dives from the shore (as originally planned) or from a boat (extra fee). I thought the boat would be fun so I chose that, and needless to say it didn't go as planned. When trying to go down the line, the instructor went down before me with another guy but came back up and saw that I wanted to abort. He didn't say too much afterwards, but offered to have me try again in the future. Did he act professionally in this case, having me do a boat dive at this stage, or did he figure that I knew what I was doing?

I don't see lack of professionalism based on what you've stated.

The instructor presumably felt your observable diving skills were adequate to the additional novelty of a boat dive, but he's not inside your head to know how you felt. So for what he couldn't observe, he asked.

You were given the opportunity to opt for the more familiar shore dive or the novelty of a boat dive. To make the choice, you needed to self-assess your comfort both with boat travel and in the water to judge whether the new challenges presented by a boat dive would be a good idea. You simply made the wrong call for your comfort level, and to be fair, we have all got ourselves into situations in which we wondered why we'd decided to do something in a particular way, both in terms of diving and non-diving activities.

A misjudgment is just that--it doesn't necessarily imply a lack of professionalism as long as the negative result wasn't reasonably foreseeable. Don't beat yourself up, and don't beat up your instructor! Just file it away as a learning experience about your personal comfort zone and use it as data for the next time you are presented with a similar choice.