Fish trying not to drown

[drowningfish]

Allright ladies and gentlemen,

I am 27 years old and after graduation I left Europe to work and travel all across the world, on my own.
I started in Australia and New Zealand, and now I'm in Asia. The only way to work here is to be a teacher I guess.

One of the many advantages of Asia is that life is cheaper, and so is getting certified as a scuba diver.
I have done one introductory dive in Queensland Australia, which was expensive and gave me second thoughts about getting better at this.
And I still have those thoughts, that's why I joined this forum.

During my first introductory dive, we had to show the trainer that we mastered some moves before we were allowed to follow the rope.
We had to take our goggles off under water, and put em back on. Remove our mouth piece and put it back in.

Everybody did it in no time and I failed over and over and over again. It was really hopeless and because we were in a hurry I felt uncomfortable
I was thinking how does everybody do this?

I had a hard time relaxing and breathing into a mouth piece because my body reacted by saying '' you are going to inhale water. Don't breathe! "
Removing the goggles made them run full of water so that I could not see anything and it irritated my eyes. I tried that 5 times but it never ever worked.
Same thing with removing the mouth piece. My brain objects heavily to breathe in, it just blocks me because there is no plan B if something goes wrong under the surface. Breathing is a natural survival instinct, so I guess that makes sense for a control freak like me.

And then last but not least. If I do not sit at the end of the boat where the motor is, I vomit all over the place and feel miserable.

It was pure failure and I paid for it.
I have no clue if I should try to get certified and that will pass by, or I should just give up and conclude that scuba diving is not for me.

That one day we were with a group of 30 ish and literally 2 people ended up not going down because we failed for those skills. Me and some girl.
I felt pretty stupid

I love the under water world, but it's as if I am destined to not be a part of it

looking for good advice here

cheers

 

[Griffo]

It's simple really. You need to find a good instructor and get private lessons. Tell them that you struggle with the basics and you need some one on one instruction sessions to master them - hopefully in a pool or on a shore dive so you don't have to deal with sea sickness. Don't sign up for a full course, just ask for some one on one instruction on the basic skills to see if you can master them. If not, then maybe diving just isn't for you, but lots of people struggle.

Oh, and it's a mask, not goggles

 

[mrokern]

Your initial reaction to breathing underwater seems normal. You're right, it's a mental thing. You can train your brain to relax, it just takes practice.

I bet if you polled the board, most people dreaded mask skills during their OW classes. I certainly did...and then I spent some time practicing, and they became natural. Again, it just takes some time and repetition. Everyone adapts to things at a different pace.

The above advice to spending some time in a one-on-one is great. A good instructor can help you work through both of those issues in a controlled environment where you are not under a timer.

 

[dfx]

I had a hard time relaxing and breathing into a mouth piece because my body reacted by saying '' you are going to inhale water. Don't breathe! "
Removing the goggles made them run full of water so that I could not see anything and it irritated my eyes. I tried that 5 times but it never ever worked.
Same thing with removing the mouth piece. My brain objects heavily to breathe in, it just blocks me because there is no plan B if something goes wrong under the surface. Breathing is a natural survival instinct, so I guess that makes sense for a control freak like me.

I'd wager to say that every single person who has ever taken a dive course has had exactly the same experience. It's a natural reaction. But, some people get over it more quickly than others. You may just need a little longer. Keep working on it and you'll eventually "get it". A private instructor would certainly be a good idea.

 

[divad]

That one day we were with a group of 30 ish and literally 2 people ended up not going down because we failed for those skills. Me and some girl.

Maybe being underwater is a little like being with a woman; you have to succumb, at least a little. Maybe you think of the ocean as "some girl."


Man that sounds shmarmy (sp).

 

[TMHeimer]

I'd wager to say that every single person who has ever taken a dive course has had exactly the same experience. It's a natural reaction. But, some people get over it more quickly than others. You may just need a little longer. Keep working on it and you'll eventually "get it". A private instructor would certainly be a good idea.

You would lose that wager. Folks with a lot of experience in the water, especially those who have snorkelled, have no problem at all adjusting to mouth breathing and maskless tasks. This was the case with me, and probably a majority of those I've observed in OW classes. Getting to my suggestion to drowningfish: Try some snorkelling. You must mouth-breathe when snorkelling on the surface-- same process with scuba. I've heard others suggest trying mask removal in bathtubs or barrels, etc. Can't hurt. Snorkel down 10' or so--do a lot of "water" activities. Best advice of course as mentioned would be private instruction.

 

[Steve_C]

You might find that once you have practiced at your own pace that you really are a fish.

For example with the mask. You really never have to open your eyes much under water with the mask off. The mask is in your hand. Put mask on. Then tilt head back a bit and exhale through your nose while cracking the mask a bit at the bottom of the mask. The mask fills up with air. Then open your eyes. Unless there is something critical to look at I find it easier to just take my time with my eyes shut and do it. You have air and if your eyes don't sting there is no hurry. Keep in mind that the instructors tend to use exaggerated motions so that it is easier for students to follow. You are not doing a demonstration. Just getting the mask on and cleared.

Putting regulator in your mouth. Exhale very slowly while you bring your reg up. Purge the reg just a bit to make sure it is full of air. Put reg in your mouth and exhale. Then you inhale just air and not water.

It was not clear to me when you said you had trouble relaxing and breathing into a mouthpiece if that was just all the time or just after you replaced the reg. If it was the former than you might try, with your feet on the ground in shallow water just breathing through the reg for a while. Put your mask down and look around in the water. Just breath for a while. The snorkeling is a good idea but do it in calm conditions with a good snorkel.

 

[PeterNBiddle]

You would lose that wager. Folks with a lot of experience in the water, especially those who have snorkelled, have no problem at all adjusting to mouth breathing and maskless tasks. This was the case with me, and probably a majority of those I've observed in OW classes. Getting to my suggestion to drowningfish: Try some snorkelling. You must mouth-breathe when snorkelling on the surface-- same process with scuba. I've heard others suggest trying mask removal in bathtubs or barrels, etc. Can't hurt. Snorkel down 10' or so--do a lot of "water" activities. Best advice of course as mentioned would be private instruction.

From what I've personally observed in Discovery dives, a substantial number of people are at an absolute loss underwater. I defer to instructors who teach that course, but I've seen people who perhaps couldn't even swim and who were clearly panicked just getting their faces wet.

I also know more than once competent and reliable diver who had issues with mask removal.

I loved the mask removal etc stuff. I wanted more of it in OW - and as you note, I snorkeled and swam obsessively as a kid.

 

[TMHeimer]

Yes, I have also read often of even seasoned instructors who had mask issues at first when taking OW. Getting a bit off topic, but I hear ya about those who are at an "absolute loss". I'm at an absolute loss thinking about them.

 

[dfx]

You would lose that wager.

Damn, you caught me exaggerating :tongue: