Getting my panic under control

[Ber Rabbit]

There is also the possibility that you were experiencing a bit of narcosis. I've been narced at that depth when I was very tired; there are other factors that can pre-dispose you to feeling the narcosis when deeper than 1 ATA (33 feet) as well. You are new, you were probably nervous after the bad experience the previous dive and may not have been breathing correctly leading to a build-up of CO2; all of these factors can enhance what nitrogen narcosis can do to your mind. Fear of what happened the last time you were at that depth might have driven the feeling that you couldn't breathe. The extra nerves/fear probably REALLY altered your breathing pattern causing even MORE CO2 buildup and enhancing the sensation you couldn't breathe as well as increase the effect any N2 might be having on you. Nitrogen narcosis can be sneaky and your susceptibility will vary from day to day and even dive to dive. Odds are the situation was a combination of a lot of different things.

Like the others said, figure out what scares you and take the advice the others have given. Remember some pools (like ours) are 14-15 feet deep so you do your safety stop in the comfort of pool depth. You are always free to abort any dive at any time, unfortunately that's something new divers are afraid to do. This is the most important time in your diving to have the confidence to abort a dive that doesn't feel right, there are a lot of conditions out there that you are not trained to handle. If you don't like it DON'T GO. I freaked a boat captain out once when I aborted a dive. I just didn't like the way it "felt" as I was going down the anchor line so I went back. I got to the jump line at about 60 feet that leads to the wreck and decided I didn't want to go so back up the anchor line I went. The captain kept asking "What's wrong?" over and over, "Nothing" evidently wasn't good enough for him since I'm an instructor and there were AOW divers who did the dive LOL!

You're on the right track, keep diving! You might also want to find a mentor from here on the board or a local dive shop as well. There are many people here willing to dive with you and give tips/tricks for making diving more enjoyable. Stay within your comfort zone, expand it only when you're completely ready. When you dive, only change one thing at a time; getting used to a different wetsuit thickness/weight requirement AND trying to figure out how to use some other new piece of gear generally doesn't mix well especially for new divers.
Good luck to you and safe diving!
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[LAJim]

I have seen symptoms similar to this in a case of a too-tight wetsuit. Symptoms and signs substantially went away when the suit was unzipped to relieve the compression on the lung capacity. An internet search later revealed a couple of instances of fatalities due or relating to overly-tight suits.

Good advice in the other posts.

Jim

 

[miked]

As usual, the folks on this board have come up with many good ideas and suggestions.
One additional thought-in your original post, you indicated that you started to "get stressed" (my words) at nearly the same depth as your regulator problem occurred on the previous dive.
Could there be an element of "this is where the stuff hit the fan" subconsciously creating anxiety??
If so, being aware of that feeling may be a start towards overcoming that feeling, or the resulting stress.

Kudos for handling the air-share situation-and remember, as the others have said, doing that is an indicator of your training "kicking in" when it is most needed. That is a good thought to hang onto-and perhaps be a calming source of comfort.

Good luck,
Mike

 

[Thalassamania]

The Zen thing about three long slow breaths changing the universe is true, try to make that your reaction to the rising feeling of panic and it will flee from you.

 

[RS]

Glad everything is OK! I've only got a couple of observations.

• A Safety Stop is optional for Recreational Dives. It reduces your chances of DCS, but can be skipped if you're having problems.
• A "thumb" isn't a question, it's a statement. Anybody can call any dive at any time. When you weren't feeling well, you and your buddy (husband) should have made the ascent.
  
  The only time this doesn't apply is if you're in some type of overhead environment like a cave or have a decompression obligation or are diving in a dangerous place like a busy shipping lane. As a new diver, you should never be in any of these situations and a direct ascent to the surface should always be an option.
• If the dive is over, it's over. Surfacing (or almost surfacing), then descending again with a partially used tank is a really bad idea, because of the behaviour of re-compressed gas bubbles in your blood and because your tank probably no longer contains enough gas for a safe dive.

In any event, Bonaire is beautiful and you'll love it. There's never any reason to go deeper than you want and there's plenty of cool stuff to see in shallow places.

Agreed. And well said.

I have also seen (and felt) the too-tight wetsuit phenomena, but only w/ a 7mm. Never really used a thinner one, but guess it would be the same principle. That feeling of air starvation underwater can really give your mental faculties a workout.

 

[Tonio Anastasi]

Glad everything is OK! I've only got a couple of observations.

• A Safety Stop is optional for Recreational Dives. It reduces your chances of DCS, but can be skipped if you're having problems.
• A "thumb" isn't a question, it's a statement. Anybody can call any dive at any time. When you weren't feeling well, you and your buddy (husband) should have made the ascent.
  
  The only time this doesn't apply is if you're in some type of overhead environment like a cave or have a decompression obligation or are diving in a dangerous place like a busy shipping lane. As a new diver, you should never be in any of these situations and a direct ascent to the surface should always be an option.
• If the dive is over, it's over. Surfacing (or almost surfacing), then descending again with a partially used tank is a really bad idea, because of the behaviour of re-compressed gas bubbles in your blood and because your tank probably no longer contains enough gas for a safe dive.

In any event, Bonaire is beautiful and you'll love it. There's never any reason to go deeper than you want and there's plenty of cool stuff to see in shallow places.

Terry

Very, very well put Terry.

SANDY.
Ask your self if you really want to dive,
Do you really enjoy being underwatter?
If you do then don't worry about the butterflies in your stomach.
Most divers get butterflies before a dive.
Use these to allow you to focus. Close your eyes, and take a few slow deep breaths, clear you head and focus on the dive plan.
Enjoy.

 

[MBH]

I have seen symptoms similar to this in a case of a too-tight wetsuit. Symptoms and signs substantially went away when the suit was unzipped to relieve the compression on the lung capacity. An internet search later revealed a couple of instances of fatalities due or relating to overly-tight suits.

Good advice in the other posts.

Jim

This is exactly what happened to me during a buddy towing exercise. While I was being towed I began feeling like every breath that I took was being squeezed right back out of me. I soon noticed that I was taking very shallow and rapid breaths. (Not good, I know) I got my instructors attention, told him what was going on, and he suggested that I pull the neck of my wetsuit open and let a little water in. Bingo problem solved instantly.

This has happened to me one other time since then, same wetsuit, same remedy.

 

[NeillsvilleSue]

I had to register after reading your post. I too experienced a panic on my first dive in Bonaire. Fortunately I was also with a great buddy who realized there was a problem and assisted me immediately. We are new OWD's and the experience just about floored me. However I realized as I started to ascend that I was ok- we went from 40-30ft and I got it under control. We finished our dive and went every day 2 times for the rest of the 6 days there. Dont give up- great advise here. And Bonaire rocks we will be going back.

 

[redrover]

I wondered if CO2 related. Initial stress/concern/prepanic response to that much water and begin the overbreathe thing that makes it worse and worse. For me – luckily figured it out early on – to stop (1 task load just control breathing too relaxed) and calm down solved it. Once overbreathing it’s very hard to get control and slow it down so hit up the countermeasure with first disturbing thought. Practice dry with the butterflys when thinking about it and create memory exercise reaction more inherently – quicker for when wet.