HELP!!! Newbie cant get used to the breathing

[Joanne Hughes]

Hi Guys,

Im a newbie and my first confined 'dive' on my PADI OW course has been a disaster. I was ill on the day with a flu virus/heavy cold/temperature which I dont suppose helped much. I couldnt relax with the breathing at all, as soon as I was under water for more than a few minutes I felt the urge to surface. A lovely kind dive assistant reassured and helped give me confidence and by the end I had mastered taking the reg out of my mouth underwater and blasting it. Is it usual to feel aware of every breath you take - I did breathe deeply and slowly, possibly too deeply. Also, the air was undearable dry, not helped by having a sore throat. I obviously would never have gone in open water while not well, it was in a confined pool, shallow end. Is there any hope for me as Im determined to carry on and master this, im sure if it was in a tropical sea somewhere, the sights of the fish would take my mind off my breathing technique. My son who started the course with me flew through the session.

 

[skippy77]

well u should have shot the instructor for letting you dive with the flu and u should have nown that u can not dive witht the flu part of the course try it when u get better and good luck

 

[Al Mialkovsky]

Joanne there is tons of hope for you. The main thing is you WANT to dive so you will be able to.

Many new students tell me they have trouble breathing at first but actually several people could breathe off of your first stage at the same time. They provide plenty of air. The problem lies not in the lungs but in an area above the lungs, I think they call that the brain. We think too darn much at times

As you get more pool time you'll get used to it. When they get you to the point of mask clears eventually it will become second nature to you. When you get some free time in the pool towards the end of your sessions take that time to practice whatever skill seems to bug you the most.

Joanne scuba is just about the coolest thing you'll ever do. Have confidence in that YOU CAN DO THIS!

 

[Mark Vlahos]

You seem like a reasonable rational person, pause and think about it for just a minute. For your entire life you have known that it is just not possible under normal circumstances to breathe while under water. SCUBA makes that possible, but your natural reflexes may take a little while to get the concept.

Having a cold or any problem that causes sinus, inner ear, or digestive tract discomfort will give you problems with diving, even only a few feet deep in a pool. Talk to your instructor about any illness or congestion you may have, also talk about your discomfort level regarding simply using the gear, even in the pool. The instructor can help you work through the problems. Be patient, and work the problems slowly. Remember, the instructor can only help you with problems he or she has been made aware of.

Best of luck,

Mark Vlahos

 

[Joanne Hughes]

Thanks Al, I felt there was just so much to think about, we had to set up and put on all our stuff and I wasnt relaxed at all, normall I am a cool person. I think the first half hour should have been just getting used to everything at your own pace, but they wanted us to do every task to pass the first module in under an hour (my son was ok at all of it but he is 15, a Gold Award swimmer with bags of confidence and had done a try dive on holiday). Im feeling much better now so next week should be a new day!

 

[Ber Rabbit]

You are a mammal and mammals are not supposed to be able to breathe with their face in the water. Your body knows this very well, basically your are freaking out your inner mammal. Keep focusing on your breathing and with time and patience you can convince that inner mammal that yes indeed, it can breathe with its face in the water. The more time you spend breathing underwater the more natural it will become and the more comfortable you will get. I had a very hard time learning to breathe without a mask on--that inner mammal had a lot of fight in it Take the time to master no-mask breathing and then underwater breathing with a mask is no big deal.

Most scuba air is very dry and diving while sick wasn't helping your case any but I understand the drive to go ahead and do the class. Unfortunately the pool isn't the place to be sipping a little water to moisten your mouth--UGH!

You'll do fine, just take your time and train your inner mammal.
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[midwayman]

Id make sure to tell the instructor to use extra disinfectant on the reg you used. Gah, dont want to get someone else sick.

 

[huskychemist]

As somebody that got certified in September, I remember that feeling also. One thing that helped me was practicing in my own pool with a snorkel. Many of the folks that were getting certified had much more experience snorkeling than me. (None.) The idea of breathing "underwater" is simulated with the snorkel, and it really helped me get used to the regulator.

 

[fishoutawater]

Yes Joanne, they're all right. Breathing underwater is an unnatural act, and certainly the flu might've made it impossible for you to clear your ears. Sitting in the shallow end would probably cause just enough pressure to your ear drums to just add to the myriad of other sensory overloads you were experienceing.

Maybe talk your instructor to let you spend some time at the shallow end just getting used to breathing underwater with the mask on, and most importantly, without a mask on.

Can you breathe through your mouth without any air going through your nose?
I never would have thought of this problem, but I watched some TV show about a Navy SEAL class, and this one guy made it all the way through BUDDS and Hellweek, then graduated to dive school and found out he couldn't stop his nasal passages. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't breathe through his regulator without his mask on. Bummer.

But that would be a very rare condition Joanne. You problem is very very typical, and easily overcome with just a little practice.
Next time you go under, let loose that crippling fear, stop and think, make that magical realization that "WOW, I CAN DO THIS!! I'M BREATHING UNDERWATER!!" :59:

Welcome to the best part of the world Joanne. Yer gonna love it!

 

[Humuhumunukunukuapua'a]

Of course there's hope for you. Remember when you learned to ride a bike? You had to do it more than once to get good at it, right? Same with SCUBA diving. It's really as simple as that.

A lot of new divers after their first pool dive wonder why they haven't mastered it yet. 50 dives from now, you'll wonder why you would have even expected to be good at that stage. Just stick with it, keep diving, and it'll get more and more comfortable