I know there werre a lot of you who chimed in and commented on the earlier thread " How many of you love diving with your spouse?" But I noticed there were a few who chimed and said that they wished that they could have there spouse join them. Well I thought it would be nice for all those who have some experience in getting there spouse to join them in this wonderful activity to share there tips.
This post is for those who aspire to some day have their spouse join them and would appreciate advice or tips on how they can go about doing so with out forcing or being pushy on their quest.
I want to make a correlation on how I got my wife to join me and perhaps some of you can share your version as well as give these folks other ideas that can help.
I first got her to really enjoy the ocean by going their regularly because I enjoy surfing. She was happy being the beach bunny for a few years, until she got the urge to try it. At first I really did not know what the best approach was so I just waited for her to ask and then let her try it. This is not the way to go as I found out. It was a winter time the waves were 3 to four foot and it was cold. She had to put on a wet suit which she was not used to wearing ( being from Wisconsin), and the beach break was getting stronger because of the tide.
I also gave real general instructions which she quickly forgot and the she went for it. I guess watching point break can make you fearless. Well needless to say this beech bunny got worked by the beech break. She got a bad experience from that day and that really freaked her out. I was at fault because I really didn't put much thought into it, and this kept her from wanting to try again for almost 10 years. Wow talk about a set back!!!
My biggest mistake was not considering and making sure that the " Ideal conditions" were present for her to be introduced to surfing. Of course you want the person to also want to try it, but there has to be the right "TIME" where it will be good to try it. The goal is to instill confidence and ease fears. Instead replace fear with fun and the feeling that I can do this!!! LOOK for "happy conditions" when picking out days to get your spouse to come try out snorkeling or other water activities. Try and set the mood, relaxed and totally fun. This will be very enjoyable for your spouse and comfortable.
Scuba diving is a water activity that for those who have some fears, can be over come by slowly introducing them into loving the water by doing other activities and by getting them to be comfortable and familiar with sea life. You are the best person to help them feel this way and no other person can do this for them. It can be challenging but I look at the journey as being fun in its own way. These little baby steps toward reaching a goal such as scuba diving is worth it.
"I didn't say it was going to be easy"!!! It will take a higher level of patience and being considerate when taking on this endeavor. But in fact the reward is great for both parties. It really does pay off in the end and your spouse will appreciate your attention and desire to include them. It just depends on how you "choose to treat them". In short having fun is key and grumpy instructions is out!!!
I know there are probably different levels of fears or concerns some spouses might have toward diving in general. Some might have total fear of the water while others might not even know how to use a mask or snorkel. Perhaps some are closer to wanting to dive than others.
What ever the scenario, if you want to ever do something to help your spouse get into diving you are going to need some helpful advice, try and use this board as a resource to help you best get an idea on what to do on your quest.
Good luck and I hope we can all help in some way!
Frank G
Z Gear
This post is for those who aspire to some day have their spouse join them and would appreciate advice or tips on how they can go about doing so with out forcing or being pushy on their quest.
I want to make a correlation on how I got my wife to join me and perhaps some of you can share your version as well as give these folks other ideas that can help.
I first got her to really enjoy the ocean by going their regularly because I enjoy surfing. She was happy being the beach bunny for a few years, until she got the urge to try it. At first I really did not know what the best approach was so I just waited for her to ask and then let her try it. This is not the way to go as I found out. It was a winter time the waves were 3 to four foot and it was cold. She had to put on a wet suit which she was not used to wearing ( being from Wisconsin), and the beach break was getting stronger because of the tide.
I also gave real general instructions which she quickly forgot and the she went for it. I guess watching point break can make you fearless. Well needless to say this beech bunny got worked by the beech break. She got a bad experience from that day and that really freaked her out. I was at fault because I really didn't put much thought into it, and this kept her from wanting to try again for almost 10 years. Wow talk about a set back!!!
My biggest mistake was not considering and making sure that the " Ideal conditions" were present for her to be introduced to surfing. Of course you want the person to also want to try it, but there has to be the right "TIME" where it will be good to try it. The goal is to instill confidence and ease fears. Instead replace fear with fun and the feeling that I can do this!!! LOOK for "happy conditions" when picking out days to get your spouse to come try out snorkeling or other water activities. Try and set the mood, relaxed and totally fun. This will be very enjoyable for your spouse and comfortable.
Scuba diving is a water activity that for those who have some fears, can be over come by slowly introducing them into loving the water by doing other activities and by getting them to be comfortable and familiar with sea life. You are the best person to help them feel this way and no other person can do this for them. It can be challenging but I look at the journey as being fun in its own way. These little baby steps toward reaching a goal such as scuba diving is worth it.
"I didn't say it was going to be easy"!!! It will take a higher level of patience and being considerate when taking on this endeavor. But in fact the reward is great for both parties. It really does pay off in the end and your spouse will appreciate your attention and desire to include them. It just depends on how you "choose to treat them". In short having fun is key and grumpy instructions is out!!!
I know there are probably different levels of fears or concerns some spouses might have toward diving in general. Some might have total fear of the water while others might not even know how to use a mask or snorkel. Perhaps some are closer to wanting to dive than others.
What ever the scenario, if you want to ever do something to help your spouse get into diving you are going to need some helpful advice, try and use this board as a resource to help you best get an idea on what to do on your quest.
Good luck and I hope we can all help in some way!
Frank G
Z Gear
