I am a newbie on this forum. I have 25 years of diving experience. My problem is without warning, I may hyperventilate at anytime while diving ,which means I can't catch my breath for 1 minute or less. This always happens on the surface and it is a result of anxiety. The last time it happened we were doing an ocean shore dive and entering the water from a slide that was carved into the rocks. It was a 10 ft. ride into the water. I was the last one to enter in my group and everyone was waiting for me so I felt rushed. I was wiggling down the slide and the surge caught me and pushed me back to the top. I started to hyperventilate and pushed myself down the slide where the surge brought me into the water. Good. But without warning I couldn't breathe. I was on the surface and held on to a rock. The water was calm so after 1 minute I calmed down and did the dive. Why does this happen?? I am not nervous of the conditions, I am not afraid, but this hyperventilation appears with no warning. I always feel calm under water. My dive shop operator told me just to slow down. Is there any other advice?
hyperventilation syndrome
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Braunbehrens
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I"m confused. On the one hand you say that your problem is caused by anxiety, on the other you say that you are not afraid etc. I thought anxiety was a form of fear?
IMO, and I could be way off base here, if you are not at all afraid, or anxious, then something else is going on.
Possible problems:
1) If your reg is very old or poorly adjusted you could be overbreathing it, and this would cause the feeling of not being able to catch your breath. I don't think this is your problem, but eliminate it from the list
2) Restrictive gear accross the chest or abdomen. Make sure your wetsuit is not too tight, and your BC is not restricting you from taking a full breath. This is the most likely, IMO.
3) Asthma. Your problem could be asthma brought on by cold water hitting your warm chest. Since you say that it only occurs at the beginning of the dive, maybe once you acclimatize it doesn't affect you anymore.
4) Anxiety. I don't think that's it, but it might be an anxiety attack. A friend of mine had these and said the doctor said not to exercise. IMO that's dumb. I think that mental problems are always helped by starting an exercise regimen.
If I were you I wouldn't dive until this proble is solved. If this happens under water you could die.
I'm not a doctor, nor am I a dive instructor, so take these comments for what they are...free advice from some guy who happened to be surfing the net. Do your own research, figure it out, and don't get yourself killed.
P.S. if you are taking any kind of medication have it checked to see that it's not a possible culprit. Don't just ask one doctor, ask several. A close relative of mine had a really bad side effect to some meds and 2 docs told her that it had nothing to do with it. The third one said that it was indeed a rare side effect and she should stop immediately or her heart would fail.
IMO, and I could be way off base here, if you are not at all afraid, or anxious, then something else is going on.
Possible problems:
1) If your reg is very old or poorly adjusted you could be overbreathing it, and this would cause the feeling of not being able to catch your breath. I don't think this is your problem, but eliminate it from the list
2) Restrictive gear accross the chest or abdomen. Make sure your wetsuit is not too tight, and your BC is not restricting you from taking a full breath. This is the most likely, IMO.
3) Asthma. Your problem could be asthma brought on by cold water hitting your warm chest. Since you say that it only occurs at the beginning of the dive, maybe once you acclimatize it doesn't affect you anymore.
4) Anxiety. I don't think that's it, but it might be an anxiety attack. A friend of mine had these and said the doctor said not to exercise. IMO that's dumb. I think that mental problems are always helped by starting an exercise regimen.
If I were you I wouldn't dive until this proble is solved. If this happens under water you could die.
I'm not a doctor, nor am I a dive instructor, so take these comments for what they are...free advice from some guy who happened to be surfing the net. Do your own research, figure it out, and don't get yourself killed.
P.S. if you are taking any kind of medication have it checked to see that it's not a possible culprit. Don't just ask one doctor, ask several. A close relative of mine had a really bad side effect to some meds and 2 docs told her that it had nothing to do with it. The third one said that it was indeed a rare side effect and she should stop immediately or her heart would fail.
I would have to ask, before venturing an opinion, if you have been to your physician (preferably one who is a diver or knows diving) and asked him to try to rule out asthma, at least in the classical sense, as a cause? With the answer to that in mind, you can then go on to other causes or possibilities.
The suggestions offered by Braunbehrens are very sensible. It is a little known fact to most divers, for instance, that neoprene will shrink when hung up in dark places for a period of time. We then find that it is tighter around the chest and abdomen, in particular. (Wink, wink! Nudge, nudge!) It does not take much restriction around the chest and back to create a feeling of "shortness of breath", especially when we are exerting ourselves. The same result will occur if your harness is too tight. At rest, it will feel OK, but with exertion the effect will become very noticeable.
Also as suggested, you might think seriously about your over-all level of exercise. I note that you have been diving a long time. I assume that, like most of us, your job requires a lot of sitting, rather than motion. That will affect you when you head out for that periodic dive excursion.
As for the anxiety, while I am not a psychologist or physician, as a DMT and long-term diver I do know that a sort of tension or performance anxiety can affect one, particularly at the beginning of a dive with a group. It is quite a natural phenomenon. We want to be seen as performing well by our peers. This may be what is affecting you, especially since you say you calm down after a short period in the water. A suggestion would be that you start your personal preparations ahead of the other divers. Then sit and relax your mental state before entering the water. If this sounds a bit "Zen-like", well, it is! But it does work!
I hope that you will find these suggestions helpful. Just work step by step to rule out possible causes one by one.
P.S.---As Braunbehrens pointed out, it IS wise to get a second medical opinion about medications, especially where they are being taken in conjuction with diving activities.
Arnaud
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I have experienced the same on my early ow dives.
As per Braunbehrens', it was a combination of cold water, jacket-style BC way too tight, and too much lead that forced me to overinflate my BC. It would never happen uw because the neoprene would compress and the BC was (obviously) less inflated than on the surface.
Initially, the instructor thought I had some sort of agoraphobia. We were diving off a boat, far from the shore, and he felt the openness of the ocean could trigger that kind of reaction.
In my case, it was just a gear and proper weighting issue.
I'll second the other posts and suggest you seek medical advice. If you get a clean bill of health, then give a try to some of the other suggestions
As per Braunbehrens', it was a combination of cold water, jacket-style BC way too tight, and too much lead that forced me to overinflate my BC. It would never happen uw because the neoprene would compress and the BC was (obviously) less inflated than on the surface.
Initially, the instructor thought I had some sort of agoraphobia. We were diving off a boat, far from the shore, and he felt the openness of the ocean could trigger that kind of reaction.
In my case, it was just a gear and proper weighting issue.
I'll second the other posts and suggest you seek medical advice. If you get a clean bill of health, then give a try to some of the other suggestions
About your 25 years of experience; is this 25 years of active diving, 25 years of 1 or 2 dives each year or perhaps somewhere in between?
How long have you had the problem? Did it begin after some experience?
Are you a strong swimmer?
How would you rate your skin diving abilities?
Have you ever done a doff & don? If yes, when was the last time?
What about a bail out?
While skin diving, how many times can you clear a mask on 1 breath?
Do your ears equalize easily?
Have you studied and practiced rescues? If yes, when was the last time?
How long have you had the problem? Did it begin after some experience?
Are you a strong swimmer?
How would you rate your skin diving abilities?
Have you ever done a doff & don? If yes, when was the last time?
What about a bail out?
While skin diving, how many times can you clear a mask on 1 breath?
Do your ears equalize easily?
Have you studied and practiced rescues? If yes, when was the last time?
I am 55 years old, with a family. The last 10 years I have averaged 7 dives per year. I belong to a club and live on the coast so a dive spot is 10-30 min away. For 5 years before that I didn't dive because I spent all of my time with my new infant children.From 1972-1986 I dove an average of 50 dives per year.
1987-1992 no dives (marrried with babies)
1993-2003 avarage of 7 dives per year.
So I was certified in 1972, but it is really not 25 years steady.
I am a strong swimmer with powerful legs. I exercise regularly, inline skate 4-6 miles every other day. Dive skills are fine, love to don doff with a blacked out mask. No fear of low vis, we quahog, which is big sea clams, and the mud outs are giant, never any fears there.
Looking over the 5-6 times this hyperventilation has happened to me, it was always on the surface, usually when deserted by my buddy .
Also, I dove with a Fenzy from 1976-1986 and I just got into the new vest style bc. Not really knowing much, I did tighten up the straps as much as I could after putting on the vest. Like cinching
a saddle on a horse.THAT WAS PROBABLY AN ERROR. I am also overweighted, I will remove 2 lbs of weight off my belt now.
1987-1992 no dives (marrried with babies)
1993-2003 avarage of 7 dives per year.
So I was certified in 1972, but it is really not 25 years steady.
I am a strong swimmer with powerful legs. I exercise regularly, inline skate 4-6 miles every other day. Dive skills are fine, love to don doff with a blacked out mask. No fear of low vis, we quahog, which is big sea clams, and the mud outs are giant, never any fears there.
Looking over the 5-6 times this hyperventilation has happened to me, it was always on the surface, usually when deserted by my buddy .
Also, I dove with a Fenzy from 1976-1986 and I just got into the new vest style bc. Not really knowing much, I did tighten up the straps as much as I could after putting on the vest. Like cinching
a saddle on a horse.THAT WAS PROBABLY AN ERROR. I am also overweighted, I will remove 2 lbs of weight off my belt now.
to continue: I used to have terrible trouble equalizing my ears, I was using a 20 year old favorite mask with a purge. I upgraded last season to a new mask with no purge and I never had any equalization problem last season. I have fair skin diving skills. Could never free dive past 25 ' and could never hold my breath for over a minute. In the shallows I can snorkel for a long time. Dive skills like rescues I have not practiced since my open water cert in 1976.
Also, I am overweighted on my belt. I use bullet weights. I always dove with around 24 pounds of weight and I bought a new plush suit by Harveys. I floated like a cork my first dive with it. So the following day I had 29-30 pounds weight. I am very safety conscious so I always want to be able to decend 5-10 feet at the end of a dive. The extra weight helped me drop like a rock.
Last answer, this problem began about 3 years after certification, when I had my 1st problem. We were diving off San Clamente Island in S. California and I was stuck in a kelp bed on the surface and my buddy no where around. I had a bag of Abs that weighed plenty. As soon as my friend arrived and said be cool I calmed down. He freed me and away we go. I still had the ads too
Also, I am overweighted on my belt. I use bullet weights. I always dove with around 24 pounds of weight and I bought a new plush suit by Harveys. I floated like a cork my first dive with it. So the following day I had 29-30 pounds weight. I am very safety conscious so I always want to be able to decend 5-10 feet at the end of a dive. The extra weight helped me drop like a rock.
Last answer, this problem began about 3 years after certification, when I had my 1st problem. We were diving off San Clamente Island in S. California and I was stuck in a kelp bed on the surface and my buddy no where around. I had a bag of Abs that weighed plenty. As soon as my friend arrived and said be cool I calmed down. He freed me and away we go. I still had the ads too
Braunbehrens
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does this happen with the reg in your mouth, not in your mouth, or both? I am trying to eliminate that you are overbreathing the reg.
BTW, the fact that you still had the abs, IMO, shows very bad management of the situation. If you are in trouble, on the surface, drop any bags and the belt. ESPECIALLY since you have kids!
BTW, the fact that you still had the abs, IMO, shows very bad management of the situation. If you are in trouble, on the surface, drop any bags and the belt. ESPECIALLY since you have kids!
It only has happened with the snorkel in my mouth, while on the surface.I never have a problem with reg in mouth. Sometimes if I feel winded I put the reg in my mouth and I feel great. By the way, the abs were awsome, back in 1974 I think the limit was 6 or 8 per diver. Of cource I was carrying both mine and my buddies. I was just thinking, that time in the kelp bed I ran out of air fast, that is why my buddy left me as he was still using his air. My buddy was an instructor, big phys ed coach type of guy. He was swimming very fast and I was swimming as fast as I could to catch up with him. I was winded following him around. When I had to surface I was winded and carrying a heavy bag. Put in my snorkel saw I was tangled in the middle of a canopy and started to hyperventilate. This was the first time.
BTW I sincerely appreciate everyones help here. This is a dynamite forum, I just discovered it yesterday.
BTW I sincerely appreciate everyones help here. This is a dynamite forum, I just discovered it yesterday.
..........and believe me, I'm not qualified to have an opinion, but it's starting to make sense to me.
First, I'll point out you are hypoventilating, not hyperventilating. Hyperventilation is when you take rapid, deep breaths and over ventilate your lungs. In that instance, you get plenty of oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide, sometimes you get rid of too much carbon dioxide. Hypoventilation is when you take rapid, shallow breaths and under ventilate your lungs. You are not getting enough oxygen and are not getting rid of the carbon dioxide.
You were alone, you were out of air, you were very stressed, you were exhausted, you were entangled. You were on the surface with your snorkel. It is normal in such a situation to get scared. You started to hypoventilate exactly as I would expect most people to do in such a situation.
When you get in the water, ready to dive, but on the surface with your snorkel, your subconscious mind associates the current situation with the one in 1974, so you automatically start hypoventilating.
There are a few things I'd recommend to combat this situation.
First expect it and don't try to fight it. Instead, concentrate on your breathing. Slow, deep breaths are the key.
Next, take a skin diving class. Practice your free diving until you are extremely comfortable in that situation.
I believe the combination of these two courses of action along with diving more often will end your bouts of hypoventilation. It can't hurt if you practice basic skills often.
First, I'll point out you are hypoventilating, not hyperventilating. Hyperventilation is when you take rapid, deep breaths and over ventilate your lungs. In that instance, you get plenty of oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide, sometimes you get rid of too much carbon dioxide. Hypoventilation is when you take rapid, shallow breaths and under ventilate your lungs. You are not getting enough oxygen and are not getting rid of the carbon dioxide.
You were alone, you were out of air, you were very stressed, you were exhausted, you were entangled. You were on the surface with your snorkel. It is normal in such a situation to get scared. You started to hypoventilate exactly as I would expect most people to do in such a situation.
When you get in the water, ready to dive, but on the surface with your snorkel, your subconscious mind associates the current situation with the one in 1974, so you automatically start hypoventilating.
There are a few things I'd recommend to combat this situation.
First expect it and don't try to fight it. Instead, concentrate on your breathing. Slow, deep breaths are the key.
Next, take a skin diving class. Practice your free diving until you are extremely comfortable in that situation.
I believe the combination of these two courses of action along with diving more often will end your bouts of hypoventilation. It can't hurt if you practice basic skills often.
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