Is Scuba just not meant for me?

[Angelo Farina]

Look up Mammalian Diving Reflex which might give you a better idea of what is happening. Some suggest practicing immersing you face in a sink full of water. I have suggested this to others with a similar problem and they found it helpful.

Correct. You need to get "aquaticity", and this is better done in swimming pool, or even in your bath tub, simply using a snorkel. Submerse your face and breath through the snorkel. As the mammalian reflex is triggered by neurotransmitters close to your nostrils, you should start submerging just the mouth. Then the nose. Then the eyes. It can help to squeeze the nose with your fingers (which prevents water flowing in) but in the end you need to control your soft palate for locking the noise cavity and being able to breath freely from the mouth without closing your nostrils.
When I started diving, there were THREE MONTHS in the swimming pool before being given a rebreather (which, at the time, was a closed-circuit, pure oxygen rebreather).
We made months of exercises for gaining "aquaticity": and to learn free diving, which at the time was a prerequisite for scuba diving.
Now instruction is very different, it is assumed that people entering an OW course are already "fully aquatic".
This was not the case of the OP, evidently.
Although some instructors think that proper equipment can fix lack of "aquaticity", I am of of the old school, and I think that everyone can dive, but only if previously properly accustomed to the water environment. Starting straight with the scuba equipment is not the way to get this aquaticity.
You must start with no equipment (you must be able to stay face down and going down to the bottom of the pool with no equipment at all, and to swim something as 15 meters underwater with breast stroke), then introduce the snorkel. Then the mask (learning to swim and snorkeling with mask flooded, and later to evacuate it while snorkeling and while breath-holding), then the fins (learning to kick properly in different styles, but no bicycle, please), then the weights. then the suit. Then the tank, with no BCD. Then the BCD. Then the computer.
The idea of going through this in just a couple of days is nonsense for me...
My OW course lasted 6 MONTHS!
Later I worked as instructor in holiday resorts, and we managed to pack a proper training in just two weeks: the first week for aquaticity (no scuba equipment), the second for training to real scuba diving. But it was 2-3 hours in the pool in the first week, and 2 dives/day in the sea during the second week.

 

[Angelo Farina]

I can, however I have to be exhaling. When I jump into the water without holding my nose, I immediately exhale and that’s when I surface, I don’t stay underwater. If I’m casually inside a pool, and decide to go underwater without holding my nose, I exhale more slowly to try to get more time under. Like I said anxiety plays a huge factor, and I feel a lot of pressure. When I had other students waiting for me to complete my mask skill, I was pressured to finish quicker. And then having all that gear on and trying to focus on breathing at the same time, it all gets overwhelming.

Then your problem is lack of control of soft palate. Look on Youtube, there are nice lessons showing how to get control of your soft palate using a balloon or a water of glass and a pipe.
When you are in control of closing voluntarily the soft palate, water will not enter the nose while staying underwater facing down, without any need of exhaling (you cannot exhale if the soft palate is closed).
Facing up is a different history, indeed...

 

[Altamira]

@jcyran. You have two identical posts with the same question. Recommend you request the MODs combine the two so you have all the answers in one post.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

@jcyran

Would you be able to try this? Simple exercises for students not completely comfortable with having their faces in the water

 

[jcyran]

@jcyran

Would you be able to try this? Simple exercises for students not completely comfortable with having their faces in the water

I’m going to check that article out, thank you!!!

 

[jcyran]

@jcyran. You have two identical posts with the same question. Recommend you request the MODs combine the two so you have all the answers in one post.

Pretty new to this forum, I just messaged someone. Thank you!

 

[jcyran]

Find another Instructor and /or find a class that is taught at a slower format. I used to teach classes that met for 2 hours in the pool and two hours in the classroom for 5-6 weeks. It is a slower paced course. I taught the courses through School District Community Education programs. It gave more flexibility is allowing the instructor/s to slow down the pace so students can get used to equipment and how it is used in the pool. Getting used to the equipment takes more time for some people. My mother in law who was in her mid 50's when she took the course had to get extra time in their own pool to get used to just putting the equipment on and taking it off.

Yeah it was very fast paced for me. Slower paced classes are ideal.

 

[Kendall Raine]

While there may be physiological issues you're dealing with, I suspect the real problem is in your head. Diving is not a natural act, and some amount of mental reconditioning is necessary for everyone to dive. When I started I too had difficulty with mask removal underwater. My wife had to take her BOW class twice to pass (couldn't get ditch and don). It may be that diving isn't for you if you can't overcome the emotional triggers. Conversely, with grit and slow steady practice perhaps you can overcome this problem. Pool first, ocean second, class third. I particularly like lowwall's comments about progression. You might also consider a private class since you'll get undivided attention, can move (retreat) at your own pace, and not have to deal with embarrassment of struggling in front of others. It will cost more (making sure your instructor is paid for taking the extra time avoids being rushed) but feeling comfortable under water is essential to relaxing and dealing with problems when they occur-if you're always fighting dragons in your head you're an accident in the making. It all depends on how bad you want it and how hard you're willing to work to get there. If you stick with it I think you'll look back on the experience as transformative and earn a lot of respect for the effort.

Lowwal's also right that the current state of introductory scuba instruction emphasizes cash flow (speed and paucity of content over taking the time to master skills) and pushing students to take multiple classes to accomplish(?) what used to be taught at the intro level. You don't have to succumb to that model if you can find an instructor willing to work with you.

Good luck.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Before I retired last year, my classes were 6-8 weeks with around an hour and a half classroom and two hours of pool each session.
And I didn't sign anyone up for a full class if I or they had ANY doubts as to whether or not they wanted to do it without a discover session. If they decided they wanted to, I credited the cost of the discover to the full course. So at most they were out $50 if they did not want to do it.
We didn't get on SCUBA before the second half of session two. The first session was all snorkeling and skin diving skills. And mask clearing with just the snorkel. I found it was often easier if they didn't have to think about breathing through the reg. The first part of session two was proper weighting and buoyancy control using lung volume.
With the mask clear, if someone struggled with a partial flood and clear, we worked on that at various times during the session instead hammering away at it and adding to the frustration.
Some got it right away. Some didn't and they needed to wait until session three to try it with practice time at home in between.
There was no need to rush. We'd move to something else and they'd do that fine and get a little boost of confidence. Often that was what was needed to get through the skill they had an issue with.
Also, I only taught private or semi private OW classes and no more than 2 students in those for basic opne water.
And no way would I even ask someone to attempt a no mask swim if they were having clearing issues. That's bordering on abuse.
What is wrong with the instructor that they didn't see this and immediately suggest a private class before going any further? Or accepting that maybe it's not for you and suggesting a private session after which, if you were still having issues, refunding at least a portion of your tuition?
You also say you were diagnosed with anxiety. Have you gotten a release from your psychiatrist or discussed this with your therapist? That probably should have been done before starting the lessons. I would have insisted on it.
And 2-3 pool sessions might be enough for some to get enough to survive their OW dives, but the least I ever did was 5 and that was only for one student who was a true natural at it. And those 5 were 2 and a half hour sessions because no one got less than 12 hours in the pool. The majority got 14-16 and one older student got 18 because that's what made him comfortable enough to go to open water. He didn't learn to swim until he was 62.
And I didn't charge him any extra for that.

 

[LI-er]

But obviously you’re not supposed to hold your breath when you have a regulator in your mouth.

Where did you get that silly idea from?