Just some minor problems I need to address.

[chiefieb]

I am currently taking an open water course and I am scheduled to take my certification dive this weekend. I have been doing "great" in my class, according to the instructor. However, I find that I am having problems with my breathing and my bouancy.

At times, when I'm underwater, I find my breathing to be normal. At other times, I find myself taking deep breaths which effects my bouancy.

I'm told this will all get better as I spend more time in the water. Is this correct? Is there some way for me to have better control of my breathing? I really get tired of either being on the bottom of the pool or on the surface. It's really difficult for me to get the breathing down right. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[MikeFerrara]

I am currently taking an open water course and I am scheduled to take my certification dive this weekend. I have been doing "great" in my class, according to the instructor. However, I find that I am having problems with my breathing and my bouancy.

At times, when I'm underwater, I find my breathing to be normal. At other times, I find myself taking deep breaths which effects my bouancy.

I'm told this will all get better as I spend more time in the water. Is this correct? Is there some way for me to have better control of my breathing? I really get tired of either being on the bottom of the pool or on the surface. It's really difficult for me to get the breathing down right. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

While you can't expect to be perfect over night, IMO, you should have a good handle on being able to control your position in the water before going to open water. It will be much easier if you're balanced and trimmed to be in a horizontal position so that kicking doesn't force you up or down.

It does take practice but if you feel like you need more practice prior to going to open water you should let your instructor know. In a class that teaches buoyancy control it isn't enough to tell a student that they'll get it later, IMO.

How much time did you spend in the pool?

How much of that time was spent working on buoyancy control, finning techneque and related skills?

Diving is 95% swimming around neutral so it only seems to make sense to spend a reasonable amount of time in class learning how to do that.

 

[SamDiver14]

dive, dive, dive, every dive is just more opportunity to practice. You may not realize when the moment comes that you have mastered your bouyancy, your diving just gets easier. You just notice one day that you are better at it.

 

[MikeFerrara]

dive, dive, dive, every dive is just more opportunity to practice. You may not realize when the moment comes that you have mastered your bouyancy, your diving just gets easier. You just notice one day that you are better at it.

That's true if you have to teach yourself.

 

[garyfotodiver]

If you have difficulty with your bouyancy control, practice in the pool. Won't your instructor give you some additional attention?

Above all, don't go further until you are comfortable.

 

[RICHinNC]

Chief...hang in there. During my ow classes i thought i was going to get dcs my bouyancy was so bad. I would take a deep breath and up i would go. Let it out and sink down...ouch the ears...oh yea....equalize. And, all this was in a 12 ft pool !!

I finally discovered that I dont breath deeply on the surface but under water I was sucking a gulp of air like there was no tomorrow. Once I got control of how I breathed it got simpler. I "bounced" less.

During your classes there is just soooooooooo much to think about and try and control. It is no where near "second" nature to you yet. With practice it should come. Just take it easy...slow....tell the instructor what you need....and practice.

You are no different than most on here.....and the rest just wouldnt admit it !!
Hang in there...Rich

 

[bcsean]

it's totally normal. I'm fairly comfortable now, but still working on trim and buoyancy at 40+ dives and intend on working on it for awhile yet. Just don't rush into diving vertical reef walls until your buoyancy is good. Stay at reasonable dive sites where the bottom is there below just incase. Do a bunch of dives until you get it nailed.

Good luck, keep diving and you'll get it.

 

[MikeFerrara]

it's totally normal. I'm fairly comfortable now, but still working on trim and buoyancy at 40+ dives and intend on working on it for awhile yet. Just don't rush into diving vertical reef walls until your buoyancy is good. Stay at reasonable dive sites where the bottom is there below just incase. Do a bunch of dives until you get it nailed.

Good luck, keep diving and you'll get it.

It may be "the norm" only because that's what we've come to expect but it doesn't have to be and certainly isn't the only way to do it.

Rapid/uncontrolled ascents are as dangerous or more dnagerous in shallow than they are in deep water and so are the buddy seperations and other problems they contribute to.

I'm only one instructor but if a student is bouncing between the surface and the bottom in the pool as chiefieb says he is I wouldn't be taking them to open water.

 

[Iruka]

Keep working at it, and one point to reassure you a little....buoyancy control is most difficult in shallow water (the air in the BCD and the wetsuit compression changes faster) and is easier in deeper water, where most of the dive will be. Do what you can to avoid overweighting...if you're overweighted, you'll need more air in the BCD to compensate, which makes buoyancy control progressively more difficult. If a diver is overweighted throughout the dive, they have basically 3 options to keep from plummeting into the abyss...1) add air...making buoyancy control more difficult 2) keep kicking to keep from sinking...sometimes I'm afraid to swim in front of an overweighted, frantically kicking diver, fearing they'll plow right into me! and 3) inhale VERY deeply to create an "internal" BCD. As none of these are good options, work on getting weighting right and buoyancy control will be much easier. Also, the thinner the wetsuit, the easier (especially shallow) buoyancy control is.

 

[chiefieb]

Thanks to all of you for the advice and information. It is truly appreciated. And thanks for making me feel welcome here. It seems there are a great bunch of people here who care about scuba and fellow divers. I am going to highly recommend this site to all my diving buddies.