Pre-diving/lesson anxiety

[suziqu]

I am just going through my certification classes now (third confined water is tomorrow night) and it seems before each class I get really nervous and anxious about the lesson and diving in general. Once I get to the lesson and get in the water and doing everything I am fine and according to my DM I am doing excellent at all my skills. Usually have no problem doing any of the skills and by the time I am done and going home I feel great about diving and the anxiety is gone. I will feel good for a day or so but as the next lesson approaches the anxiety returns and I start to think I don't want to dive after all. I have come up with all sorts of different excuses for not finishing but luckily always fight through it and make myself go. It's not even the lesson really that I get anxious about but more the thought of diving and having to do the OW dives at checkout. We are going to be doing the OW dives soon and shortly after me and my boyfriend (already certified) will be going to Curacao and I am worried that the anxiety is going to keep coming back and make me not want to dive. Has anyone else experienced this and how do you get past it? Do you still get nervous before dives? I just want to be excited to go diving before hand and not just after!

We went to Cozumel two years ago and I did a resort dive and on the boat ride out there and right before the dive I was absolutely terrified. We got in the water and the DM wanted us to go down immediately and I fought through the terror and did it but not knowing anything about buoyancy and not having enough weight apparently I floated right back up which scared me even more. I sat on the surface until the DM came back up - he put more weight in my BCD but when I tried again to go down the same thing happened. At this point I was pretty much hyperventilating I was so scared and all I wanted to do was climb back on the boat but it was gone. The DM surfaced again and seemed kind of annoyed and had to talk me into going back down for about 5 minutes. Finally I agreed but he did everything as far as deflating the bcd and holding my hand all the way down and for most of the dive (when my boyfriend wasn't). Once I was down the fear wasn't as bad but the entire time I was down all I could think about was breathing and not losing my mask or regulator and I cannot tell you the relief when he finally said it was time to surface.

I feel a lot more comfortable with the equipment and being underwater (although I still feel I need more time in the water before I'm truly comfy) and I have a lot better idea of how to get down and control my buoyancy. I really want to get certified and go diving with my boyfriend I am just worried the anxiety is going to kick in before every dive and potentially ruin it before it even starts. I start to worry about ascending and descending too fast and having limited visibility during the OW dives and I also worry about it being very apparent that I'm a newbie and having the more advanced divers annoyed because I am nervous and unsure. All things that I know will be ok and I will do fine with but I worry about them none the less.

 

[ptyx]

That's normal.

Take it slow, make it clear that you need extra time and attention, and enjoy the dives. Grab someone's hand if you're worried about loosing them during ascents, descents or even during the dive.

If you're anxious about particular skills, ask your instructor about practicing them some more until you're completely comfortable doing them. Another hour of pool/instructor time is cheap if it allows you to be relaxed during your vacations. Recovering a lost mask, or regulator isn't a big deal once you've learned how to do it.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Be patient. It's natural to feel some anxiety prior to and during OW scuba instruction. You're becoming accustomed to something that is completely foreign to you -- breathing underwater. Relax. Enjoy your class. Focus on the skills. Comfort will come with repetition and experience.

You may be experiencing a little more pre-class anxiety than the average OW student. Perhaps this has something to do with your traumatic resort dive experience in the past. I think the resort dive experience is a terrible way to get an introduction to scuba. I don't blame you for getting a little freaked out. You weren't taught about buoyancy, physics, mask clearing, air-sharing, and how each piece of gear operates -- but were expected to have fun in the underwater world. You were asked to place your life in the hands of a complete stranger (the DM). That's crazy!

It might be helpful to remove the pressure of having to finish the OW class on-time. That's placing unnecessary stress on you, in my opinion. Perhaps you can cancel or postpone the trip. People learn things at different rates. Maybe you'll need more than just a couple of weekends to feel comfortable with the skills taught in OW class. (Most people do.) That's why I never think it's a good idea to schedule scuba vacations to far-off places before getting certified. Take it one step at a time. Heck, at this point, you have no idea if you'll really enjoy scuba diving...so why commit to doing a full-blown dive vacation?

Have fun!

 

[Jax]

I am just going through my certification classes now (third confined water is tomorrow night) and it seems before each class I get really nervous and anxious about the lesson and diving in general. Once I get to the lesson and get in the water and doing everything I am fine and according to my DM I am doing excellent at all my skills. Usually have no problem doing any of the skills and by the time I am done and going home I feel great about diving and the anxiety is gone. I will feel good for a day or so but as the next lesson approaches the anxiety returns and I start to think I don't want to dive after all. I have come up with all sorts of different excuses for not finishing but luckily always fight through it and make myself go. It's not even the lesson really that I get anxious about but more the thought of diving and having to do the OW dives at checkout. We are going to be doing the OW dives soon and shortly after me and my boyfriend (already certified) will be going to Curacao and I am worried that the anxiety is going to keep coming back and make me not want to dive. Has anyone else experienced this and how do you get past it? Do you still get nervous before dives? I just want to be excited to go diving before hand and not just after!

We went to Cozumel two years ago and I did a resort dive and on the boat ride out there and right before the dive I was absolutely terrified. We got in the water and the DM wanted us to go down immediately and I fought through the terror and did it but not knowing anything about buoyancy and not having enough weight apparently I floated right back up which scared me even more. I sat on the surface until the DM came back up - he put more weight in my BCD but when I tried again to go down the same thing happened. At this point I was pretty much hyperventilating I was so scared and all I wanted to do was climb back on the boat but it was gone. The DM surfaced again and seemed kind of annoyed and had to talk me into going back down for about 5 minutes. Finally I agreed but he did everything as far as deflating the bcd and holding my hand all the way down and for most of the dive (when my boyfriend wasn't). Once I was down the fear wasn't as bad but the entire time I was down all I could think about was breathing and not losing my mask or regulator and I cannot tell you the relief when he finally said it was time to surface.

I feel a lot more comfortable with the equipment and being underwater (although I still feel I need more time in the water before I'm truly comfy) and I have a lot better idea of how to get down and control my buoyancy. I really want to get certified and go diving with my boyfriend I am just worried the anxiety is going to kick in before every dive and potentially ruin it before it even starts. I start to worry about ascending and descending too fast and having limited visibility during the OW dives and I also worry about it being very apparent that I'm a newbie and having the more advanced divers annoyed because I am nervous and unsure. All things that I know will be ok and I will do fine with but I worry about them none the less.

Hey, Suzi, have you talked to your instructor about more pool time? Just to practice, maybe with another class? You don't HAVE to rush into the Open Water dives, y'know. When you are comfortable, then schedule the open water dives.

Hey, pool dives and practicing trim and buoyancy are fun!

 

[lowviz]

There is so much for a new diver to remember that it's no wonder that you are apprehensive. I had similar issues because I over-thought most everything. Still do, but now it is a good thing.

Best advice I can give is to make a list of what you need to show up to class with. Run through the list, show up on time, the instructor does the rest (for now). It is all about repetition until it feels familiar. Relax, it is supposed to be fun.

 

[krawlings]

I was that way on every first dive . I do 4 to 5 dive every month. Usualy 3 to 4 dive on a Sat. 1 to 2dives on some other Fri. . So the first dive of the day I would get realy anxious. I would start to think about all the what if's. That if I loos my buddy , what if I go to far down m what if I make my buddy angry for messing up the viz . and the fact that it is NOT NATURAL FOR HUMANS TO BREATH UNDER THE WATER. It took a while and conversation with my dive buddy . To understand that he was not going to get angry if I messed up the viz . Just said that we will work on the boyuncye skill . and he helped me relize we worked as a team . We worked on and talked about that we will do if we get separated and as we went down the decent line if he was out of sight he would wait for me to catch up . (We do a lot of lake diving so some time the viz gets to be under 10' to 6" As you get more experience you will get more comfortable in the water and with our skills . I am over 50 dive now and I don't get that way unless I am going to do a dive I have not done yet Just give it time and practice , practice , practice . And talk to your dive buddy and don't rush . take it slow and don't do dives that are out of you skills level and if you don't feel right about a dive YOU CAN CALL A DIVE . Just give it some time and experience. It will get easier . Good luck and injoy

 

[flots am]

I am just going through my certification classes now (third confined water is tomorrow night) and it seems before each class I get really nervous and anxious about the lesson and diving in general. Once I get to the lesson and get in the water and doing everything I am fine and according to my DM I am doing excellent at all my skills.

It doesn't matter if the DM "thinks your fine." What matters is if you think you're fine.

Yes, anxiety is normal. However the second part of the equation is that your class is what's supposed to take away the anxiety. By the time you get to your open water dives, you should you not be anxious at all.

You're entitled to take as much pool time as you need in order for you to feel comfortable in the water and confident when doing your skills. If the DM or instructor gives you a hard time about this, demand a refund, leave, and find someone else who is more focused on teaching you to be a safe, competent diver and less focused on when the next batch of students is coming in.

The other side of the coin is that you should only learn to dive if you want to learn. Not because your boyfriend dives and you don't want to disappoint him. Way over 80% of all the married divers I know have a non-diving spouse. You don't need to do everything as a couple, and in fact, a little time apart for different hobbies actually makes the relationship better.

Have fun (and if it's not fun, don't do it).


flots.

 

[Louie]

Hi Suziqu,

From your description, I don't think what you're experiencing is unusual - especially at such an early stage of your diving life. A bit of anxiety or nerves before diving is normal and OK AS LONG AS it doesn't interfere with your ability to plan and execute the required tasks for a safe dive.

In fact, a bit of anxiety is probably good to keep us on our toes and prevent complacency - something we all know can be a great hazard with more experienced divers. I still feel some anxiety before a new and untried situation and I know many divers with thousands of dives and a great level of skill who get the pre-dive nerves.

I think your anxieties will lessen with more dives you do. Judgment comes from experience - my favourite motto.

Also, it's worth reminding ourselves that people have different learning curves. You may have had a few bumpy moments earlier on but you will probably come to a phase where things start going swimmingly. It's better to make mistakes in a safe and controlled setting and learn from them early on.

If there is anything you are not sure about during your course, ask your instructor. Don't fudge through the skills or tasks hoping things will sort themselves out.

So all the best, have fun and happy diving afterwards!

 

[suziqu]

Thanks everyone for the responses! I am not diving for my boyfriend - he has never pressured me to dive or anything. I chose to do the resort course because I wanted to try it and now realize that was not the right place to try it and may even be a big factor for why I get so nervous before my lessons now. I am getting certified because I think it would be a really a cool experience and I want to be able to dive with him. He has been very supportive (holding my hand during the resort dive which he went through with me even though he was already certified to make me more comfy) and he is going to do my OW dives with me as well. I feel comfy once I am in the pool and doing my skills and each time I feel more and more comfy under the water. After my dives I feel great actually and feel no anxiety about diving during my OW or in the ocean. Its always a few days before the next class that I start to get anxious although I will say this time with my class tomorrow it's not as bad as last week.

I agree I just need more time to feel comfy and work on my skills more and than I just need to get out there and dive so I can see first hand that I can do it and that it's really worth doing. We didn't book the trip to Curacao as a dive trip, just a nice vacation for the both of us where he was going to do a couple dives in the mornings. I was the one that wanted to get certified so I could dive with him.

Just glad to know that its pretty common and this doesn't mean I'm not cut out to be scuba certified! I think it will be very cool to not only be certified but say I overcame my anxiety and fear at the same time.

 

[lowviz]

Thank Jax for her post (for me). You female divers seem to have a definite advantage around here.