Pretty New Diver Looking for Tips to Better Handle Future "Situations"

[SlugLife]

You seemed to handle yourself fine as a diver, so don't feel like this suggests anything wrong with your skills. The dive-operators sounded like they didn't care ,and weren't paying attention, and some of the behavior was absurd .

I don't really have much advice, but I'd suggest there are some meta-lessons here. For example, researching weather conditions before a dive. Signs your guide or staff really don't care. Don't descend to the bottom alone, even if told to do that. While preparing is always fine, with scuba don't allow yourself to be rushed. Figure out what medications or other steps you can take to reduce sea-sickness before your next sea-dive.

Anyway, most importantly, you did fine as a diver, and don't beat yourself up over this.

 

[Graeme Fraser]

Pretty much a 100% consensus here. You had a crap time but managed to keep it together.

Before you judge yourself too harshly, consider that the only real difference between your actions, and those of a more seasoned diver, is the seasoned diver would have probably called the dive before jumping.

No reflection on you, it's just one of the inevitable potholes on the diving learning curve.

 

[Aviyes]

This is south Florida reality: almost always someone on the boat pukes. Before you jump to any conclusions about yourself as diver, try diving in the Caribbean, it is way more relaxing.

So true. I had over a 100 dives all around the Caribbean no issues and most of them boat diving, before I went to the Keys and came close to puking on the boat and definitely fed the fishes on one dive. I was not used to such shallow dives and the effects of the surge.

 

[Jayfarmlaw]

About the only thing I can add is candied dried ginger is a miracle cure for seasickness. We can sometimes find it at Target. Just take small bites of a piece on the way out. A friend takes hard ginger candies and they are almost as good.

My wife sometimes has problems with seasickness. Bobbing on the surface is the worst part for her. After the dive when everyone is waiting to get on the boat, she will hang about 10 feet below as long as vis is good and the seas are relatively calm. I keep an eye on her from the surface until a spot opens up to get on the boat and she surfaces.

Finally, unless it is smooth as glass, reg stays in and mask on until I'm on the boat. A mouth full of seawater just sucks.

You'll be fine, just pick your dive days and dive ops a little better. Soon there will be a perfect day with great vis and calm seas, you'll find a dive op that cares about providing a quality dive service, and life will be good again.

The dive op that left you alone as a brand new diver in rough conditions needs to know they have a divemaster that needs to be running the desk...or working at McDonalds. Getting you in the water and submerged does help with seasickness, that was good advice. Leaving you by yourself, not so much.

Good luck,
Jay

 

[Pittsburgh_Mom]

Sounds like a horrible time. Who was the operator?

Day 1 was with Key Dives, and I was really pleased with them.

My Day 2 place, I feel funny badmouthing a place by name, but I can tell you I was hesitant to dive with them because I'd heard they were the biggest "cattle boat" operation there. (I don't mind sharing if you want to PM me). I will say, I spoke with some super experienced divers with whom I dove at Key Dives, and they had dove with the other operator (that I had such a tough time with Day 2) and thought my Day 2 place was better. Their sense was the other place was way more laid back and enjoyable than Key Dives. While I def think Day 2 Operator was TOO lax, from my own experience and comments by other divers when I was there, I can also see clearly that there are different vibes that different folks like, and that makes tons of sense for me. I mean, that's like anything, right? Some people love giant SUVs, and some like little electric cars.., the world is full of folks who like different things, and diving preferences must be the same, too.

 

[Pittsburgh_Mom]

This sounds like a ****** experience in bad conditions with a subpar operator. None of it reflects badly on you nor your future diving.

Thank you. I really do appreciate it. I don't think ANYONE enjoyed the day 2 operator. They do have a lot of mixed reviews (including a lot of great ones), so I am sure that captain and crew are big factors (I think someone said they have 6 boats). Thank you for the support. I really appreciate the encouragement!

 

[Pittsburgh_Mom]

Take your preferred seasickness meds the night before diving AND the morning of. Made a huge difference for me with Great Lakes chop (I don’t dive tropical).

If you aren’t getting warm fuzzies on the boat, don’t dive. There have been plenty of times when I’ve called dives on charters I’ve paid for.

Anyone can call a dive - even before it happens - at any time, for any reason.

I definitely understand now that I should have called it. The irony is, when my husband and I talked later, apparently HE wanted to call the dive but was afraid to discourage me. We've been married coming up on 5 years now... we have a really solid marriage but obviously have a lot to learn still in communicating. I think both of us were afraid to let the other down, but when we're talking about something potentially dangerous (wonderful, yes, but not always safe), we NEED to communicate better and call dives.

I have to figure out what to say that does not insult a place but is still assertive and tactful.

 

[Pittsburgh_Mom]

That sounds dreadful! We had a not-so-awesome experience with a dive op in Key Largo...could be the same one. On that trip (in December) what struck me is that some of the crews were fantastic and others were not great. One of the big things was the OP rushing us into the water. It was all hurry hurry hurry. Now that I have more experience, I'd be more firm about taking my time. I'm not slow to get ready, but I will not be hurried along before doing my own safety checks.

So, a few things. First, ignore the directions on the box of bonine or Dramamine. You need to take it a lot earlier - like the night before for morning dives. I am prone to seasickness. I usually use the less-drowsy Dramamine (but sometimes generic bonine). I take it every night while on a diving trip and then again in the morning because I don't want it to wear off for afternoon or night dives. Only after I started taking it at night did it help me.

Second, you are a certified diver and are responsible for your kit and entry. I would be livid if someone pushed me into the water before I was quite ready to make the jump. This happened to me in Key Largo and I was pretty damn mad about it. I don't mind someone helping a bit if it's an odd entry, but don't push me to hurry me along. I'm not slow to enter. I've done some dives where a seated entry was the best way to enter (mostly cenotes in Mexico) and then I did appreciate a little lift and push, but it was offered in advance, not thrust upon me (ha ha).

If you are every uncomfortable, scared, or just not feeling it, it is perfectly OK to call the dive. Better to be on deck and wishing you were in the water than in the water and wishing you were on the boat! I've had a couple of dives that I absolutely hated. I really dislike night diving, so I avoid it. I do love diving just before dusk, so if I'm going out on a boat and those are the 2 dives, I'm happy to sit out the second. I'm going to give it one more try in August and if I still hate it thats OK.

I don't think you're doomed as a diver. You will gain confidence as you dive more and will likely be more confident in standing up for yourself in certain situations and also knowing when to call the dive. Just keep diving and recognize that just because some DM or boat captain tries to tell you what to do, (to a certain extent) you don't have to do it. (I mean, the captain is in charge of the boat, so you need to follow boat related rules, but if you're not comfortable waiting on the bottom, then wait on the surface. Yes, this may make you more seasick.) I'll note that something similar happened with me and my husband. Another diver managed to jump in with a gear issue...something that should have been caught by the diver before entry, but again, we were being rushed. So the DM told us to wait on the bottom. We waited for at least 10 minutes which really shortened the overall dive. It was super disorganized. The DM should have ensured the diver got back to the boat and then come down. That diver could have gone with the next group (he wasn't with a buddy). Next time I'd refuse and wait on the surface so as not to use up a bunch of gas before even starting the dive.

I'm really sorry you had such a bad experience. We were in Key Largo in December and the vis was really good, despite the weather not being great. (It was mostly cold and rainy.) Since we were there, several people have recommended different dive ops. I'd like to go back and dive with one of those ops instead, especially now that I do have more experience and more confidence. I really want to dive the Speigel Grove again with a smaller group.

Thank you so much. This all sounds like really solid, helpful advice. I get the sense first that diving a few days after Elsa contributed to this being extra unpleasant as someone prone to motion sickness and newer to diving. I am going to time meds better and get better meds for the future. I never used to get seasick (though carsick for as long as I can remember), so this was a huge eye opener.

It sounds like we may well have been with the same operator, since you mention different crews. I think this place is/was one of the biggest operators down there, and it really showed in us being "numbers." Maybe that will be just fine for me... someday. I'm too new, and I recognize now that I need something a little different for now. I think another huge thing for me is, I DO know how to set up my own gear, etc., and I'm comfortable doing so. But since I did not have as much experience, it still felt a little new and different and not "old hat," so it was easier to get disoriented in the chaos. I will just need to practice a lot more, and with meds to keep the nausea in check, I believe this will get easier for me!

Thank you again, so much!

 

[Pittsburgh_Mom]

I'm not a pro by any means, but my 2 cents:

Sick is sick... not anything you did wrong, and from the description it was the conditions (not you) as evidenced by how many others were ill.

As others have said, anyone can call the dive at any time.... better to be on the boat (or shore) wishing you were in the water, than in the water wishing you were on the boat!

Regarding the operator... rushing you (to the point of pushing you in) would have me angry. If they did that to my wife, we would have serious words (or more). That was just an unacceptable behavior for the dive op to do.

Alone and unprepared feelings... you're new to operating in an environment the human body wasn't designed for. Nothing wrong with how you felt, I'd even say it's a normal response to the situation you were put in.

So, in a nutshell, sounds like you made pretty good judgement calls ( I might have called the dive on dive 2 of day 2 sooner, but that's just me) and just had a crap dive op on day 2. Your comfort level will grow with experience, but that will also mean getting comfortable with calling the dive sometimes. You're not "doomed," you just had a bad trip. Enjoy the dives to come.... it just gets better!

Respectfully,

James

I deeply appreciate your response. I don't believe I will ever dive with this operator again, and I will certainly just get comfortable calling dives if I need to. I imagine this may happen more frequently when I'm newer and less as I get more experienced. Honestly, Day 2, so many people were griping about the dive conditions that I think a lot of others should have called it, too. I think the surge was so bad because the reefs were pretty shallow... and now I know better! I can tell you now, I NEVER want to be a solo diver. That was absolutely not my thing! Thank you!

 

[Pittsburgh_Mom]

I am afraid it is part of the learning curve for new divers or even the experienced. A competent operator can make or break your fun but there is NO easy way to know that.
At least the OP has found out that she is prone to sea-sickness and will take necessary precaution to avoid it happen again. Imagine if she only finds out in an expensive LoB trip.
To call the dive is the most sensitive thing under those conditions.
Choose the location carefully next time. There are many places with benign conditions for the relative inexperienced.

Thank you! It's a learning curve for sure. I did not even know "calling a dive" was really a thing. I am so grateful to each of you and ScubaBoard!