Scared by diving accident! Help!

[Thetravellingscot]

I did my first taster dive in Egypt and my boyfriend was hooked. We then decided to do our open water PADI training on The Great Barrier Reef, out of Cairns, Australia. I an a keen swimmer and found being able to breath underwater very strange to begin with. Just as I was beginning to enjoy being able to breath under the water (my last dive before open water certification) I was unfortunate enough to be caught between my dive boat and one of its mooring lines. I was crushed to the point of broken ribs and internal bleeding. Spent 5 days in Cairns Base Hospital but luckily non surgery required.

Afterwards I always said I would try it again (get back on the horse, and all that) but found it much harder than I imagined. I recently done a refresher dive in a pool and was petrified. I hated every minute of it. I have vowed never to go near a boats mooring line again, should I give up entirely or give it another go?

My boyfriend really does love it (he's now a PADI rescue diver). I dont like to feel left out and dont like him having to do it without a buddy he may never have met before, but I really am scared now. Help!

 

[floridanewbe]

I signed up for my first dive class in cairns australia in 1989 but got cold feet (scared i would not be able to tread for 10 mins) I am welsh and had not spent much time swimming upto that point. Unfortunatly i then waited till this year to try again. Mostly due to my wife being very keen to start scuba. I wish I had not waited but that said you must decide your own comfort level. I just thought you should know others have had very similar problems . Though i did not end up in hospital. Good luck with your future plans keep us posted.
Richard

 

[ItsBruce]

In 1996, after having not been diving in a while, I did a dive while on vacation in Florida. I'm not sure exactly what went wrong, but something did. Suffice it to say, at 90 feet, I thumbed the dive. the DM accompanied me to the surface and I climbed back aboard the dive boat. For the second dive of the day, the skipper just about threw me back into the water. I'm glad she did as it was a good dive and had she not done so, I might not have dived again. Now, of course, I dive regularly.

Against this background, what I can say is that you should at least try another dive. If the enjoyment overcomes the bad outcome of your last attempt, then you will have a good time diving in the future. If not, you will never look back and ask "What if."

For myself, I do not want to risk becoming an old man and looking back and saying "I wish I had tried <insert activity>."

 

[In10se]

You've got to set your priorities according to what makes you a happy person. Does diving excite you? If you can see yourself reaching a state of mind where you'll be enjoying life more with diving than without it ... then yeah go for it.

I gotta say though, accidents just happen. Ever been in a car wreck? Still ride in cars? Ever caught your hair in the hair brush? Are ya wearing dreadlocks because of it? Ever had a bad adult relationship? Are you sworn to celibacy? What happened to you just falls under the doodoo happens category. The guy sitting in his living room easychair that gets his noggin smashed in by ice that happened to fall off of a passing jetliner and then crashed through the roof of his house also had doodoo happen. It just does that sometimes. Will it happen to you again in that situation? Not likely because you'll dang sure be too mentally ready for it.

You cannot allow fear to stop you from doing things that you will love to do. If diving is something that interests you than just get past this and go dive!!! If this isn't something that gets you excited thinking about it, then look for something else that DOES excite you and go do that. Just don't let fear intervene between you and living an exciting life.

Final thought. Don't do this to please someone else ... do it for YOU. Do it to make yourself happier in your own skin.

 

[TSandM]

Well, I'll tell you about my experiences, which aren't with diving.

I've had a number of bad accidents involving horses, including one which was life-threatening. I've had some serious problems with fear after some of them, to the point where the very slightest tension I felt in a horse could make me get off and cry. But I persisted in getting back on and fighting with the fear, because riding was something I couldn't imagine going through life without.

If you want to dive, work on this in small pieces. Maybe start with snorkeling in a pool, and free diving, and then go on to scuba equipment in a pool, and keep with each stage until it's stress-free.

If you are only doing this for someone else, it's unlikely you'll have the determination and drive to get through the issue, and it won't be a big loss for you, because it isn't something you love that you'd have to let go of.

 

[thanksforallthefish]

I would suggest giving it another go. The reason I say this is because you tried diving in a pool, diving in the ocean is completely different. In the ocean there is always something to look at and keep your mind occupied.

This is what happened to me when I did my course back in 1990 ... did the pool dives and did not like it at all and most likely would not have done the ocean dives except for my instructor, but once I got in the ocean it was totally different.

Now 18 years and nearly 500 dives on I am glad I gave it another go.

 

[Bottomfeeder Brodie]

If I wreck my car I am not planning on walking to work for the rest of my life. Crap happens. We just get over it and drive on. My crystal ball says you will have 48 fantastic unforgetable dives with rays and dolphins and ride the back of a whale shark over the next 10 yrs....do you want to miss it?

Saddle up and enjpy the ride

 

[nannymouse]

Are you limited to boat dives?
Will beach dives work?

Go through the sequence one item at a time, and eliminate the problem(s) in each.

There is a wealth of information on ways to do it right, and also things to avoid so that you don't do it wrong.

Listen to TS&M, she's smart! -N

 

[Dive-aholic]

How did you feel after the first dive in Egypt? You state your boy friend was hooked, but mention nothing about your feelings. My guess is you weren't as hooked and you only went through the motions because your boy friend loved it.

Diving is not for everyone. If you're terrified of it, then don't do it. Fear can make it a very dangerous activity because it can lead to panic. I suggest you don't dive. There are lots of couples with one diving partner and one non-diving partner that work out just fine.

 

[Captain Walt]

Everyone has jumped on this and spit out some good advice with their own experience..... I know how hard it is to overcome fear. I have been there, but any time I do something that scares the $#!t out of me, and I get through it I feel the rush of excitement and accomplishment. Your life is what you make it. The fear you feel is real, but their is "nothing" you can't do. Trust me when I say that... I feel sorry for thous that wear NO FEAR t-shirts.... You are not pushing the limit if you feel no fear. Fear makes you the brave one...a fearless man is not brave. Don't stop pushing the limit of your comfort zone, fear paralyzes you grips you and prevents freedom from flowing. If you can push through the feeling of freedom is without compare. And you WIN!

Suck it up girl....MOVE OUT AND DRAW FIRE!!!!!