Trying to get certified...Can't seem to get there....
- Thread starter Sonjarms
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I was trying to be non offensive.That may be the funniest response I have seen yet
In actual fact I used to get unbelievably wound up before a bike race meeting.The closer to end of season it was the more wound up I was (especially if it was close on points) One morning I was so wound up my crew chief looked my then fiance in the eye and said in a fairly loud voice. " For gosh sakes go give him a B### J## why doncha?
the entire pit area stopped dead and you could hear a pin drop.
Those are 2 absolutely good strategies.
Diving is an adaptation. We were not meant to be breathing underwater and it flies against a lifetime of training, much of it rooted in fear of drowning. Ultimately we all need to reprogram to some extent. For some it's very easy and others need some time. Like any new and stressful experience frequent exposure leads to confidence and comfort. Simple time spent blowing bubbles watching her fingers wrinkle, playing checkers or any other pastime in a safe environment can do wonders.
Full attention to her own needs by herself and the instructor will let her focus on her goals. Once she clears some hurdles and builds a little positive history her bandwidth will open up and she will probably be just fine.
She needs to give herself permission to be patient with herself and demand no less from those supporting her efforts.
Pete
Last edited:
masizemore
Registered
Ok after taking everyones comments in and more research etc. We are starting a diff path. New agency, new facility, new instructors, 100% owned gear (did someone hear my banker crying in the background doing all of this times 3), virtually unlimited pool time, one on one instructor time most days. She starts tomorrow, son and i start sat. So she will be getting dive time both with us and without us depending on sched etc. Lds is going to basically let us try everything in store IN the water prior to final purchase. So hopefully we have the right recipe for our situation now.
Already set up so that if it takes 8 or 80 sessions to get comfortable it is in the plan.
Thanks again for sharing your experiences and thoughts!
Marc
Already set up so that if it takes 8 or 80 sessions to get comfortable it is in the plan.
Thanks again for sharing your experiences and thoughts!
Marc
Outstanding.... Pool work is so important when most of us are starting out... I was one of the lucky ones as I took to it much like a fish!
If nothing else, you wife will find out whether she enjoys the sport and wants to continue or decide she is better off not but will be happy with your decision to continue... I dive the East Coast (NC) alot and my wife is more than happy to see me off at the boat...! Actually, we are down here now and this will be the first time she sees me off...!
I am sure Sonja will be much more comfortable doing it the way you describe... As before, truly pulling for her as sometimes the mind can be difficult to set at ease...!
Best to you and yours... lee
Well as hubby said, we started with a new Dive Shop....Had my first session today. Went fairly well. Starting over kind of stinks, but it is allowing me to work back through some of the skills. Only had 1 small anxiety attack today. Freaked a little when asked to do a skill I had never done before. But got through it, finished the instruction and STAYED UNDER THE WATER. YEAH!!!!! Actually managed to stop the anxiety attack. Small steps, but beat the first 1. Will let you all know how things go...
Sonja
Sonja
Forgive me if I missed it, but I think that I just went through 4 pages of responses to a panicky new diver without a single mention of CO2 and the panic cycle!
From a post by TS&M a while back ... "The panic cycle is one where anxiety causes the diver to breathe rapidly and shallowly, and doing so increases CO2 and causes increased anxiety and shortness of breath, which results in faster, shallower breathing . . . "
If your breathing pattern is shallower or less frequent when your on scuba, you run the risk of increasing your CO2 levels and setting off a cycle of anxiety. It's GREAT that you seem to be able to recognize and control it, you're doing the right thing.
But if this is your issue, your solution is simple... breathe. A little slower, a little deeper, keep the air moving and the gas exchange happening. That should go a long way toward helping you to relax.
Best of luck to you!
From a post by TS&M a while back ... "The panic cycle is one where anxiety causes the diver to breathe rapidly and shallowly, and doing so increases CO2 and causes increased anxiety and shortness of breath, which results in faster, shallower breathing . . . "
If your breathing pattern is shallower or less frequent when your on scuba, you run the risk of increasing your CO2 levels and setting off a cycle of anxiety. It's GREAT that you seem to be able to recognize and control it, you're doing the right thing.
But if this is your issue, your solution is simple... breathe. A little slower, a little deeper, keep the air moving and the gas exchange happening. That should go a long way toward helping you to relax.
Best of luck to you!
masizemore
Registered
Wow, doesn't seem like it has been over a month in some ways. We have had about 7 sessions with this group in various configurations. Sometimes all together, sometimes Sonja solo w/instructor, sometimes she was paired with another buddy, sometimes just her and I.
We have tried different combinations of gear and finally selected what we are comfortable with. It is still a trip to watch them grab a new rig off the floor, pull the tags and say "here go try this one" but it happened multiple times. They ordered in a BC for Sonja to try even though she told them she wasn't sure if it was the right one for her or not (turned out, it was but still, wow). We all wanted to try different regs that they were out of stock on, no worries, next session they had them, setup and tagged with our names and ready to go. Oddly enough, in each case they ended up what we selected for purchase but there was no pressure. We selected the accessories we wanted and they said they would have everything attached, rigged up and ready to go next time we are in.. I have to say their customer service is amazing, not just for the dive industry but for ANY industry.
We have worked with all three of the instructors, each has their own flare but all stay to the same basic principles. I am sure that our previous failures helped us with this set of training but the level of training has been night and day as well. (This is not to say that the other group won't be successful, this is just to say that in talking with multiple shops in multiple cities there is actually a great variance to the method of teaching and I think that may be the hardest selection to make, which is comfortable for the individual) Of course the basic skills were covered (mask clearing, reg clearing, reg recovery, etc) But they have a series of "confidence builders" that are built into all of their training. Instead of just having to breath a couple of minutes without our masks, descended down a line, removed our masks, came part of the way back up the line, put the mask back on and cleared it then continued the ascent. Instead of just removing and putting back on the bc, we removed it, surfaced without it, free dived back down and put it back on. We did problem resolution where the instructor would a) flood or remove our mask, b) yank our reg c) turn off our air and combos of all three (including all three at once lol) all done in a pool in shallow water but letting us feel what it was like and requiring us to solve each in the proper order.. Nothing like having you mask yanked, go to grab it and realize your tank is off so you reach to turn it back on and your reg pops out.. They would then go on to tell you the real world scenarios that they had witnessed that could cause the issues to begin with.
Sonja still has some minor anxiety but it all seems to be from the immediate unknown but she has gotten much better about stop, think and act so she immediately gets through it. We have gotten her weight right for her gear and fresh water (she was in 24lb in a 5 mil, now in 12 lbs in 3/2, she was major overweighted
) She has stated that with the new gear and the practice she feels like she is controlling the gear now rather than the gear controlling her.
We are now ready for the open water section, just trying to get the schedules all together. Right now it is looking like October :shocked2: But hey, come this far.
We have tried different combinations of gear and finally selected what we are comfortable with. It is still a trip to watch them grab a new rig off the floor, pull the tags and say "here go try this one" but it happened multiple times. They ordered in a BC for Sonja to try even though she told them she wasn't sure if it was the right one for her or not (turned out, it was but still, wow). We all wanted to try different regs that they were out of stock on, no worries, next session they had them, setup and tagged with our names and ready to go. Oddly enough, in each case they ended up what we selected for purchase but there was no pressure. We selected the accessories we wanted and they said they would have everything attached, rigged up and ready to go next time we are in.. I have to say their customer service is amazing, not just for the dive industry but for ANY industry.
We have worked with all three of the instructors, each has their own flare but all stay to the same basic principles. I am sure that our previous failures helped us with this set of training but the level of training has been night and day as well. (This is not to say that the other group won't be successful, this is just to say that in talking with multiple shops in multiple cities there is actually a great variance to the method of teaching and I think that may be the hardest selection to make, which is comfortable for the individual) Of course the basic skills were covered (mask clearing, reg clearing, reg recovery, etc) But they have a series of "confidence builders" that are built into all of their training. Instead of just having to breath a couple of minutes without our masks, descended down a line, removed our masks, came part of the way back up the line, put the mask back on and cleared it then continued the ascent. Instead of just removing and putting back on the bc, we removed it, surfaced without it, free dived back down and put it back on. We did problem resolution where the instructor would a) flood or remove our mask, b) yank our reg c) turn off our air and combos of all three (including all three at once lol) all done in a pool in shallow water but letting us feel what it was like and requiring us to solve each in the proper order.. Nothing like having you mask yanked, go to grab it and realize your tank is off so you reach to turn it back on and your reg pops out.. They would then go on to tell you the real world scenarios that they had witnessed that could cause the issues to begin with.
Sonja still has some minor anxiety but it all seems to be from the immediate unknown but she has gotten much better about stop, think and act so she immediately gets through it. We have gotten her weight right for her gear and fresh water (she was in 24lb in a 5 mil, now in 12 lbs in 3/2, she was major overweighted
) She has stated that with the new gear and the practice she feels like she is controlling the gear now rather than the gear controlling her.We are now ready for the open water section, just trying to get the schedules all together.
Right now it is looking like October :shocked2: But hey, come this far.I did it! I did it! I did it!
Ok...It has been forever since I updated what was happening... For all those who are thinking about diving, who are struggling to get certified, who have tried and are maybe considering giving up...DON'T GIVE UP!!
Thanks to a supportive family, a great dive shop with supportive instructors, I am now certified. It took from the end of May to mid October, but I have finally done it!!
Since getting certified, we, as a family, have gone back to the first place we attempted to certify at. It was something, I think we all had to do. I know I had to. I had to go back to the one place that messed with my head so bad.
Part of what has motivated me to continue on was someone telling me that they were afraid to put me back in the water, because they were afraid for my safety. It made me determined. As much as they probably would not understand, I would love to hug their neck and say Thank You!
Thanks to all of you who encouraged and gave advice and were willing to share what you have been through. For those who may read this, who might be struggling...try to hang in there...
Ok...It has been forever since I updated what was happening... For all those who are thinking about diving, who are struggling to get certified, who have tried and are maybe considering giving up...DON'T GIVE UP!!
Thanks to a supportive family, a great dive shop with supportive instructors, I am now certified. It took from the end of May to mid October, but I have finally done it!!
Since getting certified, we, as a family, have gone back to the first place we attempted to certify at. It was something, I think we all had to do. I know I had to. I had to go back to the one place that messed with my head so bad.
Part of what has motivated me to continue on was someone telling me that they were afraid to put me back in the water, because they were afraid for my safety. It made me determined. As much as they probably would not understand, I would love to hug their neck and say Thank You!
Thanks to all of you who encouraged and gave advice and were willing to share what you have been through. For those who may read this, who might be struggling...try to hang in there...
Congrats Sonja - welcome to a new world !
Enjoy and stay safe - Phil
Enjoy and stay safe - Phil
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