Confessions of an unlikely diver

[BluewaterSail]

I'm unlikely because I take so long to progress on skills. I never had a fear or adversion, it just takes me a long time to get it right. Especially bouyancy and staying in one place. No matter how calm and comfortable I feel even now, I seem to make unconcious movements which of course cause me to move.

In general in life, if there is a task that needs to be done, I want to rush and get it done. In general in diving, this is a very bad idea, but that inner urge keeps surfacing.


Concious effort is the only way to overcome deficencies. If there is a will, there is a way.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

I think you guys have hit the nail on the head. I wanted to dive because I wanted to conquer my fear and see the pretty fish! I didn't do it for anyone else. Someone told me wanting to dive to conquer my fear wasn't a good enough reason. I told them I get to decide what are good enough reasons for myself

TSandM I think the bouyancy thing is a real key! I didn't learn to swim until I was 13. That is when I learned to float.. (become buoyant). I spent the next summer working to pay for swimming lessons to get it right!...ummmm I guess I am umm determined!

Confession number 2.... I hated having to take my reg out of my mouth under water. It took me ages before I managed to force myself to start doing it. During the course I managed it but only ... I never even tried it for quite a few dives after course. I really needed to get my comfort level and confidence up before I could take it out. Now I do it without any stress or thought. Practice (lots of bottom time) and self talk finally got me there!

 

[lunula]

What a great thread - and I actually did LOL at a few of these!

I'm a unlikely diver because of two things: my past issues with anxiety/panic attacks and my history of being overweight with extreme body-image issues.

In 2011, I turned 40 and decided to get healthy. I've dropped 80 lbs and workout regularly, eat right and even started annual physicals. So...body image issues are waning. It's kind of funny, but I joke with my husband about my wetsuit being like Spanx, hah! I'm shocked that I'm not more self-conscious wearing my wetsuit (too many other equipment things to think about than to worry about how I look) - or even stripped down to my swim suit (I hadn't been out in public in a swim suit in at least a decade)!

Last year, I bought my husband certification classes and gear for our 15th wedding anniversary. I wanted to do something fun together and I wanted to face my fears. I used to be a swimmer, no issues with water...but "breathing underwater" struck fear in my heart. I found a place that had five 6-hour sessions for certification before our OW dives and it was the way to go for us. Lots of training and practice! We went on a cruise to the Caribbean this spring and we went diving quite a bit - I had to concentrate hard on relaxing, I had a few moments of high anxiety, but I handled it. My husband says he still can't believe how well I've done and how I've kept my cool through 22 dives, even stopping once to help him control his panic. Can't believe I'm a budding diver!

 

[DiverJohnATL]

Ohh boy where do I even begin with me.

1. From the time I was a child I couldn't stand to be in water where I couldn't touch, obviously this went away after I started diving but those first couple of times in the pool were interesting not to mention open water check offs.
2. I hate breathing out of my mouth, I have to make a seriously concentrated effort to breath out of my mouth, the number of times I STILL try to inhale thru my nose while under water is truly embarrassing.
3. My first night dive in Hawaii for my AOW found me hanging onto a buoy at night in 40 ft of water off the shore while my instructor had to take my "buddy" back to the beach for not being able to clear her ears.......of course what do I start doing...playing the JAWS music in my head. I was so scared of getting eaten by a freaking shark I almost didn't do the dive while waiting for him to get back out there.
4. I hate peeing in a wetsuit......I do it.....but I hate it.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

It took me several attempts to even snorkel. Every time I heard a little gurgle of water in my snorkel I jerked my head out of the water. I finally figured it out and had a lot of fun free diving for the next year. Then my wife at the time said we were taking OW. I was fine with all of the skills in the pool, but our final certification dive gave me pause. When I had to do the mask removal and recovery, my instructor kept placing my mask a foot out of my reach. By the time I got it back on, my eyes burned for the rest of the day. I had to do the gear removal skill in the kelp. My tank, BC and reg got tangled in the kelp. It took what seemed like forever to get it back on. Twenty-four years later, I've had to remove and replace my BC once when a tank strap came loose, but I've never had my mask off underwater since 1989.

Oh boy.. you just hit my

Number 3

I have trouble taking my mask off. Remember the face in the water thing? I have this weird reflex... when water hits my nose.. I sniff! As soon as my mask comes off... salt water sniffed into the sinuses. I had to pinch my nose to keep from doing this for the search and recover mask exercises in my OW. I am not the only one with this problem. Ever notice Grant Hackett (Australian multi Olympic Gold Medalist swimmer) wears a nose clip... I heard him explain this reflex thing on an interview... so I KNOW I am not the only one! Now I don't have a problem with water in my mask.. for some reason... sometime during my 650 or so hours of bottom time.. the reflex just went away! See Told ya... I am an Unlikely Diver!

What a great thread - and I actually did LOL at a few of these!

I'm a unlikely diver because of two things: my past issues with anxiety/panic attacks and my history of being overweight with extreme body-image issues.

In 2011, I turned 40 and decided to get healthy. I've dropped 80 lbs and workout regularly, eat right and even started annual physicals. So...body image issues are waning. It's kind of funny, but I joke with my husband about my wetsuit being like Spanx, hah! I'm shocked that I'm not more self-conscious wearing my wetsuit (too many other equipment things to think about than to worry about how I look) - or even stripped down to my swim suit (I hadn't been out in public in a swim suit in at least a decade)!

Last year, I bought my husband certification classes and gear for our 15th wedding anniversary. I wanted to do something fun together and I wanted to face my fears. I used to be a swimmer, no issues with water...but "breathing underwater" struck fear in my heart. I found a place that had five 6-hour sessions for certification before our OW dives and it was the way to go for us. Lots of training and practice! We went on a cruise to the Caribbean this spring and we went diving quite a bit - I had to concentrate hard on relaxing, I had a few moments of high anxiety, but I handled it. My husband says he still can't believe how well I've done and how I've kept my cool through 22 dives, even stopping once to help him control his panic. Can't believe I'm a budding diver!

Hey a Woman has to love any sport where they say...."You don't weight enough! Here is some led... you need to put it in your pockets"

Ohh boy where do I even begin with me.

1. From the time I was a child I couldn't stand to be in water where I couldn't touch, obviously this went away after I started diving but those first couple of times in the pool were interesting not to mention open water check offs.
2. I hate breathing out of my mouth, I have to make a seriously concentrated effort to breath out of my mouth, the number of times I STILL try to inhale thru my nose while under water is truly embarrassing.
3. My first night dive in Hawaii for my AOW found me hanging onto a buoy at night in 40 ft of water off the shore while my instructor had to take my "buddy" back to the beach for not being able to clear her ears.......of course what do I start doing...playing the JAWS music in my head. I was so scared of getting eaten by a freaking shark I almost didn't do the dive while waiting for him to get back out there.
4. I hate peeing in a wetsuit......I do it.....but I hate it.

At such an early stage that is an awful tough ask! Hanging in the dark alone Not what I would expect of an instructor:doh:

Most of our dives are in the 70 to 90 minute range. We dive in fairly light suits so I find it difficult to "hold it" that long! Here's a weird confession. I had trouble "letting it go" midwater... I had to put my hand on a rock or something or I couldn't "go" I'm a bit better at it now!:blush:

 

[emoreira]

I'm diving since 2007. No problem at all with water, swimm, drills.
The single point I still need to improve is Navigation.
I have just finished the Dive Guide course under SSI. I still have to do the check-out dives.
Underwater navigation has always been a challenge and a point to worry. I have already guided several times. Many times I did return just under the dive boat, and those times the joy was inmense.
Underwater navigation with currents is something I cannot handle. I do not trust my compass in these circumstances and I cannot figure it out the distance to the boat.
I understand the theory involved, but this something I need to improve.
I use to dive in a dive boat with the rest of the instructors and DCSs of the dive school. I see them going out and returning near the boat. I admire them.

 

[tracydr]

I hated mask skills. I was fine in the warm water of Canyon Lake, TX. I certified in 1996 without difficulty.But, after a year of shore diving in Puget Sound and not practicing skills or taking classes I had become very poor at my mask skills. Then, I was sold a purge-valve mask because I was constantly having to clear my mask ( an issue I still struggle with). On a dive in Hawaii, maybe my 40-50th dive, I was near 100 feet and my purge valve blew out. ( or in, I guess). I had a fully flooded mask and no way to clear. My buddy, (not a very good diver, in fact one of the world's worst) led me the wrong way all the way across the wreck. Than, back the right way to the anchor line and we ascended together. I've never been able to see without a mask in ocean or pool, so I was basically blind. This was a very scarey ( but not panicky) situation for me.
After that, I was very reluctant to remove my mask. It took years, until I met my new husband in 2007 and he convinced me that I had to relearn this skill. I found that I couldn't breathe without my mask, I had become an obligate nose-breather.
I worked for hours with a snorkel and swim goggles, mask and snorkel and regulator/mask in my pool and later in the lake and on every dive we went on, finally in cold water on Catalina. My husband would have me remove my mask and guide me around while we did our safety stop on dives in Bonaire or anywhere that we had a safe place to practice.

Last summer, I did the DM course. I was so proud of myself, being able to take my mask on and off at any time, anywhere, swim without my mask and replace my mask mid-water without any issues.
I still practice this every dive, especially in cold water but even in the warm pool. It's not ever going to be a skill I can forget about.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

Another confession... it has been a while. I still don't take my mask off. My eyes burn. I don't even open my eyes in the shower. Fresh water even makes them burn. I have tried and tried and felt like an idiot, a wuss and beat myself up over it for years!

I explained the problem to my ophthalmologist and asked for advice. The answer shocked me! I was told that the "dry eyes" issue is behind it. I have had to use moisturizing drops (artificial tears) for years for this relatively common problem. I was told that my eyes are so dry that it takes only a tiny bit of water to wash what little lubricant film I have on my eyes. When that protection is gone..... the eyes burn! It was such a relief to know there is a medical explanation. It isn't all in my head.... well geographically I guess it is nor is it because I am a wuss!

I guard my mask carefully when I dive. I inspect it regularly to avoid a mask failure and no longer beat myself up about doing mask drills. In over 800 bottom hours I have never come close to losing my mask. I have decided my reasonable precautions will suffice for the future as they have in the past.

 

[Kevrumbo]

Another confession... it has been a while. I still don't take my mask off. My eyes burn. I don't even open my eyes in the shower. Fresh water even makes them burn. I have tried and tried and felt like an idiot, a wuss and beat myself up over it for years!

I explained the problem to my ophthalmologist and asked for advice. The answer shocked me! I was told that the "dry eyes" issue is behind it. I have had to use moisturizing drops (artificial tears) for years for this relatively common problem. I was told that my eyes are so dry that it takes only a tiny bit of water to wash what little lubricant film I have on my eyes. When that protection is gone..... the eyes burn! It was such a relief to know there is a medical explanation. It isn't all in my head.... well geographically I guess it is nor is it because I am a wuss!

I guard my mask carefully when I dive. I inspect it regularly to avoid a mask failure and no longer beat myself up about doing mask drills. In over 800 bottom hours I have never come close to losing my mask. I have decided my reasonable precautions will suffice for the future as they have in the past.

Has your Ophthalmologist talked about trying these eye drops for chronic dry eye?
RESTASIS® (Cyclosporine Ophthalmic Emulsion) 0.05%: Prescription Eye Drops for Chronic Dry Eye Patients – RESTASIS Rebate – Find an Eye Doctor

 

[Neilwood]

Another confession... it has been a while. I still don't take my mask off. My eyes burn. I don't even open my eyes in the shower. Fresh water even makes them burn. I have tried and tried and felt like an idiot, a wuss and beat myself up over it for years!

I explained the problem to my ophthalmologist and asked for advice. The answer shocked me! I was told that the "dry eyes" issue is behind it. I have had to use moisturizing drops (artificial tears) for years for this relatively common problem. I was told that my eyes are so dry that it takes only a tiny bit of water to wash what little lubricant film I have on my eyes. When that protection is gone..... the eyes burn! It was such a relief to know there is a medical explanation. It isn't all in my head.... well geographically I guess it is nor is it because I am a wuss!

I guard my mask carefully when I dive. I inspect it regularly to avoid a mask failure and no longer beat myself up about doing mask drills. In over 800 bottom hours I have never come close to losing my mask. I have decided my reasonable precautions will suffice for the future as they have in the past.

Just goes to show - never be afraid to ask a question. So glad you got to the bottom of your problem but it is a shame you didn't know that a lot earlier.