Open Water Class 3 And 4

[Slym]

So over the last two weeks I have had my open water class 3 and 4 along with the pool sessions! It is all going great, we have covered emergency assents, tired diver tows, frog kick, taking a lot of attention onto buoyancy, and quite a few other things. The last class we had quite a bit of time to practice staying neutral (as we are a small class) and just near the end I had figured out how to get inches from the bottom and use my breath to float up again right away, it really is all in the diaphragm!

Now one downside I have been experiencing is a reverse block in the pool, unfortunately two weeks ago I had it and it and hurt my ear this week I tried to be even slower and didn't hurt the ear as much, but this time saw a doctor the next day, He said that I have a filled middle ear and have to wait for it to heal basically. He said if I go slowly I can still dive but if I have pain to call it off. I was fortunate enough to find a doctor in urgent care that is a Scuba diver as well. I really hope I can sort this problem out before my trip.

Other than that everything is going great, my instructor says the things to work on are my kicks, and to watch my gauge more, I plan on writing that on my hand for next class.

 

[JBFG]

Good stuff hopefully your hear will heal soon. Glad to see frog kick being instructed

 

[TMHeimer]

Yeah, I learned frog kick on my own.

 

[Slym]

Thanks! Yea I got some meds and they seem to work really decently, i might pick up some swimmers ear drops before my next class just to ensure I can equalize.

 

[Neilwood]

Yeah, I learned frog kick on my own.

Likewise although it was on my ow check out dives. Watched the instructor doing it and thought "why not? "

 

[Neilwood]

Duplicate

 

[Slym]

My instructor says that I almost look compressed and should fan out more, also that my flutter kicks I need to use more hips rather than knees. Haha I am always worried about kicking the person behind me in the pool though, I hope to fix this issue during the trip and my last pool class.

 

[decompression]

Likewise although it was on my ow check out dives. Watched the instructor doing it and thought "why not?

Funny, if the instructor is doing it, it's too bad he's not teaching it.

Glad you saw the value and used your initiative.

 

[tursiops]

Thanks! Yea I got some meds and they seem to work really decently, i might pick up some swimmers ear drops before my next class just to ensure I can equalize.

The swimmers ear drops will probably do nothing for your difficulties equalizing....they stay in the outer ear and serve the purpose of trying to prevent infection in the outer ear.

Your equalizing is a middle ear problem, so, yes, meds can help -- like decongestants -- but they can also cause a "rebound" problem, and if that happens, and your Eustachian tubes and sinuses close down while you are underwater, you've got a world of hurt in front of you. Careful with the meds. Go easy with them.

 

[TMHeimer]

Agree again with tursiops. I have never had equalisation problems, but never thought of ear drops as related at all. I do use them AFTER every dive (especially in my left ear) to prevent the usual swimmer's ear itch or worse. No reason to use them prior to a dive. Should add, I usually dive twice in a day and don't use them until after the second dive.