Panic Attack

[Llama256]

Went diving again two weeks ago.

I definitely had the same kind of anxiety as before. Part of the
problem was an ill fitting hood and a new BC on which I hadn't adjusted the weight yet. I managed to grit my teeth
and descend and after about 10 minutes was distracted enough to feel comfortable again.

One factor I think was definitely contributing was, the hood
was choking me and I was taking an antibiotic named doconex. After this dive I noticed that when I take the Doconex, I feel short of breath for no reason. I'm definitely inclined to believe now that my panic was caused by CO2.

 

[scubadobadoo]

I am sorry llama but based on the info given, IMHO, you had a mild and somewhat common panic attack and continue to have issues with diving given your last post. It doesn't always mean you need to see a shrink but it does mean that you need to slow down, get in the shallow water, and relax until you can feel comfy under more stressful conditions. Add a little current and all hell can break lose.

I recently had a panic attack and bolted to the surface in 20 feet of water after over 100 dives. I was doing a mask removal drill that I had not yet tried in cold water and had not done in several months. When that cold water hit my face I freaked out and had the same breathing problems you did. I unfortunately didn't control my irrational fears and bolted despite my resue diver training and past practice. It seemed and still seems unbelievable to me that it happened as I had no problem during cert. Luckily I was okay. My point is that when you are doing anything new you need to do it in a controlled environment like shallow water and with a buddy watching you. You not only owe it to yourself but you owe it to your dive buddy to let him/her know what your issues might be and to work on it. If not, you will be a dive statistic. Sorry if I seem harsh, that's not my objective. Remember, this is not ping pong we are talking about here. SCUBA will kill you if you aren't honest with yourself. I had to face this as well, and I still have some issues with mask removal, but I am getting better and so can you but only if you are honest with yourself. I really hope I don't seem like I am being critical, but after reading your post, I recognized my issue and hoped to offer some positive advice. I realized that I LOVED diving too much to allow a bad experience to scare me into quiting. It seems like you feel the same. Take it slow, it should get better. After having that horrible experience, I will never scoff at another diver when they seem panicky or uncomfortable in the water. If my buddy wants to end the dive, I end it and discuss it. Take care llama and welcome back to the water.

 

[BigJetDriver]

Las llamas son muy peligroso!

Es verdad? :11:

 

[vladimir]

I was taking an antibiotic named doconex.

Dovonex, possibly?

 

[Crowell]

Is there a way for you to go diving in fresh water possibly? And I agree with the shallower water idea - possibly just to be safer for you personally in case you truly get panicky.

I recently went diving again for the first time in about 5 years a couple weeks ago down in Destin, FL. What my fiance and I chose to do was book an SSI skills update dive with an instructor along and just go for a swim that way.

When we hit the water, it was maybe 3' visibility at 30' all the way to the bottom, and I was the first one down the line, followed by the instructor, and finally, followed by my fiance. She was with us at 40', but in the murk, we couldn't see that she stopped going down the line, and when we hit bottom at 70' she wasn't with us. The instructor motioned for me to hold the line and wait there, and he went back up the line ...

As I watched him vanish almost immediately, and with no visibility around me, and this being my first dive in over 5 years, I started to get a little anxious myself. Primarily, I was just worried about my fiance and why she wasn't with us, but just hovering there holding the line, I started getting this impending feeling of doom like some folks mentioned, and my mind kept imagining some 20' tiger shark circling around the anchor line picking us off one by one as we descended, and how was I ever going to explain this one to her parents... etc.

What I do though, and not trying to turn this into a religious issue so take it as you like, but I just leave it up to God and whatever happens, I won't sweat it. That's a huge comfort and relaxer to me.

 

[Soozie2]

I've copied my post from the Introductions board as it's relevant to the discussion here. Unfortunately I wasn't in such good shape when I reached the surface, but have discussed this at length with a diving instructor of many years standing and have arranged to go diving in the red sea for a week with her and a few others. She will buddie me and we'll take it nice and gentle until I feel OK again...

Responses from others are that all possible reasons listed below could be either individually or jointly the cause of what happened. The way to manage it is to take it gently and keep it shallow for a while. Coming up from 100' under panic conditions, I was very fortunate that I didn't suffer anything worse than shock, and that my instructor was able to physically control the ascent for both of us so he wasn't injured either.



"I've had a bit of a bad experience at depth in cold water recently and am now 1. (still)trying to find an acceptable explanation for it, and 2. arranging a week's recreational diving in warm water to get some confidence back and finish the last AOW dive so at least the certification is complete (and I will get 10 more logged dives in lovely conditions).

Briefly got to 100' in cold water (in wetsuit), had trouble when felt ice cold in my chest and then felt as if I couldn't take in any air at all. Felt scared+++, went to instructor, signalled trouble with reg and chest and wanted to go up, did an alternate air source ascent using his octopus but I panicked at some stage and took some water in. I was terror struck and don't want a repeat.

Suggested explanations from others include: nitrogen narcosis; cold water narcosis; sheer pressure on chest at that depth; reg not suitable for that depth; going from OW in warm water to immediate AOW in cold water with no preparation for cold water diving and no intermediate dives to reinforce skills; combination of cold water, different site, poor viz, psychological overlay because of the bad reputation that particular site has for near misses/fatalities, fact that someone brought out with no breathing and no pulse just as we were going in (helicoptered to hospital and apparently OK), etc. etc.

Feels like unfinished business at the moment and would love to draw a line and move on to just enjoy it!"

Soozie2

 

[BigJetDriver]

Folks,

I have found, in both my own diving, and in teaching students, that there are moments where everything comes together---in a bad way.

At moments like that it can be hard to force your mind to focus and to deal with the central issue, whatever that might be.

That is why I like Tom Mount's (and IANTD's) slogan: "Stop! Breathe! Think! Now act!" so much. It helps control autonomic reflexes that can get us into trouble by responding too quickly in the wrong direction!

Circumstances can lead us into situations that develop stress without our realizing that it is creeping up on us. The stories above are perfect examples!

Things like a long hiatus between our last dives and getting back into it again, bad vis, restrictive protective apparel, uncertainty about where one's partner might be, can all develop creeping stress that, (--suddenly, it seems--), cause us to be breathing hard and wondering why!

Some of the answers on this Board make me wonder what people can be thinking. We are not FISH, people! It is not unusual for the human to feel a little uneasy at times when submerged in what is, to us, an alien environment! There are usually sound and very normal reasons for us to react the way we do as human beings. Since we are not fish, however, some of those automatic reaction patterns need to be changed for us to react safely in our "new environment"! This re-training takes a while. We must be patient with ourselves (and our students).

Stop! Breathe! Think! Then act!

Cheers!

 

[BigJetDriver]

Folks,

We had one of the mods move this discussion to this forum because it is actually very instructive, and is more related to issues that concern us all as divers.

Cheers!

 

[pete340]

When my instructor asked me why I ascended, I lied and said I needed to equalize. Don't know if he bought it, but I got through the class.

Seems to me you lost a good opportunity. Your instructor was probably in the best position to assess what happened.

 

[Crowell]

I'll have to agree to that one ... an instructor, just like a doctor, is only there to help you...

Lying to them (and/or lying to yourself along with it), does NOTHING to improve your own health or safety, or in some cases - the safety of those relying on you for their own safety.