Taking advanced open water soon.

[jmasin]

But my favorite time to dive is dawn. Getting in the water while it's still dark and watching the "shifts" change

Same thing happens at dusk and you don't have to get up so early

Just messin' with ya!

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I don't wish to rain on your parade, but are you comfortable with the idea of having some responsibility for (hearing) divers in potential emergency situations, when the need for rapid, accurate surface communication may be critical? I've had a lot of work-related hearing loss over the past decade or so, and although I've always enjoyed mentoring or teaching people in the past, I have no interest in doing so with scuba professionally, because my ability to hear and understand spoken communications without my hearing aids and under a hood is so limited. I'm just not comfortable being _professionally_ responsible for the safety of new divers when I can't easily hear what they're saying. Underwater it's not an issue, but on the surface it certainly is, even in calm conditions. Add in the sound of wind and waves and my ability to hear and understand speech is pretty hopeless, unless someone is right next to me and shouting.

If you're dealing only with deaf divers, I can see it, because all of you will be used to communicating by sign. And I think it's great that you're willing to teach ASL free to those who wish to expand their vocabularies. But have you checked to see if agencies/boats will allow you to DM for hearing people, and whether you can get insurance to do so? I can foresee potential liability issues there.

Good luck to you,

Guy

I have a deaf dive buddy who I've known for many years. You'd be amazed at how aware he is of what's going on around him ... often more so than the folks he dives with who can hear.

I taught his AOW and Rescue classes, and was constantly impressed with how well he responded to visual cues that could easily have gone unnoticed. I'd have no qualms at all about enrolling him in a DM class, or considering him suitable to supervise someone I loved as a dive professional ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[bbdqsony]

Thank you

Yeah many Deaf people tend to use their eyes MORE, they can catch little thing that it's almost impossible. Like one time when I was on bus at Grand Canyon I was chatting and I caught old lady in my right eye was falling I moved real quick to catch her. Image people talking and not pay attention, there could be crisis on the bus.

I do LOVE scuba diving and I regret that I didn't start earlier... but I'm glad I'm taking action now. I've signed up for AOW class starting very soon. My goal is to have great experience under there and know my safety and will keep on reaching my goal to get DM so I can help others... hope to work on boat as crew or DM.

Again thank you NWGratefulDiver for your comment...that meant a lot to me.

I have a deaf dive buddy who I've known for many years. You'd be amazed at how aware he is of what's going on around him ... often more so than the folks he dives with who can hear.

I taught his AOW and Rescue classes, and was constantly impressed with how well he responded to visual cues that could easily have gone unnoticed. I'd have no qualms at all about enrolling him in a DM class, or considering him suitable to supervise someone I loved as a dive professional ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Monkey_Gland]

Thank you

Yeah many Deaf people tend to use their eyes MORE, they can catch little thing that it's almost impossible. Like one time when I was on bus at Grand Canyon I was chatting and I caught old lady in my right eye was falling I moved real quick to catch her. Image people talking and not pay attention, there could be crisis on the bus.

I do LOVE scuba diving and I regret that I didn't start earlier... but I'm glad I'm taking action now. I've signed up for AOW class starting very soon. My goal is to have great experience under there and know my safety and will keep on reaching my goal to get DM so I can help others... hope to work on boat as crew or DM.

Again thank you NWGratefulDiver for your comment...that meant a lot to me.

Good luck mate, I for one, salute you.

 

[mitphys]

I did my Open Water training with Pro Dive in December, and they run a great shop and their instructors are really good. I think you'll have a great time. I then did my AOW a few weeks later in Bali. The PPB was fantastic, definitely useful. If nothing else it just gets you in the habit of thinking about how to wight yourself properly depending on your suit/conditions etc. We did some very tough dives in Komodo after (strong currents and up/down surges) and it came in very handy. You'll just come and switch out single tanks between dives, no pony bottles etc.

 

[Guy Alcala]

I have a deaf dive buddy who I've known for many years. You'd be amazed at how aware he is of what's going on around him ... often more so than the folks he dives with who can hear.

I taught his AOW and Rescue classes, and was constantly impressed with how well he responded to visual cues that could easily have gone unnoticed. I'd have no qualms at all about enrolling him in a DM class, or considering him suitable to supervise someone I loved as a dive professional ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Bob, to me it's not a question of being aware of what's going on around you, it's the simple fact that when I'm on the surface, if someone some distance away yells at me, I usually have no idea what they're saying. Sure, some things are obvious, but many are not, and what I worry about is time critical situations where I need to do the right thing, right NOW! I'm completely reliant on my sight for info, and if the water's rough that too may be degraded. My lack of hearing ability was something of an issue (to me, at least) in my rescue class, and it has sometimes been so while diving, not to mention onboard the boat.

My usual dive buddy tends to act as my ears in the boat and on the surface, repeating any verbal communications to me when I'm unsure of them. It's not that I can't react in an emergency, it's just that my reaction may be slow or wrong because of my uncertainty about what's being said, and that's not acceptable to me if I'm acting in a professional capacity; it violates my _personal_ sense of responsibility. If the OP is comfortable with that limitation, that's fine, and is their business (as long as they can get insurance and the boat captains/customers are cool with it). I just wanted to make sure that he'd considered this (obviously, he has).

I have no problem diving privately, because I make no secret of my hearing issues, and people can decide if they feel comfortable to dive with me, or not. I'm an attentive buddy, and underwater it's not an issue (except when doing a green water ascent in boat traffic, especially sailboats). And frankly, it's not my buddy having a problem that I'm primarily concerned about; I'm right next to them and have been monitoring them throughout the dive, so I should have an excellent idea of what the problem is even if I can't understand what they're saying. What I'm worried about is the situation where some other diver or dive team surfaces and has a problem some distance away, and there's a need to communicate at a distance.

Guy

 

[bbdqsony]

UPDATE:

My AOW course starts on April 9th, I am looking forward to it. Can't hardly wait... have started reading the AOW book.