What is a known panic point for you while diving?

[DavidHickey]

Only panick I can remember happened in Bonaire while diving with my financee in I think about 70 to 80 foot of water. We were crossing a large sandy area between 2 reefs and all you could see was the white sand bottom and everything just kinda blended together. We started the swim across the sand and there was a little bit of a current we were going against so I just kept swimming and got about half way across and stopped and looked around and she was NO WHERE to be seen and the visibility was very good. All I could think of was that something happened "Mask came off, inhaled water, possibly drowned, did a shark grab her, how would I explain it to her dad or for that matter even find her," all that went thru my head in an instant and I started hyperventilating frantically looking each direction deciding what to do, so while hyperventilating and panicking I wasn't controlling my bouancy and realized I had risen quiet a bit, I finally decided the best course of action was to surface and see if she had also. I finally got to the surface and 2 seconds later she surfaced right next to me. She looked a little confused and said WHAT the H_LL are you doing? I explained that I thought she drowned or something. It turns out she was literally like 2 feet directly underneath me. When I stopped to look around I was vertical and she was directly below me, I was probably almost standing on her head, I guess I looked everywhere but down. But it definitively freaked me out, just had this sick feeling in my gut that something very bad had happened and that it was my fault for not keeping a better eye out on my buddy. I did learn to be more aware of my buddies position, and if all else fails LOOK DOWN! I think what set me off the most was it was like an episode of X Files. No way in the world she could have disappared in almost unlimited visibility in the middle of a sandy bottom with no structure, BUT she did. "at least I thought so" was all just a little spooky at the time!
David

 

[chewie]

being out of breath especially trying to chase some great creature. hyperventilating & still trying to want to breathe normally after that sprint. mainly breathing issues.

 

[deepblueme]

Blue Water Night Drift diving in the Gulf Stream, not really panic but that boogy man feeling knowing the bottom and sides are a lonnnng way away if you lose the boat and there are alot of BIG things down there just out of vision.

Real panic is running out of rum after the dive.

 

[mello-yellow]

Closest I ever got was while clinging to a rock as waves alternatively smashed me into the said rock and tried to drag me off. Even then the fear was more about losing my fins and other stuff than about danger to my life.

Oh, and I was wearing doubles at the time, which makes clinging to a rock while being smashed by waves an unbalancing experience.

 

[paintsnow]

the first open water dive, also my first dive period, no pool nothing
i had jumped in the water
the instructor told me he was going to have to go up after a few minutes to get an intro to scuba kid but that the dive master would stay with me(he was training to be a divemaster actually) this didnt bother me though because i totally trusted these guys.

well we get to the sandy bottom and were doing several drills.
then when it came to the remove and replace mask drill
i realized i had forgotten to mention i wore contacts to the instructor,.

well i put the mask back on and started hyperventilating, because i could feel that the mask was still full with water and i couldnt open my eyes because of my contacts plus it was salt water.

i had the incredible urge to acend but i remembered the wise words of the instructor. "i dont care if Jaws himself comes by, you dont acend unless you tell me first and we go together."

so i stopped worrying about clearing, and just sat and calmed down, then i cleared the mask
flashed to ok sign
and continued diving.

different day the boat captain had forgotten to put my BC on a new tank, and so i hit 60 feet and look at my guadge because the instructor i was diving with had asked a different student(i was already certified, but this was my first day diving after so i was to stick around to a different instructor) so i looked at mine and saw 500 so i signaled low air, went up with the guys wife, also instructor, got a new tank

and had a great dive away from the students exploring the wreak and the turtles in and around it, no penitration, just peaked in though the 20f x 20 f hole cut into the deck.

i dont blame anyone but myself for what happend, and now i always check my pressure and take a few breaths off the reg while watching the neddle before i go in.

 

[Diver Dennis]

Titan Trigger fish. A DM I met had a chunk taken out of his cheek by one.

I don't panic but they make me nervous when they attack...

 

[pengwe]

I never panicked. Closest I ever got was while clinging to a rock as waves alternatively smashed me into the said rock and tried to drag me off. Even then the fear was more about losing my fins and other stuff than about danger to my life.

That would panic me. Waves on rocks, I hate.

 

[Kevrumbo]

Vertigo on ascent, when one ear equalizes before the other, and then you have to hold the ascent because of a mandatory deco stop. Very difficult cognitive state to be in, trying to keep track of your gas switch, depth & time with the entire universe spiraling around you --and to keep panic from overwhelming you as well. . .

 

[Clearwater]

Biggest near panic for me has been when someone nearly knocked my mask off at around 90 feet deep in a dive off of Costa Maya, Mexico. It didn't get knocked off entirely, so I was able to recover and clear without too much problem. It really made me think, and it still does actually, just writing about it. It really drove home the importance of keeping calm and dealing with the unexpectecd.

 

[fire_diver]

Vertigo on ascent, when one ear equalizes before the other, and then you have to hold the ascent because of a mandatory deco stop. Very difficult cognitive state to be in, trying to keep track of your gas switch, depth & time with the entire universe spiraling around you --and to keep panic from overwhelming you as well. . .

Oh crap! That would surely suck. I've only been hit with vertigo once on a dive and was bad. It felt like being the most drunk I have ever been. I felt like I was racing up to the surface, falling back to the bottom, spinning and rolling all at once. I had to hold my focus on a stationary spot for a few seconds to re-asure myself I was still good. Then it all cleared and I was fine.

I can't imagine trying to do a deco stop and gas switch while feeling that.

FD