Breathing without mask technique?

[ctjwa]

Hi all,

I'm very recently open water certified. The only part of training I am still uncomfortable with is the full mask removal. I'm fine with getting it back on and clearing the water, but i had to cheat and hold my nose while the mask was off to avoid breathing water up my nose. I know it's inevitable that i'll lose my mask on a dive one day, so I would love to practice and master this skill before heading back out.

I can't wait to look back on this post 5 years and tons of successful dives from now and laugh at myself, but what is the secret? How do I tell myself not to use my nose while breathing?

[boulderjohn]

To begin with, it's not inevitable that you will lose your mask on a dive some day. It's never happened to me, and I really can't think of anyone at the moment who has experienced it accidentally. Now, I have taken my mask off intentionally quite a few times during a dive--it's the best thing to do when you feel a sneeze coming on, believe me. I have had my mask removed from my face by my tech diving instructor a number of times as well. It has never happened to me accidentally, though.

The most important thing is to get used to knowing the difference between breathing through your mouth and breathing through your nose. That sounds silly, but a lot of people have trouble controlling which opening is being used. The easiest thing to do is to wear a snorkel while holding your nose for a while and just breathe in and out through your mouth until you really get the hang of it. Then put your face in the water (you just need a large sink) with the snorkel on and practice breathing without holding the nose until you have mastered it.

One problem a lot of students have with this skill in scuba classes comes from the fact that most instructors have students do the skill while kneeling. When they are without the mask, the bubbles escaping from their regulators are constantly hitting their noses. that alone can cause your problem. When I instruct, my students are never on their knees. They are lying forward in a swimming position, slightly buoyant for these skills. When they do this skill, the bubbles go harmlessly past their cheeks. The day I switched to this technique was the day I stopped having students struggle with this skill.

[nimoh]

I know of one person that has a physical limitation causing him to not be able to do this skill without holding his nose, although I can't remember the details of the explanation from his doctor that he gave me. Perhaps this is not all that relevant, just saying.

Back on point, you should practice this skill on dry land, it should be fairly easy to tell when breathing that you are only breathing through your mouth. Perhaps holding your nose until you get a rhythm going, then releasing to see if you can continue it.

[NWGratefulDiver]

Best way to practice this skill is in shallow water ... chest deep, where you can remove your mask, put your face in the water, and breathe ... and when you start to feel uncomfortable, stand up and get relaxed ... then do it again.

Whenever I have students who have this problem (which isn't uncommon, by the way), I use this technique. Start out taking a few breaths. Then stand up and take a short break, then try it for a longer period. Repeat this process until you can keep your face submerged, maskless, breathing through your regulator for as long as you want to.

What you're doing is reprogramming your instincts. We're all different. For some, this exercise is easy. For others it's the hardest thing in diving they'll ever do. Most of us fall somewhere in between ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[lowviz]

Ideally, start in a pool holding onto a rail or something that will allow you to stand up and breathe if you aspirate water.

Remove your mask quickly while looking at the pool floor. Keep looking at the pool floor. You will go through an uncomfortable period then settle down. Once you get this down pat, do it without holding on. When you can do this lying on your back, you have mastered it.

[danpass]

practice with a snorkel

[drrich2]

Not sure whether my experience will be of any help. Like you, I held my nose during original OW cert. diving. I'm hoping to take a course soon where having my mask taken underwater by the teacher is a part of it. I'm also one of those people whose eyes are burned by just about anything; tap water, natural freshwater, Johnson's Baby Shampoo, etc...

Sooooooooooo, on a recent dive at a quarry, rather than let the suspense unfold during an actual course, I had a buddy in attendance, was near the surface (the top of my head sticking out of the water), closed my eyes, pulled off my mask, opening my eyes & tried to breathe, fearing that my eyes would burn like crazy & water shoot up my nose (I am also sensitive to water in my nasopharynx; burns!). Results of this experiment:

1.) Yes, the water burned my eyes, but it wasn't overwhelming. I could hold them open, though I didn't like it.

2.) I could see, though things were blurry.

3.) Water did not shoot up my nose. Breathing through my regulator as I'm used it, even without any conscious effort to just suck through my mouth, and without pinching my nose, I did not such water up my nose.

I didn't do this long, but I wanted to find out what would happen, and the exercise served its purpose.

Your mileage may vary.

Richard.

P.S.: If it's a comfort to you, one of the things taught in SDI's Solo course is to have an extra mask on your person so that if you lose yours during a dive, you can pull a spare out of a BCD pocket (for example) & put it on.

[supergaijin]

IMO it's fine to hold the nose if that is what you need to do the skill. Many people do, and if a mask was somehow to disappear on you during the dive, your right hand can hold your nose, the left can operate the BCD.

The end goal is that you retrain your breathing reflex so that you an breathe fairly comfortably and have both hands free. Practice in increments as has been advised above with a snorkel- cheaper than tank air.

[windapp]

This is not a difficult skill to master, and if you have access to a pool to dive in, you can get it in a very short amount of time. Here are a few tips:

1. Don't look up when your mask is off. The air in your nose will keep the water out, but only if your nostrils are the lowest point on your nose. If you have to look up, make sure you are exhaling out of your nose while you do.
2. Breath out your nose at first to keep the water out, but then try to do with only breathing through your mouth.
3. When you go to put your mask back on, don't worry about filling your lungs with air to clear the water out. Blow out very gently to prevent the mask from pushing water up your nose, and then use two or three breaths instead of just one to clear the mask. Make this a very relaxed exercise.

[tracydr]

Hi all,

I'm very recently open water certified. The only part of training I am still uncomfortable with is the full mask removal. I'm fine with getting it back on and clearing the water, but i had to cheat and hold my nose while the mask was off to avoid breathing water up my nose. I know it's inevitable that i'll lose my mask on a dive one day, so I would love to practice and master this skill before heading back out.

I can't wait to look back on this post 5 years and tons of successful dives from now and laugh at myself, but what is the secret? How do I tell myself not to use my nose while breathing?
I have this same problem and even after 18 years I still have to practice it. I think I'm just an obligat nose breather.
here's how I taught myself, in the pool. It wasn't easy, at all.
I started with a snorkel and a swimming goggles instead of a mask, because the goggles don't cover your nose. I snorted up half the pool! I practiced this until I could comfortably snorkel around the pool with the swim goggles and snorkel. This was much harder than it sounds for a nose breather!
then, start doing your mask drills in your pool. You can do this on the shallow end if you'd like. Just sink down to the bottom and start flooding and clearing your mask, to start. When that is easy, start removing and replacing the mask. Finally, start swimming, removing and replacing the mask.
when all this is very easy, do all the skills in open water with a buddy helping you and have them take you on a tour without your mask in shallow water.
this is easier in warmer water, to start, if possible. Colder water makes breathing without a mask harder, for some strange reason.
Finally, work really hard to get your bouyancy nailed down while clearing your mask and removing/replacing the mask. If your the least bit anxious, you may go jetting to the top while clearing the mask the first few times, especially on shallow dives.
Trust me, you are not the only one this is hard for. This is really my hardest skill and it's still hard for me. I hate it. But, don't avoid practicing it as it is something that you will absolutely need. I've had everything from mask completely flooded to mask kicked or blown off the head.
Somehow, I always seem to have issues with a mask leaking or flooding on every dive, so I do get plenty of practice!

[John_B]

I struggled so hard to master this skill in my OW class. If not for the patience of a certain divemaster I might still be in the shallow end of the pool, with my face in the water, practicing mask removal and clearing over and over (and over). :rofl3:

But a funny thing happened early on in my dive "career". I had descended a down line to a wreck when the buffoon directly above me crashed into me, full steam ahead. I managed to keep my regulator in my mouth, but my mask went flying (floating?). It was chaos for at least a minute or so, while I managed to get my mask back (with help) and get it back on my face and cleared. I can't imagine how I would've reacted at depth if I hadn't worked on this over and over (and over) until I had mastered the skill. That's when I first understood that OW skills are really just basic survival skills underwater, and how wrong things can go in an instant. For everyone who says "it'll probably never happen", they may be right, but you never know when you'll need it and wish you'd practiced it.

Fast forward to today, anytime my mask fogs up, I just take it off, rub my fingers over the inside of the mask so both sides of the glass are the same temperature, and put it back on my head. ;)

[stairman]

Ive had my mask kicked a few times but never knocked off. A hood will slow it down as well. A good aftermarket nylon strap with only the stretchy pad is more durable and is all I use. It is still good to be able to swim without a mask and is mandatory in cave class. I have heard of a small percentage of people who thru sinus design are physically unable to breathe thru the mouth alone. A good way to train yourself for this skill right on your couch is to fill your mask up with water and breathe thru your mouth. If you can do it at home you can do it while diving.

[ctjwa]

It's very comforting to hear that I'm not the only one who has problems with this! When I did it in the pool training class i was on my knees so the bubbles up the nose might have been the problem. I'm definitely going to practice with the snorkel and swimmers goggles next time I can get in a pool or shallows.

My next question is what the best practice is for people with contact lenses (I have multiple mask problems here!). Should I never open my eyes? Will the contacts float out?

[boulderjohn]

It's very comforting to hear that I'm not the only one who has problems with this! When I did it in the pool training class i was on my knees so the bubbles up the nose might have been the problem. I'm definitely going to practice with the snorkel and swimmers goggles next time I can get in a pool or shallows.

My next question is what the best practice is for people with contact lenses (I have multiple mask problems here!). Should I never open my eyes? Will the contacts float out?

I used to wear contacts (then had lasik), and I always shut my eyes. I have been assured many times by people in the know that the contact will NOT float out, but I have never tried it.

[lowviz]

I use either a corrective mask or a plano mask and a disposable contact in one eye for distance. Never lost a contact yet, lots of mask-off training, put the contact in and forget it. Don't know why, but they do stay in. I wouldn't try this with an expensive contact, though.

[MaxBottomtime]

Relax and think about what is happening every step of the way. Tell yourself to inhale through your mouth only. I didn't have a problem with mask removal in OW, but I haven't had my mask off in the water once in more than 23 years of diving.

[dumpsterDiver]

To begin with, it's not inevitable that you will lose your mask on a dive some day. It's never happened to me, and I really can't think of anyone at the moment who has experienced it accidentally. Now, I have taken my mask off intentionally quite a few times during a dive--it's the best thing to do when you feel a sneeze coming on, believe me. I have had my mask removed from my face by my tech diving instructor a number of times as well. It has never happened to me accidentally, though..


I've had my mask slammed and knocked loose or off my face several times. I even did a terrible entry once and smashed the glass faceplate completely on the dive mask. In any regard, having the mask relocated on your face so that you can not see and have water over the nose is not that unusual if you are engaged in spearfishing or dive around bad buddies in bad vis.

I consider the maskless breathig an absolutely essential skill, although it is vastly harder in really cold water. I also think it is essential to be able to open your eyes underwater in case you lose the mask and your buddy. You gotta be able to look for the mask a little, right?

This thread reminded me of a video I made when I had a terrible camera... Skip to 1:20 and you can see me making my 10-yr old buddy breath while neither of us are wearing masks...This too is an essential skill in MY book. He would not be diving anywhere but a shallow bay if he could not do this easily.

To the OP.. keep practicing, you will get it sooner or later.. One of the things that I learned is that if you exhale out the nose with no mask, then the water tends to shoot up the nose when you begin to inhale.. so breath in and out of your mouth and keep the nose locked tight.. as you learn the skill. Keep working on the skill until it is easy, it will be worth the effort.

Trying to hold your nose in an real underwater emergency is BS.

john and me - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2q8_Aif8srU&feature=plcp)

[UforSCUBA?]

I was also a nose holder. Like someone said above, I filled my mask up, put it on my face and walked around the house. If you try it, do it over the sink or in the shower the first time so you don't make a big ol mess like I did.

Also, when putting it back on underwater, I didn't mess with the strap until after I cleared the mask. Trying to put the strap on with the mask full of water seemed to shove the water right up my nose. Just hold it to your face, clear it, then slide the strap over your head.

You're definitely not alone in this. It was the hardest skill for me to overcome.

Good luck!

[lowviz]

...//... Keep working on the skill until it is easy, it will be worth the effort. ...//...

Absolutely. When you finally come to see your mask as 'optional', you will have removed a big step towards the panic cycle.

[LindaSSF]

2. Breath out your nose at first to keep the water out, but then try to do with only breathing through your mouth.


When I am teaching folks who are not comfortable underwater, I ask them to submerge & hum a tune. It automatically requires constant air thru the nose. It can make the process of having your mask off MUCH easier. At first, they pinch their nose or surface for their breath, and eventually try mouth breathing for that next breath. Concentrating on that tune you are humming seems to help you relax with the task.

Personally, I have such horrible seasonal allergies, beathing only thru my mouth is something I practice way too much. I don't recommend allergies, but it does the trick. Maybe practice on land with your nose pinched/plugged?

[TSandM]

If you had problems when sitting up, it may very well be that you had your head tilted back, which allows water to run down the base of your nose into your throat.

There are a TON of good ideas here . . . I just wanted to add that all you need to practice this is enough water to put your face in. You can use your kitchen sink, a bathtub, or even a bucket. You can practice an enormous amount in your own house -- no need to make special trips to dive sites or pools.

[ErikNYC]

This is a pic of me practicing at home. In a couple hours I had control of my breathing.:crafty:
128075

[beanojones]

Hi all, I'm very recently open water certified. The only part of training I am still uncomfortable with is the full mask removal. I'm fine with getting it back on and clearing the water, but i had to cheat and hold my nose while the mask was off to avoid breathing water up my nose. I know it's inevitable that i'll lose my mask on a dive one day, so I would love to practice and master this skill before heading back out. I can't wait to look back on this post 5 years and tons of successful dives from now and laugh at myself, but what is the secret? How do I tell myself not to use my nose while breathing?

What's wrong with pinching your nose when your mask is off? If it solves the problem, then problem solved. If you are fighting an instinctive reactions, then stop fighting the instinct, and make the instinct work for you, rather than trying to practice suppressing when you are calm, only to not be able to suppress it if something happens suddenly.

---------- Post Merged at 02:57 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 02:52 AM ----------


I used to wear contacts (then had lasik), and I always shut my eyes. I have been assured many times by people in the know that the contact will NOT float out, but I have never tried it.

They can wash out, but I have swum around for 15 minutes without a mask and not lost my contacts (octopus stole my mask, and I had to keep diving with customers). For fun, I made fake binoculars shapes out of my hands, and was even able to read my gauges because I managed to create an air space to focus in.

I taught all my confined with contacts, and I opened my eyes for all that too.

Hard contacts will fall out in seconds though, because they do not have the surface area of soft ones.

[CamG]

This skill was difficult for me in OW but very hard in the pool dives.
What I found was that the chlorine really made it worse for me personally.
I for some reason am hypersensitive to chlorine and fresh water even cold water does not bother me as bad.
Just remember if you have to train harder to master a skill it only makes you a better diver in the end!
Do not allow this to stress your dives but Master it so you can enjoy yourself.

Make it a point to practice every dive while on your safety stop in the horizontal position once your stop is over and air pressure remaining, under supervision of your buddy.
We train to be able to loose the mask totally and either replace with spare or turn the dive with buddy assistance.
After a while you realize the mask is awesome but not required to get you safety out of the water.

Train hard and ease into it with safely under supervision of your buddy who is fundamentally solid skill wise or seek a mentorship with an experienced skilled diver. "If you do not know of one check references or plan an easy evaluation dive."
Not all will be eager to work on skills and I recommend seeking those who are like minded dive skill wise.
What you will find is metal sharpens metal, skill mastery is a process and needs to reviewed often to maintain muscle memory / comfort.

CamG Keep Diving....Keep Training....Keep Learning.

[phuonguyen]

If anyone's curious, the physical limitation that was mentioned in the 2nd post was a cleft palate, or a hole connecting the nose to the mouth. It was a very interesting experience for me to recognise the fact; and it was only after he surfaced spluttering, explaining that he had the cleft.

As for contact lenses in water, try squinting your eyes a little, your eyelids should keep the lense in place. I don't need to do it, my eyelids cut slightly into my iris, which prevents the lenses from slipping out.

[nimoh]

If anyone's curious, the physical limitation that was mentioned in the 2nd post was a cleft palate, or a hole connecting the nose to the mouth. It was a very interesting experience for me to recognise the fact; and it was only after he surfaced spluttering, explaining that he had the cleft.

As for contact lenses in water, try squinting your eyes a little, your eyelids should keep the lense in place. I don't need to do it, my eyelids cut slightly into my iris, which prevents the lenses from slipping out.

thanks for that, I was sure somebody would know what I was talking about :)

[gypsyjim]

As kids adults used to toss coins into the pool and we'd race down to see who could collect the most. I used this same technique with my own kids. It was great way to learn to swim underwater with our eyes open, although pool chlorine can become an issue. Works better in fresh water ponds and lakes, or non public pools with a lower chlorine level.

Any one of us has no issues now with mask removal. While doing a buddy swim along with a friend doing some training with Trace at Dutch Springs a couple years ago, we had to remove our masks and return on a course following our cave line through the silt. A fun and interesting class that was! It pays to become comfortable with swimming without that mask if you can make that happen, just because it adds another level of safety to your dive, "just in case".

[beanojones]

If anyone's curious, the physical limitation that was mentioned in the 2nd post was a cleft palate, or a hole connecting the nose to the mouth. It was a very interesting experience for me to recognise the fact; and it was only after he surfaced spluttering, explaining that he had the cleft. As for contact lenses in water, try squinting your eyes a little, your eyelids should keep the lense in place. I don't need to do it, my eyelids cut slightly into my iris, which prevents the lenses from slipping out.

Even if someone told me that, I would not put that together. Kudos for helping him out.

About the contacts, IME squinting actually makes the eyelids taut and makes the contacts more likely to be dislodged. I found that out the hard way. I did not lose the contact, it just wandered into the corner of my eye, and I was half blind until the next break in CW, when I could move it back in place. Open wide blink normally and I had few problems.