Breathing Giving Me Trouble

[Ablation]

Watch a TV program with a mask on (so you are not inhaling / exhaling through your nose) and a snorkel in your mouth.
Any issues?
If yes, explore those.
If no, good, remember that next time you try scuba... it might just be that only breathing through your mouth is throwing you off.

That's true. I never breathe through my mouth. I guess I'll try just breathing normally through my mouth for like a movie or something. Thanks for the idea!

 

[Neilwood]

While this might sound counter intuitive, Scuba diving isn't natural - it is all learned.

Some people take to it quickly, others take a little longer.

Breathing through a regulator isn't a "natural" thing - firstly as @Schwob says, we don't mouth breath so that needs getting used to and secondly we aren't used to machinery providing our air.

It can take a little getting used to but the next time just go down slowly and concentrate on breathing nice and slowly.

With regards to your ears, the trick is to equalise early and often. I usually start by "pre-equalising" on the surface, then again after each and every 1-1.5m (3-4ft). Once you dive a bit more you might find you can equalise less but especially when learning, do it before you get any pain - if you wait until you have pain you are WAY too late.

 

[seeker242]

So what is the procedure for descending if you don't want your ears to feel like they are going to explode?

Equalize early and often. Probably more often than you think you need to. Going down 15' I will equalize probably 5 times. General rule of thumb during the initial descent is you do it every 2-3'. If you feel pain or discomfort, you already waited too long. If you do experience that, you go back up some to relieve the pressure and equalize and then start down again. Once you get the hang of it, you'll never feel like your ears will explode.

 

[mi000ke]

One of the dive ops I use for the discover diving course for our uncertified first-time-diving visitors has them first standing in shallow water with their face in the water breathing off the regulator. It is not until they are comfortable doing that, that they are allowed to go under, even if it takes 15, 20 minutes or whatever. One step at a time.

 

[Ablation]

While this might sound counter intuitive, Scuba diving isn't natural - it is all learned.

Some people take to it quickly, others take a little longer.

Breathing through a regulator isn't a "natural" thing - firstly as @Schwob says, we don't mouth breath so that needs getting used to and secondly we aren't used to machinery providing our air.

It can take a little getting used to but the next time just go down slowly and concentrate on breathing nice and slowly.

With regards to your ears, the trick is to equalise early and often. I usually start by "pre-equalising" on the surface, then again after each and every 1-1.5m (3-4ft). Once you dive a bit more you might find you can equalise less but especially when learning, do it before you get any pain - if you wait until you have pain you are WAY too late.

Yeah, I think once I get breathing down to a normal slow pace, then I will feel a lot more comfortable underwater. It was just the first time I went under I was kind of shocked at how foreign it was, since I had imagined it to be completely different, I started to worry I would never be able to scuba dive. But I guess everyone struggles at first.