During your first year of diving, what were your biggest challenges?

[Bubble Maker]

For me it was my bouyancy and breathing control. I am still in my first year of diving and all is getting better!

 

[Meng_Tze]

For me it was my bouyancy and breathing control.

me too...........I was sucking gas like you would not believe while either sinking or rising..

 

[Guba]

My biggest challenge was getting back in the water after a bad experience (around dive 25). Thank heavens for a good buddy in the form of my brother in law who helped me do it. Thanks, bro!

 

[waynel]

Proper weighting, which is tied to bouyancy control is my biggest challenge. It drives me crazy to see an experienced diver, about my size with the same suit, using 7 or 8 pounds less than me. They keep telling me "streamline" but I bought an AIR 2 to eliminated the Octo, and I have everthing that can drag clamped tight to my body. Oh, I can drop several pounds of weight and get down, but I can't hold a safety stop w/o anchor line with that lighter weight.

 

[PUGMASTER]

By protecting the ear do you mean like trying to make sure you equalize often enough and what not?

My biggest problem too was the ears, but not getting them to equalize. It was getting water out after I was done diving I had Swimmer's Ear like crazy. It took me a while to respect the value of the dri-ear drops.

Same problem, then a kind DM from the UK told me to add a drop of rubbing alcohol in my ear.WOW, does that work!!

 

[caseybird]

Stop using my hands to swim, balance.

 

[billmach]

bouyancy and breathing control for me also
and weight managment I learned to dive in AZ fresh water
went to san diego and did the surface bobb on my first salt water dive
then went oh yea I need more weight spent my first day of the trip driving to shops to buy extra weights

 

[Loneranger]

Navigation, nothing worse than being lost and having to find you way back to the anchor before you run out of air. I made more than one mid-dive surfacing to get the lubber line back on track.

 

[TxHockeyGuy]

My biggest challenge was getting back in the water after a bad experience (around dive 25). Thank heavens for a good buddy in the form of my brother in law who helped me do it. Thanks, bro!

This was very similar to myself. Mine was getting back in the water after my first day of diving post certification. I set myself up for failure by diving a different equipment configuration and in different conditions from what I trained in. I trained in a jacket BC with a weight belt and with a standard octo setup in 75 degree water. The very first dive post certification I switched to a back inflate, used integrated weights, used an air2, was in a 7mm farmers john in 50 degree water, and horribly overweighted. I struggled through the entire first dive of the day but made it through. The second dive however was a disaster and I aborted it after I ran into a multitude of problems. That was the only wise decision I made that day. That one dive was a source of anxiety for quite some time.

 

[Matt S.]

My biggest problem is seeing through the silt I kick up.