So last night was the first of 5 classes for me and hubby. It is a quick course (2 1/2 weeks..twice a week...and then the dive). I did great in the classroom part (got 100% on my quiz).
Then, over to the pool. I started the swimming test and came up for air and could no longer see out of my right eye...WHERE IS MY CONTACT..great, I thought...6 more laps and I can't see squat. As I came back to one side of the pool, the DM (Alex), who knew I wore contacts because he and I were talking about masking clearing with contact earlier gave me his mask...awesome..now I can see out one eye. Once the swim test was over, hubby helped me and said he could see my contact squished in the upper part of my eye..so I got that fixed..off to treading water for 10 minutes.
We suit up and start the class..they make us go down with no mask on at all...I did OK until I did suck some water up my nose..up I come coughing out water and sputtering..Alex came over and said try again and hold my nose...BTW, my eyes are completely shut...yet another instructor comes over and taps me so I come up and she tells me to not pinch my nose...I told her Alex told me too. I go back down..try to not pinch my nose and I do just OK...still feel very uneasy..we put on the mask and I feel a little better..but I can hear my heart beating in my ears...I am starting to panic like I did in Jamaica..he starts talking about taking the regulator out of our mouths and tells us to go under...and I freeze. Hubby (who, by the way, they did not let be my buddy) looks over and looks so helpless (as he told me later I looked so scared) and I motion for him to go down...I am standing there, trying to reason with myself that I have already done this and why I am so scared...another instructor, Michael, stands up and comes towards me. He pulls me to the side..asks what is wrong..and calms me down..
Michael (who will from now one be referred to as the guy who saved any chance of me becoming a scuba diver) had me stick my face in while standing up..I was having fog issues..tried to add a little water but the water up my nose freaked me out a little..when we came back up, he said "Why aren't you exhaling thorugh your nose?"...good question Michael..because I has just assumed you breathe in and out through you mouth (and maybe a little when you have to take your mask off through your nose since you guys told me)..I go back under and it is a like a light bulb went off..everything was so much easier...if you are an instructor or are new to diving, please learn from my mistakes.
Not only did I get to do all the skills that the rest of the group did (remove reg, retrieve reg two ways, halfway flood mask and clear and alt air supply), because I had one on one attention and the wonderfully patient Michael, I did these repeatedly...and then also go to do the fun part exploring the deep end of the pool at least a dozen times.
Michael gave me confidence...I pray I can rely on that tomorrow night when we go back. Thursday night is when we remove the mask and replace it under water.
I will say the biggest difference between this session and the discover scuba one I had in Jamaica is that I did not panic with the reg out of my mouth. In Jamaica, I was sloppy because I was trying to go too fast..here, I knew I could do it (and Michael also had his hand on my alt supply the whole time).
Thanks for reading...Elizabeth
Then, over to the pool. I started the swimming test and came up for air and could no longer see out of my right eye...WHERE IS MY CONTACT..great, I thought...6 more laps and I can't see squat. As I came back to one side of the pool, the DM (Alex), who knew I wore contacts because he and I were talking about masking clearing with contact earlier gave me his mask...awesome..now I can see out one eye. Once the swim test was over, hubby helped me and said he could see my contact squished in the upper part of my eye..so I got that fixed..off to treading water for 10 minutes.
We suit up and start the class..they make us go down with no mask on at all...I did OK until I did suck some water up my nose..up I come coughing out water and sputtering..Alex came over and said try again and hold my nose...BTW, my eyes are completely shut...yet another instructor comes over and taps me so I come up and she tells me to not pinch my nose...I told her Alex told me too. I go back down..try to not pinch my nose and I do just OK...still feel very uneasy..we put on the mask and I feel a little better..but I can hear my heart beating in my ears...I am starting to panic like I did in Jamaica..he starts talking about taking the regulator out of our mouths and tells us to go under...and I freeze. Hubby (who, by the way, they did not let be my buddy) looks over and looks so helpless (as he told me later I looked so scared) and I motion for him to go down...I am standing there, trying to reason with myself that I have already done this and why I am so scared...another instructor, Michael, stands up and comes towards me. He pulls me to the side..asks what is wrong..and calms me down..
Michael (who will from now one be referred to as the guy who saved any chance of me becoming a scuba diver) had me stick my face in while standing up..I was having fog issues..tried to add a little water but the water up my nose freaked me out a little..when we came back up, he said "Why aren't you exhaling thorugh your nose?"...good question Michael..because I has just assumed you breathe in and out through you mouth (and maybe a little when you have to take your mask off through your nose since you guys told me)..I go back under and it is a like a light bulb went off..everything was so much easier...if you are an instructor or are new to diving, please learn from my mistakes.
Not only did I get to do all the skills that the rest of the group did (remove reg, retrieve reg two ways, halfway flood mask and clear and alt air supply), because I had one on one attention and the wonderfully patient Michael, I did these repeatedly...and then also go to do the fun part exploring the deep end of the pool at least a dozen times.
Michael gave me confidence...I pray I can rely on that tomorrow night when we go back. Thursday night is when we remove the mask and replace it under water.
I will say the biggest difference between this session and the discover scuba one I had in Jamaica is that I did not panic with the reg out of my mouth. In Jamaica, I was sloppy because I was trying to go too fast..here, I knew I could do it (and Michael also had his hand on my alt supply the whole time).
Thanks for reading...Elizabeth
