Learning to deal with a flooded mask

[beadlip]

I am new to diving. I was in the second day of my Open Water Dive classes and I was faced with the excercise of taking off the mask, breathing for 60 seconds, then putting the mask back on and clearing it.

I had a hard time with water going up my nose and causing me to panic and shoot to the surface. Not a big deal in 6 ft of water, but definatly not goint to lead to a "C" card!!

As I tried over and over, I had more problems with this. Clearing the mask was not too bad, but overall the fear of removing the mask and getting it back on has created a uncontrolable panic. I would foget to breath out my nose and In my mouth. Has anyone else had this issue? What is the best way to get over it? I do not have equipment other than a mask and snorkel and possibly a buddys pool to work with.

Thanks!

 

[Daryl Morse]

I am new to diving. I was in the second day of my Open Water Dive classes and I was faced with the excercise of taking off the mask, breathing for 60 seconds, then putting the mask back on and clearing it.

I had a hard time with water going up my nose and causing me to panic and shoot to the surface. Not a big deal in 6 ft of water, but definatly not goint to lead to a "C" card!!

As I tried over and over, I had more problems with this. Clearing the mask was not too bad, but overall the fear of removing the mask and getting it back on has created a uncontrolable panic. I would foget to breath out my nose and In my mouth. Has anyone else had this issue? What is the best way to get over it? I do not have equipment other than a mask and snorkel and possibly a buddys pool to work with.

Thanks!

You need to get over this, but don't worry, it just takes practice. All you need is a mask, snorkel, and enough water to get your head under. Start by flooding it just a bit and clearing it. Then work your way up to flooding it completely and clearing it. Then get used to breathing with it partially flooded and then clearing it. Once you get used to that, flood it completely and breathe for a while. Once you're confident with that, remove the mask completely. Once you realize that you can breathe without water getting in your nose, you'll be able to do it with worrying.

The reason I say you need to do this is not only for your c-card. Sooner or later (most likely sooner), your mask will get knocked off by someone's fin or you'll descend on a dive and find it flooding. The latter happened to me because my hood was tucked under the corner of the mask. Because I wear 5 mm gloves (which are clumsy), it took a while for me find out where the leak was. The mask kept flooding until I found where the leak was.

So don't worry, just practice over and over until you can do it.

 

[H2Andy]

hey... first, i doubt you have an "uncontrollable panic" though i'm sure it may feel
that way. you're just having trouble, and i am sure it doesn't feel good to keep
inhaling water through your nose.

you definetely need to master this skill. however, lots of people have trouble with it,
and 99% of them go on to do ok.

you can practice this on land. concentrate on breathing through your mouth only.
you will find that if you "push" out with your nose as if it were itchy, you can then
breathe through your mouth alone (this is physically possible. you and every other
human being alive can do this). if you're doing it right,
the roof of your mouth will feel cool and dry pretty soon.

once you can breathe through your mouth alone above water, go practice with a
snorkel (and no mask) on a pool. do it until the cows come home. prove to yourself
that you can breathe this way all day (you can) if you needed to.

and then, get back in scuba gear. go to the shallow end of the pool, take it easy,
and at your own pace, and practice this skill. you'll see that you won't have much
trouble doing it.

let us know how it goes

 

[Mrs Fic]

You need to get over this, but don't worry, it just takes practice. All you need is a mask, snorkel, and enough water to get your head under. Start by flooding it just a bit and clearing it. Then work your way up to flooding it completely and clearing it. Then get used to breathing with it partially flooded and then clearing it. Once you get used to that, flood it completely and breathe for a while. Once you're confident with that, remove the mask completely. Once you realize that you can breathe without water getting in your nose, you'll be able to do it with worrying.

The reason I say you need to do this is not only for your c-card. Sooner or later (most likely sooner), your mask will get knocked off by someone's fin or you'll descend on a dive and find it flooding. The latter happened to me because my hood was tucked under the corner of the mask. Because I wear 5 mm gloves (which are clumsy), it took a while for me find out where the leak was. The mask kept flooding until I found where the leak was.

So don't worry, just practice over and over until you can do it.

Practice out of the water: gently exhale through your nose, inhale through your mouth, exhale through your nose, etc. Getting this rhythm down, then practicing it in shallow water first with a partial mask flood, then a full one, then at the pool bottom, helped me get over my difficulty with this task. I also find that the first time each session or dive that I get water in my nose, it panics me a little. After that, I do fine. I think it's just the strange sensation of being 'waterlogged'. Also, don't let an instructor bully you, push you faster than you are ready. You need to practice when you are calm, even if you need to sit out a session and make it up later.

I conquered this problem this way and completed my open water with no problems whatsoever, doing the full flood many times, trading masks, etc. I have 35 dives in now, and have never had a problem since....have to flood my mask every few dives, seems like, due to fogging, without a problem. But I never forget to tell myself before I start, "in thru the mouth, out thru the nose, in thru the mouth, out thru the nose"!!!

Good luck! I'm sure you will do fine!

 

[simbrooks]

I will state that there is a small difference between doing this head under the water with a snorkel and with a reg in your mouth. The difference is the bubbling effect over your face and up your nose (depending on the way you are in the water - horizontal or vertical) which i found made some difference.

During my pool and OW sessions for the OW cert and even on some practicing earlier this year in a shallow spring i could rip my mask off and have no problem. Just recently i was practicing some stuff with my mask off and found myself unused to it and had a little panic of sorts, i had a higher breathing rate, found myself having a little trouble allowing myself to breathe out, but as soon as that mask was back on i was fine again. I think part of this was the environment i was in, cooler water and knowing that many tasks lay ahead of me without my mask - i psyched myself out. So after that i decided to go back in and try a few things to get myself back in the mindset (psychology is what this is all about) some work as stated above flooding the mask, also other times just having no mask and putting my head under for a while. Once that was fine i took it down and did my skills without my mask and was fine again - i just had to get my mind back around that whole idea - that is the key thing, once you mind realises that you can do it, it will be a lot easier, also easier said than done!

 

[orangeBloke]

Most people find not breathing through their nose odd to start with, it goes against something you've done all your life. But don't worry, you can get used to it.

One way to get used to it is to go to the pool with a mask and snorkle, take the mask off and hold your nose. You'll be forced to breath through your mouth and get used to the sensation. Once you've got a regualr rhythm of breathing going let go of your nose a little. Keep doing it in stages until you're happy that you can take the mask off without a problem.

Take your time doing it, don't let it frustrate you or panic you. Some skills can take longer than others to learn. If it takes an hour, a day or a week let it take that long. As long as you're comfortable at the end it'll stand by you when you need it

 

[Walter]

You should master this skill before you ever use SCUBA.

My methods may sound unrelated to your problem at first, but they will work. Often, important skills are left out of OW classes. Take your time and practice each step until you are comfortable before moving to the next.

Leave your SCUBA gear in your bag. You only need 3 things at the pool at this point. 1. Mask 2. Snorkel 3. Weight belt with weight.

At no point will you leave the shallow end of the pool.

Take your snorkel off your mask and put on your weight belt. With your mask on the pool deck, your snorkel in your hand and your weight belt on, get into the shallow end of the pool. You should be where when you stand you are no deeper than chest deep, waist deep is even better. Put your snorkel in your mouth and breathe from it. Now, bend over and breathe through your snorkel while you dip your face into the water. If you are comfortable, stay awhile until you feel natural. If you have difficulty, think about drinking through a straw while you practice the excercise. Remember, you can always stand up straight to end the excercise at any time. If you need to, you can slowly build up your time until you feel comfortable.

Next, practice dropping underwater, allowing the snorkel to flood and coming up to blast it clear, leaving your face in the water. Continue until you are comfortable

At this point, you have accomplished three important things.

1. You lowered your anxiety level by working in a no risk (shallow) environment.
2. You became an expert in no mask breathing.
3. You know you can breathe with a flooded mask.

Now, put your snorkel down and pick up your mask. Put it on and drop down to your knees. Break the seal just enough to allow a small amount of water in. Clear the mask. Do not pull out on the bottom, merely push in on the top while looking up. The biggest mistake most people make is not looking up. The second most common mistake people make is not exhaling through their nose. Keep your mouth closed. Repeat this until you are comfortable. Don't forget to stand up and catch your breath between clearings. Now, increase the amount of water you allow into the mask to about ¼ flooded. When you are comfortable with that level, move to ½, then to a fully flooded mask. When you've reached the point you can clear it easily every time, see how many times you can clear it on one breath. After you are at this point, clearing your mask will be easy. You will have reached it in a step by step manner that was easy to accomplish.

Remember, you can always stand up if you feel uncomfortable.

 

[fmw625]

I think a lot of us have had simular experiances. A lot of good advice has been posted all ready. what helped me most was the no mask swim.

 

[SoCalOffshore]

Great advise. Make sure when you are in the pool that someone is there with you watching.

 

[SmokingMirror]

Bear in mind also that whilst a little water will enter the lower part of the nostrils, which can set off a sudden panic that you're about to get a lungful of the stuff, the pressure of the air in your sinuses will ensure it never goes up very far.

It took me quite a while to explain this to my panicked brain during the first few attempts at the mask removal, but it seems to have gotten the idea now.