Panic Attack During OWC - Had to Bail

[Shaken_Bake]

My nightmare came true. I could not complete my open water certification.

I breezed through the classwork, scoring 100% on my test. Pool work was a piece of cake; never did I feel any apprehension or nervousness about being under water. With a little practice, I ran through my skills fairly well I thought. I could clear my mask, share my regulator, do emergency ascents, etc. I felt I was ready for my open water, which was just two weeks after completing my coursework and doing an extra practice session in the pool. Nevertheless, I thought a lot about the certification test, worried about it, didn't sleep at all the night before, wondered what I'd do if I panicked...

Our class from Denver travelled to Santa Rosa, NM to do our OW in the Blue Hole. It is a natural aquifer, 80 ft. deep, small but crystal clear water. 62 degrees year-round, which is cold for me. We obviously had to wear wetsuits, most going for 7mm. I'm a bit heavy and had a lot of difficulty finding one that even got around me; it was tight. But I felt I could breathe all right. The cold water was a shock and I hated it. It took a while to feel even remotely comfortable and my hands never felt comfortable. We did a snorkel on the surface and practiced towing skills first. I was OK with that. Then we donned our tanks and weights to descend. I had on 28 lbs. of weight to compensate for my suit and natural buoyancy. I was staggering to get into the water, relieved to finally be swimming around, but feeling so weighed down.

Our class of six and two instructors went to a "platform" set up with buoys and ropes and PVC pipes 20 feet down. I let the air out of my BC and held on the rope as I went down, equalizing OK. I was able to get neutral fairly quickly and signalled OK to the instructor. It was not OK. Not even close. My chest started to feel compressed; I could not get enough air in my lungs. I turned my head. Everything started to spin. I could not stand one more second depending for my life on this rubber thing stuck in my mouth which was not giving me enough air. Our instructor had joked that during the skills test, he was going to hold on to each student so that no one would bolt to the surface. That was all I could think of. I floated up a few feet then inflated my BC. Someone grabbed my fin but I shook them loose. I got to the surface and spit out the regulator. Once there, I felt enormous relief.

One of the instructors came up immediately to see what the problem was. I tried to explain what I was feeling. He was sympathetic; he offered to sit with me in shallower water and let me take more time to get used to it. There was nothing in the world that I wanted to do less. I wanted to get all this heavy equipment off me and get me the hell away from this place as soon as I could.

So here I am, two days later, ready to cry every time I think about that feeling of complete and dire panic. I'm bitterly disappointed that I could not complete my certification in order to go diving on a cruise I'm taking next month. My husband is a diver, which was my original motivation for taking up scuba. He in no way has been pushy about my becoming a diver; he was completely supportive and sympathetic about my failure. He thinks that maybe I'd be comfortable trying to get certified in warmer water without such a heavy wetsuit - at a much later date (we have no time on the cruise to do it).

I'm curious if anyone here has had a similar experience. Has anyone had a disastrous first attempt, then gone on to be a diver, to come to love scuba? Did I worry too much and create a self-fulfilling prophecy that I'll never be able to get over now? Should I just hang it up and be happy I figured it out now before I endanger myself or others? I can't picture I'd be able to dive more than once a year, given the lack of decent open water diving opportunities around Denver. My heart is telling me it's something I should be able to do, but my brain has taken a complete opposite tack, reminding me that silly humans weren't meant to swim under the water for more than one breath!

 

[Scubakevdm]

Hey, don't get too worked up about it. I see plenty of people do the exact same thing.

I think your instructor's idea was very good. Do some more work in shallow water to get your confidence back and to get a bit more comfortable and you'll do just fine.

 

[KarenC]

You're very lucky to have such a nice instructor, shaken_bake. He was able to put you at ease, and furthermore, take the time to sit with you til you've calmed down. We don't get a lot of instructors like this anymore..

 

[beachdivequeenbelam]

My nightmare came true. I could not complete my open water certification.

I breezed through the classwork, scoring 100% on my test. Pool work was a piece of cake; never did I feel any apprehension or nervousness about being under water. With a little practice, I ran through my skills fairly well I thought. I could clear my mask, share my regulator, do emergency ascents, etc. I felt I was ready for my open water, which was just two weeks after completing my coursework and doing an extra practice session in the pool. Nevertheless, I thought a lot about the certification test, worried about it, didn't sleep at all the night before, wondered what I'd do if I panicked...

Our class from Denver travelled to Santa Rosa, NM to do our OW in the Blue Hole. It is a natural aquifer, 80 ft. deep, small but crystal clear water. 62 degrees year-round, which is cold for me. We obviously had to wear wetsuits, most going for 7mm. I'm a bit heavy and had a lot of difficulty finding one that even got around me; it was tight. But I felt I could breathe all right. The cold water was a shock and I hated it. It took a while to feel even remotely comfortable and my hands never felt comfortable. We did a snorkel on the surface and practiced towing skills first. I was OK with that. Then we donned our tanks and weights to descend. I had on 28 lbs. of weight to compensate for my suit and natural buoyancy. I was staggering to get into the water, relieved to finally be swimming around, but feeling so weighed down.

Our class of six and two instructors went to a "platform" set up with buoys and ropes and PVC pipes 20 feet down. I let the air out of my BC and held on the rope as I went down, equalizing OK. I was able to get neutral fairly quickly and signalled OK to the instructor. It was not OK. Not even close. My chest started to feel compressed; I could not get enough air in my lungs. I turned my head. Everything started to spin. I could not stand one more second depending for my life on this rubber thing stuck in my mouth which was not giving me enough air. Our instructor had joked that during the skills test, he was going to hold on to each student so that no one would bolt to the surface. That was all I could think of. I floated up a few feet then inflated my BC. Someone grabbed my fin but I shook them loose. I got to the surface and spit out the regulator. Once there, I felt enormous relief.

One of the instructors came up immediately to see what the problem was. I tried to explain what I was feeling. He was sympathetic; he offered to sit with me in shallower water and let me take more time to get used to it. There was nothing in the world that I wanted to do less. I wanted to get all this heavy equipment off me and get me the hell away from this place as soon as I could.

So here I am, two days later, ready to cry every time I think about that feeling of complete and dire panic. I'm bitterly disappointed that I could not complete my certification in order to go diving on a cruise I'm taking next month. My husband is a diver, which was my original motivation for taking up scuba. He in no way has been pushy about my becoming a diver; he was completely supportive and sympathetic about my failure. He thinks that maybe I'd be comfortable trying to get certified in warmer water without such a heavy wetsuit - at a much later date (we have no time on the cruise to do it).

I'm curious if anyone here has had a similar experience. Has anyone had a disastrous first attempt, then gone on to be a diver, to come to love scuba? Did I worry too much and create a self-fulfilling prophecy that I'll never be able to get over now? Should I just hang it up and be happy I figured it out now before I endanger myself or others? I can't picture I'd be able to dive more than once a year, given the lack of decent open water diving opportunities around Denver. My heart is telling me it's something I should be able to do, but my brain has taken a complete opposite tack, reminding me that silly humans weren't meant to swim under the water for more than one breath!

I think that you can do it. I have friends who took years to get certifed because of that, but they didn't want to go back to water. Try again and never quit if this is something you would like to do for the rest of your life. I was doing the fin pivots while manually filling my BC and something happened and I got water in my nose and mask and started for the top myself . I decided it would be better to swallow the quarry water than to bolt to the top since my instructor grabbed and stopped my ascent and was pushing my reg back in my mouth. It turned out ok and I got my reg back in my mouth and went back down and finished my skills.

I know that you can do this if you want it bad enough. Everyone is scared and it is exactly that humans were not meant to breathe underwater. Small steps. Maybe go with an instructor and make it a one on one class instead a group. I know people that was all it took. THey couldn't dive with a group for a OW class. It made them nervous or something. You will figure it out. I hope you do get to finish in time for your cruise. Don't lose heart or faith in yourself.

Take Care and Good Luck
Bridget

 

[alemaozinho]

just relax and keep on exercising, your Instructor did a very nice thing and lifted you up,you,ll get more comfortable with each time you are in the water,not worry too much. I once did spend 3 weekends with a student trying to make the student comfortable remove/replace and clearing a mask,this student is a rescue diver now with over 200(cold water) dives on her belt. Peace

 

[DiveMistress2]

Hey there Shaken_bake,

Don't worry, you're not the first to have this problem and you certainly won't be the last.

I will agree with Karen C that you have a good instructor.

Your apprehension could have been due to a number of factors.

1. Your regulator may not perform efficiently in cold water diving. Do you know which brand of equipment you were using?

2. Did you feel that your 7mm was too tight at the surface? What style was it? (Farmer John, full suit or semi-dry)

3. If you were to calculate 10% of your weight and add 5-7lbs, does that equal 28? (That's normally how weighting is determined)

I've DM'd for a number of students and the worst thing you could do is not get back in the water. If you do this you'll feel a huge sense of accomplishment when you complete these skills.

Perhaps your instructor could find some time one on one to spend with you to help you get over this?

Most importantly, remember that the best things in life are never easy.

 

[H2Andy]

what everybody else has said... take it easy, go in small steps, and pretty soon you'll
be comfortable and at ease in the water.

if you really want to do it, you can

 

[jbd]

You may have created a self fulfilling prophecy but maybe you had just pushed some of your concerns during the pool sessions and they finally came flooding forth with the arrival of the open water sessions. There amy have been some problems with the regulator or maybe the stress you were feeling was cuasing you to overbreathe the regulator or maybe a combination of both. If this is something you truly want to do, you will eventually. Along those lines I will offer some suggestions that may help. Feel free to ignore what may not apply.

1.) I agree wholeheartedly with DiveMistress2's suggestion of getting some one one training time with your instructor. Try to address anything that you feel was an issue for you.

2.) While a wetsuit should fit snug it should not be tight or overly restrictive. You mention being a bit heavy, if you a re really sure that you want to dive it might be a good idea to go ahead and buy(or try to rent) a suit that fits you properly if your instructor or LDS doesn't have one that is really right for you.

3.)Before returning to openwater try a couple of sessions in the pool with all the geaar you will wear in the environment you will dive in for your certification dives. For cool water like you had and given you were uncomfortable with the temperature you need to be wearing a hood and gloves thick enough to provide you the thermal protection you need. The pool sessions will help you get comfortable with all this gear in a much more controlled siruation.

4.)Take your time, we all learn at different rates and we all adapt to new situations differently. If you need three or four more pool sessions then by all means get them. If you need more time in the OW environment before your instructor feels you are ready to be certified then do yourself a favor and spend that time getting comfortable. One of my students had 7 hours of OW time before I felt comfortable certifying her. I went on a dive with her nearly a year later and she did very well.

5.) Talk to your instructor about your anxiety and concerns so he/she can better help you progress.

6.) There is no law that says we must dive. Its a personal choice that each person must make on their own. If in the end you decide that diving is not for you, thats OK. There are many other activities you can do with your husband. One that comes to mind is snorkling and skindiving both of which can be highly enjoyable excursions from cruise ships.

Best regards,

jbd

 

[Simone]

Dear Shaken_Bake:

In childhood, I developed two goals: learn to scuba dive, and learn to sky dive. In 1997, I became certified as a scuba diver, and took to it well. It continues to be a joy in my life. On my 45th birthday, I did a tandem sky dive from 12,000 feet. I fully expected to love it ... in fact, during the entire climb to altitude in the Twin Otter plane, I pondered how I would ever manage to afford two expensive hobbies ... scuba and sky diving. Much to my surprise and dismay, I did not enjoy sky diving. In fact, I hated it so much that I did it again, just to make sure that I had given it a fair shot. The truth is, I was terrified beyond any pleasure and motion sick to boot.

My thoughts on your situation? It's perfectly okay if you don't become a scuba diver. Different strokes for different folks. Don't try to force anything and don't let anyone try to talk you into it. Listen to your own instincts and put your chin up.

Best regards,

Simone

 

[Dragracer]

>My chest started to feel compressed; I could not get enough air >in my lungs.

I had exactly the same thing happen to me twice! On my first pool session, the first time I had on all the equipment. As soon as my head went under water, I couldn't breath. I tried 2 more times, even changed bcd's and regulators. After the 3rd time, I got dressed, and was walking out of the pool area with no intention of returning! Luckly for me the instructor's wife stopped me, and conviinced me to come back the following Sunday for some one on one. 30 minutes after I arrived on Sunday, I was swimming laps around the bottom of the pool, having a blast! The same thing happened on my first Gulf dive, but more dives allowed me to over come my fear. Keep trying, and get a wetsuit you are comfortable in!