Panicked on first deep dive

[kekomixtle]

Hi, SheilaATX! I'm glad everything turned out great. At the beginning I used to have some anxiety mainly over my mask flooding. To get used to it, I practiced and practiced every time I dove, flooding my mask, clearing it and getting comfortable with it. You can do the same removing the regulator and switching to the octopus and back again. As all have said, practice will make you feel more comfortable.

 

[diver 85]

Way to go girl.........now enjoy the FGB, & remember, keep(@ least one)an eye on the sky--ward....You never know what'll be passing overhead...enjoy your trip.......


EDIT..:......hope you're lucky enuff to spot this group..........This happened 5 days before one of our trips(the one with the manta ray video from above)....One reason that trip I kept @ least one eye looking upward...

Over 30 whalesharks @ the FG---IN JULY, no less!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0RmSK7dJbw

 

[SheilaATX]

Way to go girl.........now enjoy the FGB, & remember, keep(@ least one)an eye on the sky--ward....You never know what'll be passing overhead...enjoy your trip.......


EDIT..:......hope you're lucky enuff to spot this group..........This happened 5 days before one of our trips(the one with the manta ray video from above)....One reason that trip I kept @ least one eye looking upward...

Over 30 whalesharks @ the FG---IN JULY, no less!!
Aggregation Of 30 Whale Sharks Near The Flower Gardens - YouTube

Wow! I hope we're that lucky! Beautiful animals!

 

[nolatom]

Good going! I recall you said you've been an ocean swimmer and feel at home there, but not (yet) in lakes. FGB is definitely "ocean", and given some decent sea conditions I think you'll really like it, and feel more relaxed than you have in dark lakes. And you may also get a platform dive in, and a couple of dives at Stetson, esp if it's a 3-day trip.

I did it with the ink barely dry on my OW certif, a real rookie. It all worked out, and 12 dives later I felt not so much a rookie..

Talk with everyone you can, your group leader/tank-filler, captains, boat DM, deckhand/galley types, and other FGB vets. All will be happy to offer advice and guide you along, it ain't as though they're busy doing something else at the office, and you're out of cell phone range, which is blissful.

 

[Diver0001]

Turns out I was psyching myself out over nothing. Ditched the hood so my mask wasn't leaky and no problems, just chilly! Thanks for all your input! Mission completed!

Sheila, Good news and good progress! For my own peace of mind (the instructor in me getting alarm bells) I wonder if you have time before you go to repeat that dive at least once.

Normally with students if something goes wrong once I want to see it go right several times before I'm satisfied that the coin dropped.....

R..

 

[SheilaATX]

Sheila, Good news and good progress! For my own peace of mind (the instructor in me getting alarm bells) I wonder if you have time before you go to repeat that dive at least once.

No worries. Now that I don't have to worry about the certification, I plan on doing as many dives as possible I have until mid-July and will be diving (including deep) as often as I can.

Thanks!

 

[James R]

Don't forget to tell them all how many pairs of sunglasses you found!

 

[SheilaATX]

Don't forget to tell them all how many pairs of sunglasses you found!

LOL! Gotta love the lake - found 3 pairs of sunglasses not including another nice pair that I promptly lost. Diving has its benefits.

 

[t4e]

I'm a new diver - OW last summer. This year I started AOW training to prepared for a dive trip coming up. Everything had gone great, but when it was time for my deep dive checkout the following day, I panicked. My mask felt too leaky, the dry air was making me uncomfortable, and the poor visibility scared me. I made it to only 40 ft before I was hyperventilating and abandoned the dive. I really need this certification for my upcoming trip, and need advice. I'll be attempting another deep dive this weekend and am already nervous. Advice please!

you mean "be allowed to dive deeper then OW" not "prepared"

you hardly have any dives, what makes you think that taking a course, more theory and a couple of dives, would make you prepared for deep diving?
what you need is experience, i.e. more dives
our OW certification lets us go to 130ft after 20 hrs of logged dives, not that i have an interest in going that deep, but when i was below 24 dives i was even freaked out about going to 50-60ft
took me about 25 dives to be comfortable and gradually go deeper and deeper as the comfort level increased
everyone is different tho, just thought i share my experience

 

[James R]

You can share your experiences without coming off like a condescending know-it-all, can't you?