Thanks for all the replies! Phil, I do think I'm overanalyzing things, but it's unfortunately part of my MO, I tend to overthink and overworry and overeverything... Yes, I have dived in the ocean (except for the first 9 dives, all 100 others were ocean dives), and I usually don't care how deep the water is, but then I have my BCD and fins and it makes me feel more in control than just me bobbing around in the water... I have been to the beach a lot (Rio practically every summer when I was a kid) and waded off some, but never far enough to not see the shore, for example. When diving I've jumped off boats during surface intervals, but again always right next to the boat. One of these times I was diving in the Red Sea (Jordan) and I jumped off the boat, and when I came up a second later I was already 10-15 meters away from the anchored boat because of the current, which kind of freaked me out. There was a line and I was fine, and I knew that if I ended up too far away to swim back the boat or someone would come for me, but it still freaked me out a little.
The thing is, swimming in a pool is so controlled. You have your own lane, no waves or currents to worry about (except when you're sharing a lane with someone), and you know that no matter how much you swim you're always a short swim from the edge. I'm used to a slow controlled swim, with long extended strokes. The lake here in Brasilia is pretty small and filled with boats everywhere, so it's usually an easy swim to safety, and there's hardly any swell (and definitely no current). I've been to Khao Lak and I've dived the Similan Islands, and I know that we're usually in open water where I can't see any shore. There's also plenty of surface current and swell in some places, but I'm thinking we'll pick a day and a spot where that's not so much of an issue. What I worry most about is swallowing water when I breathe because of the swell, and panicking because of it. I also worry about having a big boat next to me, which on the one hand is my safety line, and on the other could hurt me if for any reason currents change quickly (especially if it's anchored). I guess the only way around it is to just get there and practice some before the actual test.
And Pedro, I do know that rescue and assisting scenarios are more likely to happen in the ocean, especially considering that's where I plan to work (and eventually get my Instructor cert). I'm not complaining or saying I don't want to do it, quite the contrary. I just want to be as ready as possible when I get there, and wanted to see if anyone had any tips for switching from a controlled environment to the open sea.
At first I worried about not being able to swim 400m. Now that I can do that, I've switched my worry to ocean swimming, and to the free diving requirements (which again, I've never done), and to the equipment exchange, and... Truth is, I'm not me if I'm not worrying about something
Thanks again for the replies! I'll keep swimming
Mari