were you scared?

[clarissa1]

Hi there!

Did any of you feel scared about your first OW dives??? Why and how did it turn out?

I am BEYOND nervous for my qaulifying dives coming up this weekend? is this normal??

 

[dive_lover88]

Hi there,i was excited instead of being scared. It turned out well,however on my 'graduation' dive,we hit strong currents and did a drift dive instead in very low vist. I also managed to get my foot tangled in a buoy line and nearly paniked...luckily my buddy calmed me down and my instructor got my foot out. But...you dont have to be worried.Just go and have fun!

 

[Blox]

Hi Clarissa1,

Since breathing underwater is not exactly natural for humans, a certain degree of nervousness is perfectly normal IMHO. Being scared out of your mind before the open water checkout dives is certainly not.

I was not nervous about my OW checkout dives, but I was excited and looking forward to it.. I am a very rational person though and figured that if the gear worked in the pool during the confined water dives, it'll also work in open water and was reasonably confident that I had learned enough during the pool sessions to - if not truely master diving - at least know enough to get through the checkout dives. I also feel very comfortable in water/the sea in general which certainly helps a lot too.

However, everybody is different.

What exactly bothers you and makes you "feel scared"?

Do you feel that you are insufficiently prepared in terms of skills? Is it fear of the ocean in general?

 

[octgal]

awww don't be scared, I'm sure you will do great, but yes its normal to feel that way. I wasn't nervous for my dives, but on my 4th dive my BC free flowed and i went rocketing up to the surface, funny enough i still could think clear and grabbed my instructor on the way up. He unhooked my BC and we finished the dive, i WAS nervous for that 5th one though, but just remember, when you feel yourself getting panicy underwater, STOP and BREATH. You'll be fine. Good luck!!!!

 

[Spoon]

i was nervous being in the ocean for the first time, thats normal but once under i was totally at home good luck

 

[clarissa1]

Hi Blox

Well maybe the term "BEYOND nervous" was a bit of an exageration I am not scared to death ..just nervous about what to expect. The main reason I asked the question was because most people here can remember what it felt like the first time they dived and whether it was worse/better than they expected.

I am expecting to feel intimidated by the ocean. I also feel scared that I might panick down there and then want to shoot up to the top! hehe

I also know that there are (obviously) differences in practising in a 8m pool versus diving in a HUGE ocean and small things are going to feel and be much different. I these unkown factors scare me.

Like, will my ears hurt so bad that I can't stand it?
Will my throat get that dry that I want to get out?
Will I have trouble staying with my buddy?
Will I get lost! (Big worry!! haha)
What happens if I feel sea sick
What if I cant get my mask cleared!!?? (battling with this one!)

I am even scared of doing a backroll from the boat!! (even though I have done it from the poolside!)

Overall I am a person who LOVES being in the water but have had some instances happen to me that reminded me of how dangerous and overpowering water can sometimes be. so I think that is where my fear comes from? I know I'll be fine. I just need people to tell me I'll be fine as well!

 

[octgal]

Make sure you NEVER let your ears get like that!!!!!! If you can't clear them, then stop where u are, rise up a bit and GENTLY blow, if you still continue to have problems, then abort the dive. Never let it get painfull!
Also about your mouth being dry, I find if i swallow lots it wets my mouth enough to be happy and your instructor will be glued to you, no way you'll get lost.

You'll love it, trust me

 

[Blox]

Hi Blox

Well maybe the term "BEYOND nervous" was a bit of an exageration I am not scared to death ..just nervous about what to expect. The main reason I asked the question was because most people here can remember what it felt like the first time they dived and whether it was worse/better than they expected.

I am expecting to feel intimidated by the ocean. I also feel scared that I might panick down there and then want to shoot up to the top! hehe

I also know that there are (obviously) differences in practising in a 8m pool versus diving in a HUGE ocean and small things are going to feel and be much different. I these unkown factors scare me.

Like, will my ears hurt so bad that I can't stand it?
Will my throat get that dry that I want to get out?
Will I have trouble staying with my buddy?
Will I get lost! (Big worry!! haha)
What happens if I feel sea sick
What if I cant get my mask cleared!!?? (battling with this one!)

I am even scared of doing a backroll from the boat!! (even though I have done it from the poolside!)

Overall I am a person who LOVES being in the water but have had some instances happen to me that reminded me of how dangerous and overpowering water can sometimes be. so I think that is where my fear comes from? I know I'll be fine. I just need people to tell me I'll be fine as well!

Okay - YOU'LL BE FINE

Seriously adressing your concerns though:

As Octgal has pointed out, you must not permit your ears to hurt - equalize early and often. Take your time when descending.

i don't think your throat will get (very) dry during the length of time that your checkout dives will take and the advice given by Octgal is going to help avoiding it too.

Keep track of your buddy as good as you can and keep an eye on the instructor. There's no way the instructor will permit you to get lost - usually losing students reflects quite negatively on an instctors reputation and I'm confident he'll try to avoid that.

Before you get on the boat, ask the diveshop for seasickness tablets (usually they've got some). Take them in time before you get on the boat - taking them when you feel sick already is too late - it's prophylaxis and not a cure.

Clearing mask? Funny that you say that. To me that was the most dreadful skill of them all in the pool. I hated it. I hated it that much, that I seriously considered buying a mask with a purge valve, so that I would not have to do it even .... ever! When I went to do my first open water dive, my (new) mask fogged up that bad that I could see sh!t . I decided that the only way I had was to flood the mask (at least partially) and subsquently clear it and -- it just worked. It was easy (easier in fact and more comfortable doing it in saltwater than doing it in cloreinated<sp?> pool water).

You have practiced all that in the pool (including the back roll).

Just remember that all it if worked in the pool. There is no reason why it should not work in open water.

You may want to talk to your instructor about your concerns and she/he will certainly also help you to calm down, and ease your concerns.

Relax and try to look forward to those dives. I am sure you will enjoy them and find things much easier than you had hoped for.

Enjoy the experience

And don't forget to come back here and let us know how it went.

 

[NGT]

Hi Clarissa1!

I did my OW dives almost 3 weeks ago. I have to admit that I was extremely nervous. I couldn't even sleep in the nites leading up to my dives. I wasn't worried about getting hurt or dying. I was nervous that I would not perform well and I was also more than a little creeped out about where I was diving. I don't like dark, cold murky water. My husband/buddy and I completed our dives at Lake Minnewaska in NY and it was a very cold and rainy 2 days. There had been torrential rain in the week leading up to this and the runoff into this lake made visibility very poor. The air temp was 50 and the water was 57 degrees. I forgot to mention that I was also starting to get sick and had sinus congestion (which is a no-no for diving). But I really wanted to do this badly. So badly that I risked injury to my sinuses and/or ear to do it.

I went over every worse case scenario in my head for at least 2 weeks leading up to these dives and had myself worked up into such a state that when we stepped into the water for the first time fully geared up, I almost couldn't do it. In the end though, I ended my being so comfortable underwater (actually more comfortable underwater than above water before or between dives) that I performed quite well. I did however, have trouble clearing my right ear on the way down the first time and at the end of the dive I had a slight bloody nose. I am fine now though, but in the future I will NEVER dive with sinus congestion again.

So, in the end, it wasn't anywhere near as bad as I had imagined. I actually enjoyed myself. All the things that I thought would creep me out in the lake (giant rocks and crevices and fallen trees) not only didn't, but I was fascinated by what I saw and was sorry when the last dive was over. I feel proud of accomplishing this and especially so considering the adverse conditions it was done under.

If you did okay in the confined water part of your training there is no reason why you won't do fine in the open water part. In the end you will have accomplished something that you can be very proud of and you will wonder why you were so nervous in the first place. Good Luck!!!

 

[MikeFerrara]

I suppose it's normal to be a little nervouse about the new environment (open water as apposed to the pool). It's also normal for some to be nervous about being "tested".

The one "but" I'll add here though, and I don't want to scare you more, is that mask clearing/replacement should be down cold and second nature before ever going to open water. We see and read about SO many students having trouble with this in open water and even bolting for the surface. The reason is not enough confined water practice. OW may be colder, lower vis or any one of a number of things that will make it that much harder/more intimidating than in the pool, which is why, IMO, a student having ANY problems at all with it in the pool shouldn't be going to open water yet. A mask can flood or come off anytime and it usually doesn't happen where you can comfortable kneel on the bottom and fix it while ignoring your buddy. you need to be able to do it while hovering, sharing air, keeping track of your buddy and what's going on around you or any other task that you may need to see to at the time.

It is "normal" in that it's common for students to head to OW being nervous about this skill but that doesn't mean that it's right or good...just common.