What hardest thing to overcome as a new diver?

[TMHeimer]

The hardest thing to overcome is getting off work to go dive! Really though my first thing that freaked me out for about 5 seconds was being in an overhead environment and then diving to depth. After a quick woosah I checked my self mentally. Since then my only issue to overcome is finding a dive buddy and a dependable dive buddy. For example I went just last week and did a drift dive on the Ana Cecilia in west palm. Since I had to rely on the instabuddy I was with who I was with. I was taking a photo of a lobster at about 80ft. My dive buddy was there when I started taking pictures, next thing I know I don't see a soul around me. I found the "group" when someone started banging their tank when they saw a loggerhead turtle. As a new diver having someone there with you is simply comforting. I have since developed a self sufficient mentality even with dive buddies. So the hardest thing as a new diver in my opinion is finding a dependable dive buddy. If your on a charter without your own buddy, then get "paired" with someone else, well everyone has their own priorities. As a new diver you need a sense of security (even if false) to get accustomed to being under water and instilling basic skills. Getting that sense of security to keep you interested in diving is a consideration. People have a sense of security when they are getting certified because they rely on their instructor to save them. But after you get certified and go it alone what then.

Like many, I've been in that situation too. You've got the right (and really only logical) idea with the self sufficient philosophy. As a "single" on a boat (or even shore), it's the old "instabuddy" debate. Some say talk to the assigned buddy and form a plan, discuss equipment, etc. But that doesn't mean it's a good buddy. So you dive "self-sufficient" or stay on board and swallow your $100 (well, there'd be no tip at least). I haven't done the latter and doubt many have.

 

[KatieMac]

For me it was taking off my mask. Nothing else was really an issue. But clearing my mask nearly made me quit.

 

[lermontov]

my biggest frustration was not knowing what to buy gear wise- different advice- second guessing myself not knowing if id be a tech diver or not part of the problem was that as a new diver you dont know what range of diving experiences there are available to do and wether you will do it until you try it first

 

[GlennL]

my biggest frustration was not knowing what to buy gear wise- different advice- second guessing myself not knowing if id be a tech diver or not part of the problem was that as a new diver you dont know what range of diving experiences there are available to do and wether you will do it until you try it first

This is a good point.
I was adamant about not renting gear, not wearing used wetsuits someone peed in. Learning on my own gear etc. Since then I have bought new equipment to replace my new equipment. Live and learn, some money wasted.....

 

[txgoose]

With five whole dives under my belt, I have two that come to mind quickly.
1) Hands. I am by and large okay not using them for buoyancy control, but I use them all the time to turn right and left while stationary.
2) Resisting the urge to not hover vertically. Some of this is my own fault as vertically feels natural. Part of it I blame on the boys (my only dive buddies to date) not holding depth well so I am constantly looking up for them. That isn't easy to do if I am horizontal. I probably need to be more graceful flipping onto my back briefly.

I believe that both of these will get better with time. Right now at these shallow depths (27' max so far, 22' average) the boys view the entire water column as a big roller coaster. They have shown enough attention to detail about checking air supply and keeping track of each other and me that I am not interested in calming their "play" down. Until I see something unsafe or kicking up silt, I love watching them do their version of a sea otter or seal impersonation.

 

[TMHeimer]

If you're stationary, particularly if vertical, I see nothing wrong with using hands to make a right angle turn. I guess you could do this while swimming as well if you wanted an exact right angle rather than a bit of a curve. A breast stroke can also be useful as a way to deal with or prevent oncoming leg cramps, as it produces little drag as opposed to a normal swim stroke. I rarely do these things. I think the big concern instructors, etc. have is new divers using a lot of hand motion as part of their normal means of propulsion--or for offsetting too much weight in hovering. My original (and only steady) buddy did some of that for a while when we were both new..

 

[dmaziuk]

A breast stroke can also be useful as a way to deal with or prevent oncoming leg cramps, as it produces little drag as opposed to a normal swim stroke.

Nitpick: breaststroke aka frog kick produces much more drag, and the modified frog: a bit more drag then other kicks. Both flutter and dolphin kicks are in the "streamline" all the time whereas with frog kick you have to "push back" during recovery. It can help with cramps, though: it uses different muscles so the ones about to cramp up can relax and recover. No argument there.

A bit of swimming trivia: breaststroke hand pull also has "push back" during recovery, and butterfly was originally invented to overcome that by doing hand recovery above the surface.

 

[TMHeimer]

Agree on the frog kick, and I do use it to switch up muscles and to prevent cramping. And also agree of course that it is slower than flutter & dolphin. I was referring to using the arms for a traditional swimming breast stroke while on scuba. It is of course much slower than any kicking, but faster than a traditional forward arm stroke since your hands are clasped together when pushing ahead to do the breast stroke. If you're trying to do a traditional basic forward swim stroke on scuba you ain't goin' nowhere. Again arm breast stroke on scuba is something I rarely do, but it's there if you want it, or to gain a little ground if cramping in both legs at once (which has happened to me).

 

[dmaziuk]

I was referring to using the arms for a traditional swimming breast stroke while on scuba. It is of course much slower than any kicking, but faster than a traditional forward arm stroke since your hands are clasped together when pushing ahead to do the breast stroke. If you're trying to do a traditional basic forward swim stroke on scuba you ain't goin' nowhere. Again arm breast stroke on scuba is something I rarely do, but it's there if you want it, or to gain a little ground if cramping in both legs at once (which has happened to me).

If you do that, cross the forearms and slide palms up very close to the body -- basically with your fingertips touching your shoulders. Hands get together somewhere in front of your face, some people go palms together, some go palms down, hands on top of each other. That's how you minimize the drag/pushback.

Yes, the other arm strokes only work because the recovery is above the surface, they're no use underwater.

 

[TMHeimer]

If you do that, cross the forearms and slide palms up very close to the body -- basically with your fingertips touching your shoulders. Hands get together somewhere in front of your face, some people go palms together, some go palms down, hands on top of each other. That's how you minimize the drag/pushback.

Yes, the other arm strokes only work because the recovery is above the surface, they're no use underwater.

Thanks. I do most of that but not sure about the crossing of forearms part.