Initial Scuba Training

Question
Mike,

I had just taken a "discover scuba diving" course while at a resort on vacation.  I had had experience with tank breathing by way of fire-fighting equipment and have always wanted to try scuba diving.  The instructors were great and said that I did all of the exercises great in the pool, once I got used to the equipment.  But upon entry into the ocean, I could not get my breathing to calm down and could not dive down to anything but just below the surface.  I don't know if it was a hesitation due to the unfamiliar equipment or if it was a reaction of the perceived "enclosed space" I was in.  My question is, noting the above, is this situation normal for a person new to scuba diving?

Answer
Hi Bob

I'm sorry to hear that you encountered difficulties with your scuba activities.  While your reaction is a bit unusual, it's not unheard of.  I have had students exhibit the same problem and we were able to successfully overcome it.

As you've suggested, this is probably a mental reaction rather than a physical one.  That's NOT to say you've got a mental problem!!  It's just that the mind is a powerful thing and it can have a huge influence over the things we do.  So, we need to approach this problem from a mental standpoint.

Since you've had experience using the SCBA units with the fire department, then I don't think that the "enclosed space" is the issue.  I think it's probably due to a combination of excitement (stress) and an unfamiliar environment.

One of the major problems I have with the Discover Scuba Diving program is that it is very abbreviated and doesn't give the student enough time or knowledge to adequately deal with some of the uncertainties many students encounter when trying to adapt to breathing underwater.  In other words, your body is willing but your mind is saying "Wait a minute, I'm not sure this is a good idea!!".  A standard scuba diving course would give you lots more time and would probably eliminate this problem for you.

Bob, my suggestion to you is to take a standard scuba diving course from an instructor with high recommendations from his students.  Use the experience you've gained with the Discover Scuba Diving course to make it easier for you to adjust to the equipment.  PADI, who offers the Discover Scuba Diving course, can also credit you for the experience you've gained if you take a PADI Open Water Diver course.  Tell your instructor up front about the problem you encountered and he should be willing to work with you to ensure that you don't have a recurrence.

Scuba Diving is about 80% mental.  Operating the equipment is not rocket science but knowing what to do under different circumstances and being confident enough to trust your decisions takes a lot of time and practice.  You just didn't get enough time to do that in the Discover Scuba Diving course.  Working at a slower pace should solve the problem for you.  Students in my classes get an average of 10 hours of pool time(in addition to classroom time) before making their first actual training dive.

Bob, this can be a frustrating problem to overcome.  If you're still uncomfortable after talking with your selected instructor, please write back and I'll try to help you from this end.  I REALLY want to see you successfully handle your scuba diving...it's too great of an experience to give up on!!

Sincerely,

Mike Giles
Mike's Dive Center
mikescuba.com