scuba breathing

Question
I tried scuba a few years ago, and loved it. It felt so peaceful and calm. ( that was in okinawa) The air flowed effortlessly and I was able to cruise around and take pictures.
I tried it again, during the past weekend, and couldn't breath well at all. I felt like I needed to put in effort to get air to come out of the regulator and felt like the mouthpiece was stretching my mouth. I'm concerned because I signed up for a whole course this time. I tried to go under a few times, but everytime the same like there was a delay between my inhale and the air being dispensed from the regulator.
I'm curious, are all regulators the same? Do some require more effort to get air than others?
Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this and responding with whatever advice/info you can.
Sincerely,
Patrick Gray

Answer
Greetings Patrick,

Welcome to the underwater world... again. I read your first three sentences from your question with great pleasure...

"I tried scuba a few years ago, and loved it. It felt so peaceful and calm. ( that was in okinawa) The air flowed effortlessly and I was able to cruise around and take pictures."

I liked them so much because they reminded my diving experiences.

You are absolutely right. Altough all cars will get you from point A to point B, some will give you a better and smoother ride than others. Just like cars, all regulators are designed to give the air you need under a given circumstance. But all brands and all models are not equal.

Nonetheless, all regulators should be able to provide air with minimal exertion. I would initially suggest you switch regulators. Try another one and see if the problem persists. If the new regulator is easier to breathe from, then you know it's the first one and make sure you notify the store where you rented it. If both are similar, try another brand (assuming the first two are of the same brand). Sometimes regulators come with a built-in regulator of the effort you must make to breathe. This allows for fine-tuning it even during a dive. If that's the case, your instructor may be able to assist you with that.

You must agree with me that diving is a very pleasant and fun activity and should NOT require that type of effort to breathe. In fact, you experienced it yourself on a previous dive so you know I am not making this up to sell you diving.

One final recommendation: if you find a regulator set that fits your needs, consider purchasing your own regulator. There is nothing like owning your own equipment. Although nothing ever substitutes a pre-dive equipment safety inspection, or a regular servicing by an equipment specialist, just donning your equipment and trying it for very few minutes can tell you when something is "just not right"... a kind of feeling you learn about your own gear after you've used it over and over and know exactly how it feels. Your mouthpiece description is a perfect example. Some mouthpieces are larger than others. In fact, you can create a custom-made mouthpiece for your own regulator that will be an exact copy of your own teeth impressions so they make the best possible fit.

One last piece of advice, which I'm sure you tried it already. Go to the pool and try swimming around with your gear so you get a little more used to it. Because we are not used to listening to our own breaths, when we scuba we think that if we are not listening it then we are not breathing and an unconscious sense of needing to continuously breathe ensures... which, in fact, you know it's only psychological if you've already got air in your lungs.

Again, overall, all scuba diving equipments are made to satisfy the vast majority of divers.

Congratulations on joining an open water diver program. I hope this answers your questions. If you need any further advice feel free to contact me anytime again.

Gustavo E. Flores
PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor