Greg - 2/18/2009 10:59 AM
When I was a new diver...my scariest moment was when I swam out to a far buoy to meet some divers. I was tired from the swim and I didn’t wait at the buoy to catch my breath. Instead, I started descending to start the dive. Once I was 50 feet underwater, I started to panic because I couldn’t catch my breath. I basically bolted to the surface. I guess I breathed or exhaled the whole way because I’m alive today and my lungs didn’t explode.
Lesson learned: Don’t start a dive when you’re overexerted. Give your body time to rest and catch up before you begin breathing underwater. If you get overexerted underwater...try to do the smart thing and STOP, calm down, hold onto something for reassurance, get your buddies attention (looking into their eyes helps to calm you down) and try not to bolt like I did. And if you can’t help but get out of the water...at least breath or exhale the whole way. And make sure to inflate your BC once you’re at the surface so you float and can calm down.