Nervous about scuba diving is perfectly normal especially if you are a beginner or have not dived in a while. Nervous or feeling anxious is caused by concerns of the unknown whether worrying about breathing underwater or being intimidated by all the scuba gear or even by the idea of being under the water.
And that’s all totally normal. The reality is that breathing underwater is an unnatural experience. In this article, we cover the common worries and ways to overcome nerves before taking the plunge.
In this post, we will go through why you get nervous about scuba diving. Let’s get started!
Read more on common questions asked by divers
Reasons People Are Nervous About Scuba Diving
There is an infinite number of reasons why people are nervous about scuba diving. Here are a few common fears of scuba diving.
- Not comfortable been under the water or the idea of being under the water.
- They are poor swimmers.
- Not comfortable in the water.
- Fear of the equipment, whether it is the lack of knowledge about the equipment or the dependence on the equipment.
- Afraid that they will run out of air.
- There are claustrophobia or feel like that diving will be claustrophobia.
- Fear of being left behind in the open water.
- Afraid of sea life, especially sharks and jellyfish.
Teach Yourself Exactly What Can Go Wrong Underwater
One of the best ways to handle been nervous about scuba diving is to teach yourself about what can go wrong underwater. As you learn about what can go wrong under the water you will learn how to handle that situation.
There is a finite number of things that can go wrong and you can’t prepare for every problem, but as you learn and practice your diving skills regularly. You will learn how to handle the problem. As well as doing dives accompanied by a divemaster until you get comfortable.
Here are ways to help grow your confidence and in turn, will help to overcome your anxiety about scuba diving.
Use The Right Instructor
Finding the right instructor is the most important part of learning to scuba dive. There are loads of scuba diving schools all over the world. The key with an instructor is that you are comfortable with them to ask questions, make mistakes, and chat with.
A good instructor and good training take care of about 90% of very anxiety. Most instructors are helpful and make than likely to have encountered your worries a thousand times.
Practice Your Skills
Practice, practice, and practice. As we all know that practice makes perfect. It is a bit of an old wife saying but it is true.
Regularly practicing and diving regularly starts to build up your confidence and as a result, you won’t feel as nervous or any anxiety when going diving.
Learn The Basic Hand Signals
This is an important one to be comfortable with, there are a few common hand signals that you should know when going diving. As obviously can not talk underwater.
Be sure to know the key signals before diving.
- Okay.
- Not okay.
- End the dive.
- Down.
- Slow down.
- Stop.
- Air low.
Don’t worry if you happen to forget some of these, as long as you remember the most important ones you will be fine.
Tips To Overcome Been Nervous About Scuba Diving
Everyone does get nervous when they are going to do their first dive. The first open water dive can be very stressful and very challenging. There are a few tips to reduce nervousness.
Avoid Alcohol
Drinking alcohol or too much alcohol can increase nervousness and anxiety. It is well known that alcohol affects people’s moods.
Though it is never a good idea to drink before diving, even a few drinks the night before a dive can increase feelings of anxiety the next day.
Get Enough Rest
This seems fairly obvious but a good night’s sleep helps a lot. Scuba diving is an energy-sapping activity that you will feel after the dive.
Making sure you have enough rest beforehand makes a big difference.
Breathe Slowly
Another important skill in scuba diving is breathing. When underwater, you should not breathe as you would normally.
You need to breathe slowly and regularly, you will hear breathing and are using a respirator to do so. Just take things slowly and breathe in and out at a calm pace.
Scuba Diving Tips To Remember
If you are still anxious or nervous about scuba diving, here are a few scuba diving tips that will help with any anxiety.
- Remember NOT to panic. Panic leads and causes most preventable diving accidents. Just stay calm, even try any self-calming that may help you stay calm and you can work your way out of any diving issue.
- Remember to learn and know how to use your diving equipment.
- Remember to check your equipment before going diving.
- Practise swimming. Becoming strong swimming will grow your confidence been in the water and in turn helps with diving and will help with been anxious or nervous.
- Remember NEVER be worry or be afraid to ask your divemaster questions, no matter how stupid it may seem.
- Remember DON’T dive if you are sick or have a cold, as it will be dangerous and very hard to equalize.
- Read and understand the PADI Open Water manual.
- Remember to find a good dive buddy. A bad dive buddy that cause you into a no-win situation of trying to save them and jeopardizing yourself.
You can overcome the fear of Scuba Diving by practicing your skills and getting an understanding of what you can do underwater, other words know your limits.
Wrapping Up
Finally, you can overcome the nervousness or anxiety of scuba diving by learning about what can go wrong. And learn the essential skills that are covered in the scuba diving certification. Then it is just practice and going diving, this gradually removes any anxiety of scuba diving as your confidence grows.
And that’s it for now! I’d love to know if this guide on why am I nervous about scuba diving has helped you. Let me know if you have any questions and let me know if there is more to add.
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