Going Scuba Diving on Your Vacation? Helpful Hints They Don't Tell You About in Class (part 1)

As a veteran Scuba diver, dive master and dive instructor, I have witnessed countless diving incidents where a little preparation could have prevented an unsafe or uncomfortable situation for the (certified) divers involved. Unfortunately, most open-water certification classes have neither the time nor the resources to cover every single situation a diver may face. I have also seen way too many certified divers get into trouble simply because they were afraid of "looking stupid" by asking questions.

Sadly, I have also heard many certified divers decide after a few dives that Scuba just isn't for them. These poor souls spent time and big bucks to become certified and equip themselves, went on their first dive vacation and had a rotten time due to stress, equipment failure, poor conditions, etc.

If any of the above describes you, don't Ebay all that Scuba gear just yet..

When I first learned how to Scuba dive in 1986, I was in the Navy. My instructor was a tough, extremely macho Navy SEAL. His techniques for teaching were none you would experience as a civilian; he had very strict high standards, was very hard on the class and did not hesitate to fail 12 students out of the 20 in our class. The course was 3 months long, with four 2-hour classes per week and 25 shore and boat dives until he deemed the remaining 8 of us competent enough to be certified as Open Water Scuba divers. Although this may seem like overkill compared with today's methods, that SEAL gave me an invaluable lesson: Scuba diving is serious business. If you're not 100% sure of what you're doing, you're asking for trouble. "Only a**holes think they know everything. If you're not sure or have a question, you ask. If you don't and get into trouble, you're outta my class. Or dead." Bless you, Bill!

In this article, I cover the #1 problem of many Scuba divers (whether they admit it or not): stress. "I felt claustrophobic"; "I just panicked , I don't know why"; "I felt like I couldn't breathe-something's wrong with my regulator"; "I felt all of that pressure bearing down on me". All of these feelings stem from the same factors: fear of the unknown, feeling out of control of the situation, and/or lack of confidence in one's equipment. All of these feelings are easily preventable with a bit of preparedness.

1. A month or so before you go on vacation, bring out every piece of equipment you're taking with you: mask, fins, snorkel, regulator, wetsuit or diveskin, booties, B.C.D., computer or dive tables, etc. Check every single item carefully! Cracked rubber or silicone straps, booties with no tread left, ill-fitting or scratched mask, rotted or broken O-rings, dead batteries, etc. need to be replaced - Now. Take your regulator and B.C.D. to your local dive shop and pay the $15-$20 for an equipment inspection. A certified tech will disassemble your regulator to check the diaphragm and mouthpiece, check all pressure hoses and O-rings for damage or wear and replace them. That $20.00 will save you headaches, stress, and missed dives as well as higher inspection or replacement fees at your dive destination.

2. Even if it's only been a few months since your certification, consider a refresher course at your local dive shop or YMCA. At the very least, get permission from a local pool to test your gear out (if you have your own, or rented gear from your local shop if you don't)**in chest-deep water, always with a buddy!!**. Don't wait till you're on vacation - get comfortable with assembling and using Scuba equipment in the water now.

3. Don't take tanks and weights along. Tanks are cumbersome and expensive to travel with; they must be emptied completely for most modes of travel. Draining all of the air out allows moisture to penetrate the inside of the tank, which turns to rust and eventually irreparable damage.. Tanks and weights are available anywhere there is a dive shop, and are usually included in the cost of the dive or dives you book. If you're going to an extremely remote location in an undeveloped country and diving on your own instead of through a resort or shop, take your tanks. Otherwise, leave them at home with a couple of pounds of air in them. Take your weightbelt if you have one you're used to, but get the weights from the resort or shop or liveaboard on vacation.

4. Be aware of how you breathe. Get into the habit of inhaling slowly and deeply through your mouth only, pushing your stomach (not your chest) out as you inhale. Exhale slowly through your mouth; control the exhale by pressing your lips together gently or humming or even singing until you've expelled the whole breath. As you breathe out, relax your face, shoulders, arms, hands, stomach, legs and feet one by one. You should be completely relaxed by the end of your exhale. Practice this breathing technique at work, home, in the shower, while driving, in the grocery store - wherever. Using this technique while diving not only reduces stress, but also saves air. That's not a typo. Breathing slowly and deeply while inhaling and exhaling uses up far less air than rapid, shallow breathing, gasping, or skip-breathing (which is extremely dangerous)** I can't stress the importance of controlled breathing enough: it is the key to attaining perfect neutral buoyancy (something else that isn't part of most Scuba lesson plans, even for divemaster level training!) Perfect neutral buoyancy means less weight on your belt, less strain on your body, and effortless control of movement underwater without thrashing around or using your arms. More on that later in this series of Scuba articles.

5. Ask questions. Never Ever be too intimidated, afraid of losing face, self-conscious or shy about asking experienced, qualified personnel like diveshop operators, diveboat captains, Scuba instructors or dive masters about anything you're unsure of, even if you think it's a "dumb question".

The next article in this Scuba diving tips and tricks series will discuss other dive trip spoilers; seasickness, ear problems, diveboat practices every diver should know but doesn't, and rough weather. Until, happy diving and remember what Bill the Navy SEAL said: "Only a**holes think they know everything".