Diving Is a Skill, Not Just an Adventure
Imagine drifting through the crystal-clear waters of Malta’s Blue Hole, watching colourful fish dart between dramatic underwater arches and rocky formations. But when you’re standing on the edge, tank strapped to your back, looking down at the water, your heart may race for all the wrong reasons.
If you’re feeling nervous about your first dive, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Every experienced scuba diver has wondered if they’ll remember how to clear their mask panic when they can’t breathe through their nose. These beginner scuba diving fears are normal responses to doing something completely outside the norm.
The difference between divers who stick with it and those who quit isn’t natural talent or fearlessness – it is understanding that diving is a skill you build over time. Every challenge you’re facing has been overcome by thousands before you, and with proper training, you’ll overcome them too.
Breathing Underwater
The first time you put a regulator in your mouth and breathe underwater, your brain may panic. This makes total sense – you’re trusting equipment to keep you alive underwater.
Get comfortable with your regulator at the surface. The air will feel drier than normal breathing, and you may feel like you’re not getting enough oxygen initially. This is normal, and nothing to worry about, as your regulator delivers more air than you need.
Focus on slow, deep breathing rather than quick, shallow breaths – much like meditative breathing. Many new scuba divers unconsciously hold their breath or breathe too fast, increasing anxiety and wasting air. Remember that modern regulators are extremely reliable, and you’ll always have a backup regulator (octopus) connected to your tank.
Equalisation Difficulties
Ever felt pressure when swimming to the bottom of a swimming pool? That uncomfortable ear pressure can also be painful if you don’t equalise. Your Eustachian tubes connect your middle ear to your throat and nasal cavity. When underwater, these tubes need help adjusting to increased water pressure as you descend.
The key to successful equalising is early and often. Start before you feel discomfort. Try wiggling your jaw, swallowing, or gently pinching your nose and exhaling. Never force it. If you feel pain, ease back a few feet and try again.
Skip the dive if you’ve been congested recently. Your Eustachian tubes will be overworked, and this could injure you.
Fear of Air Running Out of Air
Air running low underwater is a horrifying thought. However, effective monitoring of usage makes it far less daunting. Your SPG (submersible pressure gauge) and dive computer are designed to alleviate scuba anxiety by presenting air consumption visually.
Most recreational dives end with a lot of air remaining. Your instructor will teach you to manage your air supply, experience level, and dive schedule so that you always surface with a minimum of 50 bar or 500 psi. With time, you start mastering the SAC (surface air consumption) rate, which forecasts remaining air based on depth.
The buddy system exists for more than just emergencies; it’s there for ease and comfort too. You and your buddy are assigned to check on one another and monitor air supplies. If yours runs out, your buddy’s octopus regulator is there for emergencies.
Buoyancy & Equipment Control
Attaining neutral buoyancy is perhaps one of the most difficult skills to overcome. If you are too heavy, you will sink too fast, but if you are too light, you will find it challenging to descend. Your buoyancy control device (BCD) is the best tool you have for adjusting your position in the water.
Small changes can yield big results. A bite of air into your BCD lets you rise slightly while a BCD hose exhale means you sink. Proper weighting is critical too – aim to maintain 5m depth with a near empty tank and your BCD fully deflated.
Achieving the desired position relative to the water, staying level with arms relaxed at one’s sides and permitting the fins to propel the body, is best. Many newbie divers tend to position themselves head-first like walking underwater, which is quite tiresome!
Marine Life Anxiety
It is normal to worry about aggressive marine life or sharks. However, most marine life is more afraid of you than you are of them. Even potentially dangerous marine life, like jellyfish, is only problematic if provoked. The rule of diving is simple – look, but don’t touch, always keep your hands to yourself, and maintain a respectful distance. Your dive instructor or guide will brief you before the dive on the expected marine life and proper encounter protocols for the dive site.
Environmental Challenges: Visibility, Cold, and Currents
Your dives might not always be in pristine waters like the Red Sea or Koh Tao in Thailand. You may encounter cold, murky waters, and strong currents. While these factors do present challenges, there’s no need to cancel your diving plans altogether.
Poor visibility can be disorientating, so it is best to keep track of where your dive buddy is. Maintaining an arm’s length distance is ideal. A compass aids in keeping direction, too. Be on the lookout for thermoclines, which can change temperature and visibility suddenly.
Currents are often perceived as scary, but with practice, they can become fun. In light currents, drift diving can be done. With strong currents, never fight to stay underwater. Always work with the current, but if it gets too strong, it is usually best to cancel the dive.
Diving in cold water opens up more locations to explore due to the rich biodiversity of marine life and coral. In a cold underwater environment, comfort is key. Depending on local conditions, thermal protection should always be worn in the form of wetsuits, semi-dry wetsuits, or drysuits.
Mental Resilience & Dive Confidence
As it is with other sports, diving requires a sound mind as well. While the right approach and preparation often eliminate the risk of panic, it remains a real danger in diving. Panic, when it does occur, is likely to happen when a person is overwhelmed or too much is being done at once.
During the surface interval before diving, go through all steps. Visualise descending, equalising ears, clearing the mask, and neutral buoyancy control. With PADI, SSI, or NAUI certifications, you are trained to follow the basic underwater procedures such as equipment checks, and buddy checks which can be done anywhere globally.
Your progress should be personal to you. Every diver is faced with their own hurdles and rhythm to tackle, so concentrate on how you are advancing instead. Log your dives in a dive log book and document the equipment used, the epic marine life you saw, diving highlights, learned lessons, improvement areas, and how you felt. This will boost your confidence and demonstrate the skills learnt from your training.
Confidence comes from experience. Trust your diving gear, training, and most importantly, trust yourself. You’ve got this!
