Best Advice by Instructor not Covered in Manual

[cfw218]

Question for everyone: What is the best piece of advice your instructor gave you during your certification that wasn't in the book?

For me it was: Using yoga breathing to breath deeply and slowly - 3 counts in, 5 counts out. I found that anytime during my training that I started to feel panicky, this was a life saver. It cleared my head and I could think before I reacted (foolishly).

[cheebaweebie]

Try chasing down a big fish or fighting one on your line shaft from your speargun and see how quickly you forget to breath properly.

[chace_nicole]

Originally Posted by cfw218

Question for everyone: What is the best piece of advice your instructor gave you during your certification that wasn't in the book?

For me it was: Using yoga breathing to breath deeply and slowly - 3 counts in, 5 counts out. I found that anytime during my training that I started to feel panicky, this was a life saver. It cleared my head and I could think before I reacted (foolishly).

thats good advice, it clears more carbon dioxide & relaxes at the same time.

[emcbride81]

Prepare each dive as if you are the only one that will help you in an emergency is you. Do not depend on your buddy.

[RikRaeder]

An old standard useful in EVERYTHING. He asked...."what is the most important piece of equipment you carry with you?" I answered correctly as I've always believed it is true.

[BobbyWombat]

My instuctor held a special class to talk about the logistics and practical side of diving. He walked us through a hypothetical boat dive: what to expect, tips and tricks, etc... Really helped get me a bit better feeling about my first trip. The manual covered it topically, but he went into good detail about how to pick a buddy, how to not look like a yard sale when pulling your gear together, etc...

[DiveSooner]

Your brain... use it!

Understand basic tables/physics. Computers & equipment can fail. Stay calm.

[Puffer Fish]

Wow, that was so long ago...but what has stayed with me all these years is to expect anything... and react calmly.

I recently did a demonstration of that for a new diver, where we went for a swim and asked them to jerk my regulator out of my mouth, any time they wanted to...inhaling, exhaling..just don't let me know. It surprized them that you don't need to worry about that.

[bubble-head]

"No matter what happens, don't panic. Think things through and work through it. Panic kills divers more than anything else."

[Kingpatzer]

Before each dive, try to think of a reason you shouldn't dive. If you can come up with one, don't.