Diving with Mani and Dominik to new depths – for me anyway 🙂
The call of the deep. Interesting. Fascinating. New. I always wondered why people want to dive deep. Well, after my first experience of euphoria in the cold depths of a lake things have become clearer. Much clearer.
However, as I’ve learned today, there is a dark side to this feeling of bliss. It can turn into anxiety. A short moment of slight desorientation and it hit me like a wave. Breathe. Stay calm. Signal your buddy. Hope you have a buddy as awesome as Mani. Ascend. Just a bit. Slowly. No rushing to the surface. Breathe. Slowly. Watch the wave of anxiety recede. Check your gear. Pressure gauges? Good? All good.
It was an important experience. Next time, I’ll pay close attention to how I feel at depth. Even in between taking pictures. If I feel uneasy: Stop. Focus your eyes on something. Wait till you calm down. Maybe ascend a bit.
It took only a couple of meters upwards to make the feeling pass. I was even able to enjoy the rest of the dive. But if you are unprepared and alone, diving without redundancies as most recreational divers do, I’m sure the situation can deteriorate quickly.
