SCUBA diving, CMAS

SCUBA diving, CMAS

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Discussion

keo

2,019 posts

169 months

Sunday 26th November 2017
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I did my paddi about 10 years ago in Turkey. Only dived a couple of times since. I seem to struggle to equalise the pressure in my ears so that put me off a lot. I am looking at going Mexico or Thailand on holiday next year so I would like to go diving again.

Strudul

1,585 posts

84 months

Sunday 26th November 2017
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keo said:
I did my paddi about 10 years ago in Turkey. Only dived a couple of times since. I seem to struggle to equalise the pressure in my ears so that put me off a lot. I am looking at going Mexico or Thailand on holiday next year so I would like to go diving again.
Used to struggle with this, and had similar issues in the air.

- Hold nose and blow
- Swallow
- Wiggle jaw

Just keep on top of it, preemptively ideally, and don't let it build up.

Angrybiker

557 posts

89 months

Sunday 26th November 2017
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Try doing it more often, don't wait for pressure to build up. I often do it constantly while descending. If you have problems on one side tilt your head so the problem side is facing more up, while you equalise. There's also the tongue against the back of your mouth method too, which I use a lot.

Ayahuasca

27,427 posts

278 months

Sunday 26th November 2017
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Padi open water here. Done a few dives. On my first one it was a bit murky then two dolphins suddenly appeared and scared the st out of me.

My top tip - never forget to take your knife. I did once and fking nearly drowned when I got tangled in a rope.

Phud

1,262 posts

142 months

Monday 27th November 2017
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keo said:
I did my paddi about 10 years ago in Turkey. Only dived a couple of times since. I seem to struggle to equalise the pressure in my ears so that put me off a lot. I am looking at going Mexico or Thailand on holiday next year so I would like to go diving again.
As already has been said, hold nose, click jaw, also do it in your own time, never force a descent, nor force the equalization, take it at a speed good for you, don't let the pressure build up, if you find it had, come up a little, try to clear or wit and go down again.

No need to rush the descent.

RobM77

35,349 posts

233 months

Monday 27th November 2017
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Phud said:
keo said:
I did my paddi about 10 years ago in Turkey. Only dived a couple of times since. I seem to struggle to equalise the pressure in my ears so that put me off a lot. I am looking at going Mexico or Thailand on holiday next year so I would like to go diving again.
As already has been said, hold nose, click jaw, also do it in your own time, never force a descent, nor force the equalization, take it at a speed good for you, don't let the pressure build up, if you find it had, come up a little, try to clear or wit and go down again.

No need to rush the descent.
yes Plus start at the surface and relax. I have to admit though, after six years of diving I still find equalising really difficult and it takes me a long time to descend.

TeeRev

1,637 posts

150 months

Monday 27th November 2017
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Born again diver here. A mate and I both 17 bought a book and some secondhand kit and taught ourselves to dive in 1967. We then dived a lot off the South Coast, I did a Pro course in 1970 at Captain Hampton's in Dartmouth and got
work on the North Sea gas rigs, he did his course in 1971 and went on to do salvage work.

I met my wife in 1972 and we got married, it took a while but I decided that 3 weeks on and 1 off on what was in those days pretty hazardous work was not the best way to run a marriage so I went to work at Lillywhites in Piccadilly Circus testing and selling kit for a couple of years.

We then moved back to the South Coast and went into the building business, I carried on diving regularly until my early 30's when the kids came along and I lost interest. I then discovered windsurfing which became a lifelong obsession, I always did a lot of snorkelling on holidays though but by myself as my wife was just not interested in the water.

Ten years ago my wife was talked into trying snorkelling by the skipper of a day charter catarmaran in Antigua, she found out that fish were more frightened of her than she of them so she then started snorkelling with me on our windsurfing or yacht charter holidays.

Six years ago she was persuaded by a keen diver friend at a dinner party to try diving at the local school pool, I said I would come with her and she really enjoyed it so we did the Padi course together in the UK then went to Dahab to do our referral dives and get the open water ticket.

We have sailing and diving/windsurfing holidays most years, either in the Med, Red Sea or Caribbean and although my wife has now decided she isn't bothered any more I'm loving it again but only in warm clear water, I got the deep, dark and cold stuff out of my system 30 odd years ago, never again.

Although deep diving doesn't interest me any more I did the Padi advanced course in Antigua last winter and got an SSI nitrox ticket in Lanzarote this summer so I'm ready for my next dive trip, the Maldives and Manta Ray in March next year. Onward and downward.

seefarr

1,459 posts

185 months

Tuesday 28th November 2017
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New Open Water diver here! We did out pool work at Oyster Diving in London who were great. We then went and did our open water dives at Sandals Negril in Jamaica. Thoroughly recommend the dive team there who are an absolutely lovely bunch of blokes. We got chatting with some of the other divers over the week and most of them were repeat customers - one of them had been coming back to the same dive team for 10 years! Whilst we were there, we ticked off a 7 foot nurse shark, sea turtles, an absolute wall of small jellyfish and the worlds biggest crab in amongst all the smaller stuff. There's a couple of Cessnas sunk off the coast to pootle around as well as a couple of small ships for some variety.

We decided to separate out our pool and open dives because if my wife didn't like it in the pool for whatever reason, we wouldn't lose too much money on the booking. We also didn't want completing tests to dig into rum-time and the thought of open dives in the UK in November in a muddy reservoir wasn't attractive. We saw lots of cool stuff on our open water dives, so I don't feel like it was a waste at all.

keo said:
I did my paddi about 10 years ago in Turkey. Only dived a couple of times since. I seem to struggle to equalise the pressure in my ears so that put me off a lot. I am looking at going Mexico or Thailand on holiday next year so I would like to go diving again.
I was having problems too with one ear. I found this document explained lots of good combination techniques that worked well for me - practice before you dive:

https://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/faq/Ins...


Ayahuasca

27,427 posts

278 months

Tuesday 28th November 2017
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Prepping my last dive. Was a two day hike to get to the site, then an abseil down to it.

keo

2,019 posts

169 months

Tuesday 28th November 2017
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Thanks for the help/ tips everyone much appreciated.

Angrybiker

557 posts

89 months

Tuesday 28th November 2017
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Ayahuasca said:


Prepping my last dive. Was a two day hike to get to the site, then an abseil down to it.
Cenotes?

Ayahuasca

27,427 posts

278 months

Tuesday 28th November 2017
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Angrybiker said:
Cenotes?
Not cenotes, just holes carved by waterfalls.

Phud

1,262 posts

142 months

Wednesday 29th November 2017
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Ayahuasca said:
Not cenotes, just holes carved by waterfalls.
gold, gold, you must have found at least lots!!

Ayahuasca

27,427 posts

278 months

Wednesday 29th November 2017
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Phud said:
Ayahuasca said:
Not cenotes, just holes carved by waterfalls.
gold, gold, you must have found at least lots!!
I wish...