COLORADO Diver Training
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PANIC UNDERWATER
There is general agreement that panic behavior is one of the primary reasons for diving related injuries and fatalities, and there is good evidence that certain types of individuals are more likely to panic while scuba diving - William P. Morgan Ed. D. Anxiety and Panic in Recreational Scuba Divers, December 1995 of Sports Medicine. What is panic disorder in a diver? Defined as a situation where the diver behaves in an irrational manner. How common is panic in divers? 54% reported panic episodes on one or more occasions while diving. The proportion of women reporting panic was 64%. However, the percentage of men (48%) who perceived the episodes as life threatening was higher than the percentage reported by women divers (35%). How about past diving experience? Divers with many years of experience sometimes encounter panic for no apparent reason. One theory is that panic may occur in such cases because divers lose sight of familiar objects and experience a form of sensory deprivation. This problem has been labeled the Blue Orb Syndrome. How about the type of diving activity? Diving with faulty or inappropriate equipment, or performing high-risk dives that are characterized by environmental stressors, will have greater potential for panic episodes. However, it should be noted that the problems can be prevented or minimized with appropriate training and cautionary actions. Should instructors discourage some individuals who are prone to panic from scuba diving? It has been possible to predict panic behavior with an accuracy of 86 %. Instructors should be encouraged to pay attention to those students who have a tendency to panic when exposed to routine activities during training exercises.
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Per some certification agency standards, an instructor MUST certify a student if they complete their open water skills. But what if they are prone to panic and simply have not yet overcome the reaction to shoot to the surface, but they have compleated their skills?
Are we rushing the training by allowing at home study and shortening the time a student spends with their instructor simply because people want everything done faster and the industry wants more business?
Should instructors be able to withold certification if a student shows a tendency to panic until they have had more dive time to become more comfortable and not panic?
Let us know what you think?
