What Scuba Diving and Breathwork Taught Me About Staying Calm Under Pressure

A scuba certification requires learning how to breathe without panic while underwater. During a mask-flooding exercise at about 30 feet, salt water entered the nose and breathing sped up, causing blurry vision and chest tightness. The instructor stabilized the diver by matching slow breathing patterns, allowing the diver to clear the mask and continue. Underwater, there is no option to stop or bail, so the only way through is controlling breathing. A key rule is never holding breath. Breathing affects consciousness and safety, and correct breathing also helps maintain buoyancy. Slow, deep breaths with longer exhales reduce anxiety compared with shallow, fast breaths.

"I was 30 feet underwater, kneeling on the sandy sea floor of Nari Nari, when my scuba instructor Brian told me to flood my mask-a skill every budding diver needs to complete before getting certified. So I cracked the seal. Immediately, salt water rushed across my face and into my nose. My breathing sped up. I tried to clear the mask by forcing air out of my nostrils. I failed. I tried again. My vision got blurry. My chest tightened."

"But Brian caught up with me quickly. He grabbed my vest and held his hand in front of me, moving it slowly up and down until I matched his breathing. After a few cycles, my heart rate settled enough for me to clear my mask and continue the dive. If it was any other activity, I would've bailed. However deep underwater, you don't have that option. The only way through is to get your breathing under control."

"From the first lesson, one rule is drilled in: Never hold your breath. "How you breathe dictates how the dive goes," Stephen J. Aynsley, a scuba meditation specialty course director with Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) told me in an interview. "You have to breathe continuously to remain conscious and safe, but you also have to breathe correctly to maintain good buoyancy. It's one of the few body systems that you can consciously and subconsciously control.""

"Newbie divers often take shallow, fast breaths, which are more likely to make you feel anxious as you're not getting enough oxygen, Aynsley explains. But the goal is slow, deep breaths: long inhales with even longer exhales, the same pattern used in many on-land meditation practices. I've personally dabbled in"

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