As my younger son ’ s third birthday loomed , I knew that if I didn ’ t get back to it soon , I ’ d be starting from scratch . Or , more likely , not starting at all . So I dug my kit out of the loft , got my regulators serviced , then took the plunge and sent an email to my local BSAC club , Mid-Herts .
So here I am . The pool is busy , with people doing everything from try dives to twin set configuration . There ’ s a healthy mix of men and women , young and old – and half a dozen people say friendly hellos between the gate and the compressor . Could these be my new crowd of like-minded and interesting dive pals ? Training Officer Russ and I talk through what diving I ’ ve done , how confident I ’ m feeling , and the best way to kickstart my journey . In the next session , I ’ ll get in the pool to ‘ see where the rusty bits are ’ and go from there .
At home , I watch YouTube videos of basic skills drills and remind myself of the buddy check checklist . I stand outside my six-yearold ’ s tap-dancing class , visualizing deploying a dSMB , trying to awaken some muscle memory . My fear isn ’ t the skills themselves ; they ’ re bound to have faded a bit . My greater concern is the things I don ’ t remember that I ’ ve forgotten – and won ’ t necessarily realize I don ’ t know until it ’ s critical . I need to trust that the experienced divers at the club will guide me through the practice I need to get back to diving safely .
The following week , I take my first breaths through my regs and the nerves float away . Instructor Chris Jiggins and I complete a short tour of the bottom of the pool , and I ’ m relieved to feel the memory there : an instinctive movement to adjust my BCD , a snort to clear my mask – it feels okay . And for 40 minutes my mind is clear – no juggling to-do lists , after-school pick-up logistics , or worrying about whether anyone has remembered to put the bins out .
We do mask clears , remove and replace , retrieving regulators , alternate air sources , and controlled buoyant lifts . It ’ s not super
" I take my first breaths through my regs and the nerves float away "
Happy and ready to dive
smooth , but it ’ s not terrible either . Most importantly , I ’ m reassured that yes , this is something I want to invest time in . I bounce home , thrilled with myself .
Quarrying
The next step is to head to our local inland site , a silty flooded quarry , for more skills and time underwater . Getting my kit together , I get another reminder of the realities of UK diving : it ’ s expensive . My torch doesn ’ t work anymore . My dive computer is dead . And I don ’ t fit into my drysuit . Apparently , drysuits often shrink as you hit middle age . Thankfully , I find a donated drysuit in the club kit room that will do the job until I can sort a new one .
The night before the dive , my mind throws up halfremembered news stories of parents killed in avalanches and in catastrophic mountain bike accidents . I don ’ t want to live an adventure-free life , or teach my children that life is about saying no to risk . But my subconscious is clearly grappling in the background .
The dive – max depth 10m – goes to plan . The lake is warmer than I expect , the borrowed drysuit behaves itself , and the little
Rescue drills with the CPR manikin
shoals of perch are pretty enough . With the calm help of Instructor Chris , another layer of rust is scrubbed off my skills , and I complete a commendably competent SMB deployment .
Back home , my husband Joe walks in to the smell – and clutter – of a kitchen draped in drying neoprene . ‘ Ah ,’ he smiles . ‘ I remember this ,’ and moves a fin to reach the fridge . The afternoon is punctuated by my children taking turns to bop each other on the head with an inflated SMB and asking why you might need a knife underwater ( first guess : ‘ to kill fish ’). They ’ re also intrigued by the idea of breathing the air from the yellow cylinders lined up in the corner of the kitchen . My return to diving has become a family affair .
A couple more early morning dives at the lake and a session poolside to refresh O2 and AED ( Automated External Defibillator ) skills , and the club instructors agree I ’ m ready to progress depth . I arrange a day off work and head to Stoney Cove with Instructor Clive Murphy .
Settled on a platform , I run my skills – mask remove and replace , regulator recovery , switching to my pony regulator , switching to my buddy ’ s alternate , and a controlled buoyant lift . As the cold water floods around my eyes and nose – so much colder than I expect – a note of panic rings in my brain .
Pasty time with fellow Mid Herts divers
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