Starting an Outdoor Adventure course at university back in 2019, I thought it would be the most amazing thing, getting to try all of these incredible sports that are freeing and have such thrill behind them. I was gutted when most people on my course were already involved with one or most of these sports, meaning that I always felt one step behind everyone when picking up a new sport.
University took us to Lanzarote in January 2023 for two weeks to do geology for a week. Then, we had the option of diving or exploring the island for the second week, and of course, I had to try diving because I might never have the opportunity to do it again, especially with everything planned out for me. Diving gave me such a fright when I first started that I thought, once again, it was something I would have to pass on as something I tried and failed. My first dive was awful! I cried out of sheer panic because my body was breathing underwater when it shouldn’t be. I’ve never been afraid of the ocean, but being able to see it so clearly and feeling so unsteady in all this new equipment made me frightened. I didn’t know what to focus on, especially in a group with four of my friends. I didn’t have the instructor’s full attention, so I psyched myself out, thinking that if something went wrong, he wouldn’t notice. But little did I know at the time, by the end of the week, I’d have an open water qualification and be speaking to the company owner about joining them in September for my dive masters! Within 11 months, I’d gone from freaking out to not being able to get enough of the underwater world.
I fell utterly in love with sea life, bubbles, the feeling of being in a different world, and learning so much about it. My dive master course was one of the best things I’ve ever decided to do. Diving became my thing, as I was one of two people on my course to take it up further, and it feels great to have found such a love for something I never imagined myself being interested in, let alone being so involved with. Diving is something that frees my mind. Being underwater and surrounded by so much blue is just so calming. I didn’t want to leave Lanzarote in December 2023 after being there for three months and diving two to three times a day, but it came to an end after receiving my certificate, and I had to go back to see my family. I got home and spent five weeks in the city before booking a weekend trip just to go and dive with my buddies for two days. I have also already booked a week-long diving holiday for September.
Diving is just one of those things that if you get hooked, then the ocean is constantly calling… so give it a go! Yes, it might make you frightened, but doesn’t everything worth doing?
