Snorkeling for Chickens. About This Page:

[graygables]

I am severely claustrophobic and not a good swimmer. I tend to panic if I can't touch the bottom. I know, I know. It makes me feel very foolish, but it's the way it is. I guess it's what happens when one's swim teacher pushes a 9yo into an Olympic diving pool and says, "tread" and then one has to be fished out with a rescue pole, spluttering and in tears. Maybe it's valid after all.

Anyhow...14yo loves to swim and wants to snorkel. 11yo loves to swim and would like to snorkel, but is worried (she has panic disorder).

I guess the big question is, how deep is the snorkeling area? Any suggestions for a very fearful, not very good swimmer? The vest thingy doesn't help as I tried it out when we were on the stingray excursion and I still didn't feel secure. Are there real life jackets (and are there pooh-sizes available)?

[Marv]

Sorry I can't answer your questions, but just wanted to let you know you are not alone in the "chicken" area. A few years ago DS wanted to snorkel at Typhoon Lagoon (picture the small pool that is!) and I about had panic attacks when I was listening to the instructions. DS kept encouraging me that I could do it, so I walked to the actual snorkeling area. I put the mask and mouthpiece on and then I ripped it off and bailed. I just couldn't do it.

[Colexis Mom]

The snorkeling area at CC will go over your head! However, you walk in from the beach, so you can go as far (deep) as you want. Just remember that the shallower you stay, you won't get a good view of much!

[Dave Marx]

Take this one step at a time. Forget about the deep water - if you're uncomfortable with the snorkel, fins, and mask, you'll never make it out into deeper water.

The biggest issue for most beginners is getting used to the idea of being face-down in the water and trusting the snorkel and mask. So, you start easy, just sitting in shallow water, bending over to put face in water and get used to breathing through the snorkel (sitting gives you more confidence, of course). Don't try to swim until after you feel confident breathing through the snorkel. there will be moments of panic - it's built into our genes. You have to teach your body that this strange thing is OK.

Water will almost definitely find its way into the snorkel at some point, so you also practice blowing water back out of the snorkel (hard puff without first taking a breath). You'll want bottles of fresh water with you (clipped to your belt, tethered on a string, whatever), to rinse those salty mouths.

You don't (and can't) wear "regular" life jackets while snorkeling. You wear inflatable vests (and yes, they have Pooh size), and the point is that if you're too buoyant, you can't get your face down into the water. They're mouth-inflated, and you adjust them so you have enough support to stay afloat without effort, but not so much that the vest wants to roll you over (which is what happens when a large, heavy object is balanced on top of a small, buoyant object). The human body is naturally very close to "neutral density," which is to say, cubic inch for cubic inch, our bodies weigh just about as much as the water they push aside. Our bodies are mostly water, after all. What's more, since you'll be in salt water, which has greater density than the fresh water in our bodies, swimming in sea water enhances our natural buoyancy. The air in our lungs is lighter than water, our bones are heavier, but it all comes very close to balancing out. You only need a little extra buoyancy to remain afloat - a few puffs of air into one of those vests. (An adult rescue life vest - the kind you wear at lifeboat drill - needs just 15 pounds of positive buoyancy to keep nearly any adult reliably afloat, though they normally provide significantly more than that, to instill confidence.)

The other issue is... fins. You really can't accomplish much in terms of snorkeling without them. They greatly amplify your kicking motion so that you can swim at slow-moderate speed with nearly no effort. Trouble is, they're not something to walk in. You sit in the water, slip them on, and try to float out to where you can start paddling asap (fortunately, not very deep). It's very common for folks to try to walk out into deeper water, and take a header.

Challenges with any of these things (oh, and water getting into your mask) all have potential for frustration, discomfort, or even panic. So take it slow and easy! The rental equipment is yours for the whole day, so you don't have to be in a hurry to master all of this in a few minutes. And whichever of you succeed and are able to really explore, it can be amazing, a feeling of freedom and relative power in the water that can open that whole new world.

[graygables]

Wow, Dave. THANK YOU! Fantastic and informative (as usual). I know that if I can get my brain around the fears, that is a huge first step, so your instructions are a great help there. I'm also counting on the knowledge that Disney is all about safety, so if I do panic, someone will be there to help me. At this point, I'm not even sure if I care about seeing anything, I'd just like to get past the panic mode.

Michelle, thank YOU for sharing your experience. It really does help to know I am not alone in this seemingly irrational fear of mine and if I do wind up ripping off the mask in a panic, I won't be alone in that reaction!

Marnie, thank you, too! I can keep reminding myself that I have control over how deep I go, so that helps in my wonky brain as well.

[Dave Marx]

You're quite welcome!

If you read the Dune books, you know that "Fear is the mind-killer."

As you may recall from my bio, I taught whitewater safety and rescue (mostly, personal safety and avoiding the need for rescue ). One of the tidbits I'd teach my students is that a panicking swimmer (in a white water rapid, wearing a life jacket) is more likely to hyperventilate than to inhale water. Your face gets wet, the first thing your body instinctively wants to do is grab all the air it can get (why do you think you gasp after a cold splash of water in the morning?). So, one of the first things to do is to get your breathing back under control and start thinking clearly.

[Pris]

And to give you a laugh, when I read your title, I couldn't imagine where you were going to find chickens under water to see while snorkeling! Funny how our mind works!