Freediving: diving without any breathing apparatus, relying solely on your ability to hold your breath and stay calm.

 

   For the past couple of months, I had been doing breathing exercises to increase my breath hold, so when the day of my first freedive came, I felt confident in my breath holding ability. An experienced freediver was present during my dive to ensure my safety. We arrived at a spot in the water that was roughly 80 feet deep and had a sand patch at the bottom surrounded by coral heads. He attached a weighted line to the back of the boat, through a float, and the line then extended down into the water from the float. 

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   I got into the water and the experienced diver walked me through what was going to happen:

"Hold onto one of these handles on the side of the float, put your snorkel in your mouth, look down to the bottom, and completely relax yourself. When you are ready give me an 'ok' sign, take a couple more big breaths, pop your snorkel out, and head down the line.”

 

   I looked down, closed my eyes, and relaxed my mind and body until I was ready to descend. Once ready, I began to pull myself down the line and stopped at about 15 feet. I stayed there for a few seconds, looking at the vast ocean surrounding me. This was the moment I realized how incredibly massive the ocean is. I was in a completely undiscovered world. 

 

   After staying at 15 feet for a few seconds, I began to pull myself back up the line and held onto the float for a few minutes. I once again relaxed myself before returning to roughly the same spot, 15-20 feet down, where I then returned to the surface a few seconds later. When I was finally comfortable to go deeper, I descended to about 45 feet. With my competitive nature, I knew I could go further. I went down to 52 feet, then 56 feet, coming back up to the surface in between descents. I was beginning to feel cold, so I knew I would only descend once more.  

 

   On my last descent, I pulled myself down the line (which was only extended 58 feet into the water). When I reached the end of the line, I held onto the weight attached to the bottom and let my legs dangle below me. As I was pulling myself up, I spotted a trigger fish off in the distance and wondered about all the parts of the ocean it had seen. Soon, I felt a need for air, so I tried to distract myself by staying focused on the surface of the water. I finally reached the surface and looked at my dive watch that read: 60 ft. 1 minute, 12 seconds. I couldn't help but smile. 

"How was it?" my mom asked from the boat.

"That was the most amazing thing I have ever done," I said.

 

   It was the most surreal and therapeutic experience I’ve ever had. The idea that I was in total control of almost everything was very peaceful. There were no voices to interfere with my thoughts. It was just me and the low humming noise of the ocean.