Next stop the beach..

Do you remember your first ever Discover Scuba dive?  AMAZING or what!! But there was that pesky steaming up of your mask, water leaking into it, flooding.. You know that major make or break time of enjoying your dive or just blindly swimming along – it was the one thing that put me off scuba diving for years, the thought of being underwater and actually getting water in my mask!  (Haha, sounds ridiculous now I have just wrote that actual sentence down) – however trying to remember too much when you are diving can take the enjoyment out of your dive..

So, I’m going to be honest here.. You will get water in your mask, there is no doubt about it..

But love your mask and it will love you right back..Here is what I have learnt since I started diving..

• When you get a new mask there is a thin film on the inside lens – this needs to be removed before you dive otherwise you may as well dive with your eyes closed, you will see nothing.. We remove ours by popping a little toothpaste into each lens and rubbing gently, leaving to soak, wash out, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat – it does take this long to remove all of the film but once it’s done it’s done – Hey presto!  I’ve seen some people burn it off with a lighter but if I’m honest I’d be pi%%ed if I melted the frame of my beautiful new diving mask..

• There’s fancy mask cleaning products you can buy to prepare your mask so it doesn’t steam up ahead of your dive but to be honest, you have at least a couple of homemade options – water and baby shampoo in a spray bottle is great, give your mask a couple of sprays before the dive, rinse and you should be steam free.. The other is saliva – spit in each lens, rub, leave, rinse.. Easy eh?

• Ok, you’ve removed the film (or at least you thought you had), rinsed and you go on to dive in your beautiful new mask and it steams up a little.. Argh!! To easily clear it, pop your thumb under the bottom of your mask and let a tiny bit of water in to clear it, swirl your head around and bravo!

• You will get water in your mask. Period. To clear water from your mask, put pressure on the top of your frame, breathe out of your nose and look up.. Water gone.. May I add, this is the only time you should breathe out of your nose during your dive – to clear your mask – otherwise it will just steam up again and again and again..

• Finally, you will smile when you see some of the incredible marine life our oceans have to offer and when you do, you may break the seal on your mask and let a bit of water in.. but you know what? Who cares now as you can clear your mask like a pro

I was so nervous about the mask thing it put me off scuba diving for years, I didn’t do my first Discover Scuba until I was 35!  That’s some years of missing out on the best times of my life and exploring a whole new world just because of getting a bit of water in my eyes.  My advice, if you are worried, is to push yourself out of your comfort zone and go for it, it really isn’t as bad as you may think.. In fact, it really isn’t bad at all.. What I have now is priceless and I can’t imagine a scuba diving free life..

Now I’m living in Phuket I get the opportunity to dive every week which I feel extremely lucky to be able to do so… If you’re a diver and are visiting Phuket then I’d recommend Super Divers in Patong – the company is run by two dive enthusiasts who have nothing but incredible passion for diving with an awesome team of Instructors who are all amazing ambassadors for this super cool brand. Happy Diving!