Keep Breathing

Howdy Peeps!
To all of our fellow Eat Travel Divers!

I'll start with what I found to be an inspiring photo, and YES I took it, but with Yummy Mummy's camera during her PADI Advanced Open Water Night dive... The following photo was taken in the worst possible conditions and during a night dive, with poor visibility - why bother some would say (in most cases I would have agreed). BUT, with no editing at all, the image came out like this; which just goes to show that something beautiful can come from the worst of conditions....

To begin my first post, and to try to conjure some Monday morning inspiration, to help you through the week ahead (and onwards) I have decided to start with one of those Inspirational Lululemon Quotes that Winnie posted previously:

So, being the dedicated Scuba Diver that I am, and following a successful technical dive just yesterday I have decided to start with:

“BREATHE DEEPLY and appreciate the moment.

Living in the moment could be the meaning of life.”

Where do I start? Breathing is to inhale and exhale, we all know how to do that (I hope), so let start there. Think of it this way, breathing is our body’s way of revitalising us with fresh oxygen getting rid of the stuff we don’t need. The deeper the breath the more refreshment our organs receive. But that’s not all. The way I look at it is a little more philosophical. To breathe in is to inspire.

With every breath I inhale, I revitalize and refresh my body for sure, but I also breathe in limitless possibilities of whatever I feel like in that particular moment. Take yesterday for example, my deep technical dive on an unknown wreck with new dive buddies. It was a nice easy 50m dive, I had my usual set up of twin tanks, and 2 decompression gases (50% and O₂ if your interested), and a relatively simple deco schedule (about 35 mins of deco if you're into that).

Initially I felt a little uneasy about the potential for errors (with new buddies, and my lack of familiarity with them). With deeper technical dives the simplest of mistakes can lead to accident, injury or worse. As I descended following the other members of my dive team, I had a rush of uncertainty and my mind was running every possible scenario, making me feel a little smidgen of stress and narcosis induced by the depth (an honest tec diver I am!!). When breathing at depth a diver needs to be relaxed, taking slow deep breaths. If not, the diver will chew through their gas supplies too quickly which can lead to even more problems and the cycle gets worse. Luckily, as I descended, I remembered that just the night before I had planned my dives and written my dive plan on my trusty wrist slate. I also remembered that my primary source of inspiration, Winnie, had written me a message on my slate. She told me not to look at it until I was on my dive. At precisely the moment I needed to read the message, I flipped my wrist slate to the page Winnie had written the message. The message really lifted my spirits (I'm keeping most of the message to myself) and part of the message, which would seem trivial to a non-diver, inspired me.

Winnie's message simply said:

”..Keep Breathing..”

This reminded me of the Lululemon quote I wrote at the start of this post, and instantly made me smile. My smile underwater was both a physical smile, and an internal mental lift also. I have to say that this was mostly due to the fact that the thought of Lululemon and Winnie’s addiction to it made me laugh, which relaxed me. This then had me thinking about Yoga and how one of our teachers always says it’s good to laugh, it releases endorphins. So, I laughed and smiled and then as I felt relaxed, my breathing rate returned to normal. Feeling the release of the stress and some of the narcosis, I penetrated into the hull of the intact wreck, enjoyed the dive and with every breath I felt alive, in the moment and present to the wreck that I was exploring. I was connected to a piece of history not just a wreck on the ocean floor. I felt like I had captured the secret to the meaning of being alive. It gave me an awesome high for the rest of the day (and a strange head rush).

After the dive, the message stayed in my head and the whole idea that breathing could inspire me, got me to thinking. If breathing can inspire me to feel so connected to the exact moment I was in, and connected to my whole life and everything that’s important right now, PLUS keep me alive… WOW! I’m hooked on this thing they call breathing deeply ! Give me more!

So, take a few moments for yourself today. Take some quiet deep breaths away from what is going on in your life. Let the oxygen revitalise you, and let the act of breathing in flood you with the possibility of whatever it is that you want for YOU in that moment. Let your exhalations release any tensions and negative feelings. With every slow, deep inhalation let yourself surrender to the moment. Let the oxygen refresh and inspire you. Let everything go.

Create a space for new ideas, fond memories and your creativity to connect. You might surprise yourself.

So what inspired you today? Was it the rising of the sun, the feeling you get when you drink a cool glass of water? Was it something simple and innocent like your child kissing you and saying “I Love You, Mummy”?

Whatever it is that lifts your spirits, take a few moments to breathe deeply and connect to that moment.

Enjoy the gift of today!