Freediving and Mental Health

Freediving is 60% Self-Regulation. The Rest is Relaxation.

Freediving, with its emphasis on breath control, attention and awareness to self, and a sense of surrendering to self, is almost exactly what I teach in therapy through different skill sets such as self-regulation.

Self-regulation is the insight and awareness to recognize dysregulation through physiological cues–this is called interoception. That is learning how to listen to the body and nervous system by sensing the nervous system. It is the capacity to change or inhibit thoughts, emotions, and impulses.

Then, by utilizing specific tools and techniques, we can return the autonomic nervous system to a regulated state. This is exactly what we do in freediving. If you can self-regulate, you can relax. And you can do anything in a relaxed state-body.

Once my clients have grasped this, we move on to the breathwork aspects of relaxation. When we can do this with more ease in freediving, we settle into beautiful, serene dives.

The Most Powerful Protective Response

Freediving gives us access, every time we dive, to the most powerful protective response all mammals have–the mammalian dive response. It’s an autonomic response or reflex that sets a virtuous healing cycle in place. It starts with a lowered heart rate, a shift in attention and awareness, slowed breath, or more regular breathing, and the op tempo of the body slows down.

Since this adaptation fosters a survival mechanism and the adaptations shift from threat-seeking to connection and relaxation, it takes us into our parasympathetic nervous system, or “rest and digest.” In freediving, this is known as the dive response.

It becomes something freedivers seek out unintentionally. It probably accounts for why we feel so good after diving. In therapy, you learn about your stress response and how these aspects of your typical reactions to tension and stress in your day-to-day life create a mobilization response, and then learn adaptive coping strategies to mitigate stress. The mechanisms of intentionally entering into a “rest and digest” state, or the parasympathetic nervous system, take folks from being in a state of mobilization to relaxation, again creating beneficial conditions for healing.

Awareness and Breath: The Foundation of Every Dive

Mastering your attention and breath is crucial in both therapy and freediving. In therapy, breathwork helps you stay grounded, calm, and present. Freediving is similar–that one final breath has to sustain you through your dive. Learning to control your breath is like learning to control your thoughts and emotions; it’s about finding your center and calm amidst the chaos.

This is where things can get tricky for some folks, but the learning process grows you meaningfully. As you keep practicing, you learn what you are capable of and what you can overcome. Think about it this way: if you just keep going, take the next breath, try the next dive, and go just a bit deeper each time, you build up a series of successes. You chose your hard. It’s like that in therapy; you chose to be there. Building attention works the same way. In freediving, attention is almost effortless, and I call it a back door approach to becoming fully attentive and aware of one’s self. And who doesn’t like looking at fish?

Before a dive, freedivers relax their bodies and calm their minds with a specific breathing technique to get centered, regulated, and relaxed. Similarly, in therapy, breathwork exercises help you self-regulate, which means you can manage anxiety and stay focused.

The Dive Plan

The moment you start your descent in a dive session, it is akin to the beginning of a therapy session. You’re diving down a preselected or set-out plan. In therapy, we have a treatment plan. In freediving, we have a dive plan that lays out the depth, the time, safety protocols, and the roles of the divers. The plan is necessary to explore your experiences or the ocean. Both require courage, patience, and a willingness to confront whatever lies beneath the surface.

As you descend, you feel the pressure increasing, much like the emotional pressure you feel when delving into deep-seated issues in therapy. But with each kick and equalization, you learn to adapt, to manage the pressure, and to keep moving forward. It’s about flowing through the discomfort. This is when you discover your levels of grit and determination.

When a student and I surface from a dive and after they complete their recovery breaths and surface protocol, it’s amazing to see the unmitigated joy from someone making a goal; it’s also equally amazing to see some faces crumple into tears for the same reason. It happens much the same in therapy. I have joked with other freedive instructors that you are a therapist if you have a freediving float and a line for training. While we are decompressing from the dive, emotions and old mental scripts show up and we can release them in the water. Good work happens on the dive float.

The Journey: It’s Not Just About Depth

Freediving is not just about reaching the bottom or about depth. It’s about the journey, the exploration. In therapy, the process of self-discovery is similar. You navigate through memories, emotions, and thoughts like a freediver navigating underwater caves and coral reefs.

Each session or dive reveals something new, something unexpected. Even facing fears, like encountering different ocean challenges with currents and waves, parallels confronting intense memories in therapy. Understanding how to interact with these fears helps reduce the impact of triggers and a “feelings flashback” and helps us develop advanced coping skills.

In therapy and freediving, you learn to embrace the unknown, be present in the moment, and trust your instincts. It’s a different type of self-control, where you allow yourself to be guided by your body’s signals. Whether swimming with fish or in your thoughts, the journey is where the magic happens.

Surface Intervals: Processing and Reflecting

After each dive, freedivers must spend time at the surface, allowing their bodies to recover and physiologically process the experience. Similarly, in therapy, the days between sessions are your surface intervals. These are the times when you reflect on the insights gained, process your emotions, and prepare for the next dive into your psyche.

Surface intervals are crucial for both freedivers and therapy-goers. They provide the necessary pause to let everything sink in, to catch your breath, and to integrate the experiences. During these intervals, you rest, consider what you have learned, and prepare for the next go-round.

Recovery Breaths: Finding Your Balance

After a dive, freedivers take recovery breaths to stabilize themselves. In therapy, recovery breaths are when you find your balance after processing or talking. Whether through vagus nerve work, grounding exercises, or simply taking a moment to breathe, these practices help you regain your equilibrium.

Recovery breaths are about finding your footing, ensuring you’re stable and ready to face the world again. It’s a crucial part of freediving and therapy, reminding you that it’s okay to take a moment, breathe, and find your balance.

You aren't alone

In freediving, having a dive buddy is essential. The number one rule in freediving is to never dive alone. In session, your therapist guides you through the process. They help you navigate the tricky parts of your subconscious, ensuring you don’t get lost or have a negative mental encounter.

Your dive buddy is there for safety and support, much like your therapist in your emotional journey. They help you explore safely. It’s a cooperative relationship to ensure everyone on the dive team has fun while ensuring everyone is safe. The relationship is a crucial aspect of freediving.

Decompression: Easing Back into Reality

Just as freedivers ascend with proper propulsion and use specific protocols to avoid the bends, easing back into the surface, doing specific recovery breathing, and passing a neuro check, “I’m okay!” therapy requires a gentle decompression. After diving deep into your emotions, you can’t just leap back into daily life. You need time to transition and let the insights settle.

Therapists often use the last few minutes of the session to help you decompress, discussing lighter topics or planning practical steps for the week ahead. This is your chance to adjust from deep introspection to the everyday grind, ensuring you don’t experience an emotional version of the bends. They might even ask you if you plan to get into the ocean over the weekend.