Breathing problems?

[kizza 0]

Hey guys, I am new to the world of skydiving and have just yesterday completed my first AFF jump. It was an awesome experience. Can't wait for stage 2.

Anyway the only problem I had after exit (other than a moment of sensory overload) was that as we reached terminal velocity I found it pretty hard to breath. It felt as though I was sort of suffocating, then I realised it was probably more like hyper ventilation.

Soon I realised it was time to start doing the PRP's and check my height etc and I just got on with it, got down on the ground, the instructor said I did great and I was passed for stage 2. But I am curious, do other people have any breathing problems in freefall? If so how did you overcome them?

Edit: Noticed I probably should have posted this in Safety & Training forum, sorry about that.

[newshooter12 0]

there are a few good words about remembering to breath in this years SIM
Mike X has ingrained in my head that breathing is no different on the ground, in the plane or in freefall. He pulled me aside before a the loads i was on with him and reminded me to take a deep breath before going to the door and then one as soon as you exit just to remind myself that i can. It also helped to relax me. I can't say this sport is all mental, but the hardest parts to conquer for me so far have been just that... mind over matter.
Hope this helps from one low timer to another.
matt

[newshooter12 0]

here's a more specific link within the ISP

Quote

Mental Relaxation: The Key to Body Flight

In the early Categories, like a magic mantra, you'll hear over and over again from your instructors: "Altitude, arch, legs, relax." Managing all four points at once is the key to controlled freefall.

After altitude awareness, relaxing is your key goal. It takes only a little push from the hips to get an effective arch, and you usually need to extend your legs only a little to get use of them in the wind. But you need to relax your other muscles a lot.

So how can a brand-new skydiver relax in such an adrenaline-charged, exciting, and new environment?

Sports psychologists all recognize the value of staying loose and mentally relaxed for peak performance. Many describe ways to achieve a state of prepared relaxation. Each athlete learns to develop one technique and uses it to gain that state before and sometimes during every performance.

Almost all the techniques begin with slower, deeper, controlled breathing. Learn to breathe from deep in your lungs, using the muscles of your diaphragm. Practice breathing in slowly until your lungs are full and then emptying your lungs completely when you breathe out.

While you practice controlled breathing, you can use one of several suggested devices to relax your mind and your body:


Imagine yourself in a familiar, comfortable place, trying to visualize every sensual experience that you can associate with it: sight, sound, odor, taste, and touch. Picture the colors of the background and the details, try to smell the air as it would be, imagine you hear the sounds, and feel the air on your face. Imagine you just took a sip of your favorite drink.

Relax your body part by part, starting with your toes, then your ankles, calves, thighs, hips, abdomen, etc., spending five to ten seconds in each place while continuing your controlled breathing.

Count up to ten with each breath and then backward to zero.
There are many other relaxation techniques you can borrow or develop, but choose one and practice it until you perfect it, even when you're not skydiving. That way, you can relax yourself quickly and effectively whenever the need arises-such as just before a skydive.
You should continue controlling your breathing as you're getting ready to jump. Move slowly and deliberately in the aircraft as you approach the door and get into position, not only for safety but to help you maintain your relaxed, prepared state for the jump. Take another breath just before you actually launch from the aircraft and again to help you settle into freefall as soon as you let go. Make breathing part of every sequence, especially as you go through your "altitude, arch, legs, relax" sequence.

While skydiving is inherently a high-speed sport, you'll notice that the best skydivers never do anything in a hurry.

[kizza 0]

Thanks, I appreciate that, but I don't think my problem is taking deep breaths, it's exhaling. I find it hard to breath out properly when theres 200 kph of air rushing in!

[newshooter12 0]

Then think in MPH and it'll seem slower...
I still think it's just a mental block. The person i knew that had "trouble" breathing said she felt it was hard to breath in. Just the opposite of what you're describing. Your next jump if it is anything like my 2nd AFF jump... the instructors will keep you so busy with thing to pay attention to and do that you'll breath without even thinking about it. But if you're mouth is still hanging wide open, watch out for bugs...lol. Just kidding about the bugs.
matt

[skytash 0]

I had a friend who had the same problem and her instructor recommended she chew some gum. This seemed to work. If your instructor is happy for you to chew gum while jumping, give it a go!

tash

Don't ever save anything for a special occasion. Being alive is a special occasion. Avril Sloe

[dayle 0]

I'll tell you it's all mental....which it is. I've had the same thing happen to me, even after a number of jumps. Occasionally I feel it's a little difficult, that's when I just say to myself relax and breath through your nose. Everything will be fine.
If you can remember back to it, you may have found it difficult to breath but did you notice you were still breathing, I mean you didn't find yourself short of oxygen.
It's a freaky feeling but you'll get over it. What someone earlier said about relaxation is key.

Dayle

[payback462 0]

just remember if you chew gum, dont open your mouth!!
theyres nothing like having to wipe off the gum splattered all over your face once you get under canopy

[SkySlut 0]

You would be extremely suprised at how many people dont breath in freefall at all. Its fairly common to have irregular breathing. I would tend to say that it does come from relaxation. The best way to relax is to breath. They are deeply intertwined with each other. If you sit there and hold your breath you will notice that your muscles will tense up, if you tense up your muscles as hard as you can you will notice that your breathing has changed or you are holding your breath alltogether. So when I teach AFF students about the "relax" hand signal, I tell them that it means to breath. Telling someone to relax when they are all worked up, can make it worse. Breathing on the other hand is a bit more effective. Its kinda a body awareness thing. Check yourself out while you are in the plane on your next jump, are you sweating, shortness of breath, clamy hands??? These are all signs of stress, relaxation techniques (there are a buttload of them and different ones work for different people) may help you.

Breathing will make you skydive better:Antecdotal story-a study was done on one of the top 4 way teams in the world. How did they breath in freefall??? The study showed that they were holding their breath during a good portion of the jumps. So they focused on breathing in between points, etc. Their average improved by a couple of points just from breathing/relaxing in freefall. Go figure.

[SkySlut 0]

oh, also I would highly recommend NOT chewing gum. That is from an instructors point of view. I havent ever heard that helping, but I wouldnt want one of my students choking in freefall. ALL BAD!!!

[mustard 0]

I totally agree with not chewing gum. Imagine a student opening his/her mouth and then choking on it. Yikes! I don't let my students do it. I have heard several students complain about not being able to breathe in freefall, which always puzzles me since I've never experienced it. Tend to think it must be mental, as pointed out here. I also tell students to take a deep breath and then let it out on exit. It's great to see a student doing that, and I've got nothing but good feedback from that technique.

Exiting the airplane tends to make people very tense. Then if you're holding your breath, maybe you have a visceral reaction when your body says you've got to take a breath and you notice you're not breathing? Anybody got any ideas about this?

***
DJan

[Michele 1]

Quote

Then if you're holding your breath, maybe you have a visceral reaction when your body says you've got to take a breath and you notice you're not breathing? Anybody got any ideas about this?

O.K., just tried holding my breath, and then taking a breath without - without - exhaling. Made me gasp and cough. Maybe the issue isn't getting air in necessarily, but getting the old air out first.

How about thinking about exhaling....breathe in through the nose and actively blow with your mouth? I had to remember to do this when I entered some industrial haze the other day. Scared me, so I started holding my breath. Not good, and noticed it quickly, and so in through the nose, out through the mouth....and then I tried to smile....smiling's good.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[kizza 0]

Points taken guys, I think it's probably right to say if I'm busy doing things then I forget about it... I know the worst was the first few seconds of the jump, then when I got into all the stuff I had to do I think I stopped thinking about it.

Thanks for all the advice :)

[Luna 0]

One other pointer: make sure that your head is up, i.e. you are not looking at the ground. When I first started out, this was a problem for me. Not only does it make breathing difficult, it also contributes to instability. I've been able to feel the difference in my stability when I remember to lift my head up. Good luck!

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