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SilentJ

how long did it take you to get over sensory overload

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I don't know that I had much of a "sensory overload" after my first jump or two, but I definitely had tunnel vision for a while... actually, it wasn't until I did my first linked exit that I even saw someone else in freefall, even though I had done several before that with an instructor in the air with me (static line progression... I was told to do turns using the ground to judge heading, so that's all I was aware of until I had someone actively holding on to me, grinning at me).

M

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:ph34r: Too funny. When describing to friends that are taking a first jump, sensory overload is howe I describe it to them also.
For me it is a matter of currency in my jumping. If I take a few weeks of, or coming out of a shitty winter, I notice that my perceptions, recollections and reaction times are off. Normally in about 5 to 10 jumps I'm back to normal.
Coming off of student status, I think it was about 30 jumps before I remeber seeing things in freefall. Not having tunnel vision, watching someone else take grips, seeing some one across the formation struggle to put the brakes on and not overshoot their slot.
JJ
JJ

"Call me Darth Balls"

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How many jumps did it take you before all your senses were not overloaded and every was in technique color.


I did static line so I did 6 or 7 jumps before I had time to overload. Even then it didn't really hit me until my 14th jump, a 20 second delay, when the instructor went poised and I dove. I came off the hill, looked out, and there he was, 20 feet away. I just stared for a second or two until my brain was like, "Dude! Back to work!"

Related note, I never noticed myself smiling in freefall until my 30th jump.

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It took me awhile to get past having sensory overload at some point during the dive. I don't think I saw the plane after falling away until about my 5th jump, even though I know my eyes were open. I remember during my first two jumps in AFF (my jumps #15 and #16), I wasn't really able to stop and think about what my JM was telling me to do. It felt like I was just going through the motions while all this stuff was happening around me.

I'm still a newbie... about 8 jumps past AFF. On my last dive, a coached jump, I realized I was kind of doing the same thing. We left our little cessna, matched fall rates and he docked on me, and then he backslid. Once he backslid I fell away from him and worked to match fall rates again, while at the same time, trying to get some forward motion. I think my trying to "get big" pretty much cancelled out most of the forward motion I was generating, and I wasn't doing such a good job at either. So I was doing a pisspoor job of slowing down and moving forward for about 3,ooo ft.

What I should have done: Kept dearching and tried to match fall rate again, forgetting about the dock until I had my fall rate figured out. But I was in "sensory overload", and what I actually did was got back into my regular arch, at which point I dropped like a rock away from him, and the skydive was over.

So, in my low-jump wonder, I still get sensory overload occasionally. I'm in control of my jumps, but sometimes I'm not thinking quite straight, and make "wrong" decisions. This is what I have to overcome.

I'm really curious, though, why do you ask?

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I don't think there ever was a clear line between overload/everything ok for me. The first couple of S/L jumps blacked me out completely(hanging on to the strut-->open canopy). After that I started remembering some things(seeing the canopy at line-stretch, seeing the JM in the plane). Bit by bit I saw and remembered more with each skydive.

In freefall, I of course first experienced tunnel vision, but then the tunnel gradually became wider:P. Now I like to think I notice pretty much everything in my field of vision, and I sometimes even have a pretty good idea of the whereabouts of people behind/above/below me.

I think the awareness gradually grows with everyone, faster with some people, slower with others.

Erno

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i never did a tandem, i went straight to aff.

first jump visually i blacked out , i pulled but remember seeing nothing. with each jump my window of perception broadened slightly but it still took about 30 jumps for me to read the numbers on the bottom of the plane after exit.


sincerely,

dan
atair
Daniel Preston <><>
atairaerodynamics.com (sport)
atairaerospace.com (military)

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with each jump my window of perception broadened slightly



I am finding the same thing. I did 4 SL jumps, then started a compressed Tandem Accelerated Freefall program.

My first Sl jump I do not remember much more than setting up for the exit....next memory is an open parachute with line twists....

My first tandem I remembver little off, While I certainly remember more of my second tandem. Anyways, to make a long story shorter, I have 19 jumps now and find that I notice a little bit more on every jump. "My tunnel" is getting wider and wider...... B|B|

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I think I get a little better with every jump. I did one yesterday where I noticed things I never had before. There was a jumper in the air with me and I saw him part of the time anyway. Usually I find I'm concentrating on whatever (probably something new) I'm doing so much that it's hard to take everything in.

And as far as seeing the plane goes, I've never thought to look for it!

Gale
I'm drowning...so come inside
Welcome to my...dirty mind

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I think it was about 6 or 7 jumps... Looking back, I remember that I had no visual record of those first moments after exiting the plane for about the first few jumps ...



ME TOOOO!! Well for my Tandem and AFF1 it felt like my sensory overload kinda shut me down.. and I didn't "wake up" until we leveled off. On my AFF2 I was determined to keep my eyes open and take in the view. It turned out that I was less "nervous" and after a (horrible exit count... learn pancho learn!!!) but a good exiting positioning..

It was like I went on a Slip-n-Slide out in the air, onto a water bed. What really suprised me was that when you're "awake" those first moments out of the plane it felt like quite a while before we leveled off. I was like "ok anytime.... do be do be dooo" and then as soon as we were level- right through the circle of awareness, PRPs, and onto my new stuff (turns and forward motion- which kicked major ___ ;) ) It turned out I finished with tons of altitude left.. wow!

All the times I had practiced on the ground felt like time was really limited.. that maybe i'd get to a good left and maybe right turn, but that the forward motion might have to go on the next jump. (damn practice altimeter! :P)

My advice for overcoming the sensory overload...? Keep telling yourself that you like the fear, or like the sensory overloads. So instead of shutting down, your bod will start tuning in to the feelings. Then light candles on the ground and chant:

"oobie doobie dooo"

HA! :D

---
** Blue Skies, Yellow Mustard. **
It's like a farmer, out-standing in his field.

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It took me about 30 jumps to get over the sensory overload and develop increased awarness. When I started FreeFlying I had the overload problem all over again. That's why you want to master one flight body orientation before starting another.
"Slow down! You are too young
to be moving that fast!"

Old Man Crawfish

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probably around jump#20. I couldn't see the plane until jump #4. I had this spinning problem during freefall training so I couldn't see my instructor, or the ground. the jump before graduation when I finally conquered that problem the tunnel vision went away.

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I only got tunnel vision once. It was on my first "real" free fall. A 10 sec delay. I remember seeing the plane go away and then everything went brown. All I could see was my hands and alti. I didn't get my vision back until my canopy was sniveling. I looked out to see the 2 people that jumped with me falling away. That was pretty tripin. I had to wait a week for my next jump and I remember thinking...Oh look...clouds....check out this view!!! I didn't have any problem with the S/L or 5 sec delays because I had about 60 Military S/L's before I did my first skydive. It was the Free Fall my brain had problems with...;)

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The overload and tunnelvision went away fairly quickly (around 20 or 30 jumps), but for me I had a bigger problem... I don't actually remember watching my canopy through the opening sequence until like my 50th jump! And even then it was sporatic. I had to do a solo that was completely dedicated to simply watching my opening. After that, it became habit, but think about those first 50 man... I wouldn't have known something was wrong until well after it began...



"pull high! It's lower than you think..."

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AFF1, didn't have any altitude awerarness at all, i sucked in all i could, WAY WRONG.

After that sensory overload was a thing of the past, the only way forward was too what you needed to do, when i was on consols i knew i could look around as much as i'd like, & i did.

Jumping outta a plane is not a big thing if you got work to do, you just go to work.
it deosn't mttaer waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is frist and lsat ltteer is at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm.

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100 jumps, then after starting freeflying, I'm still working on awarness after another 100! As you learn new techniques and move faster there is an awarness gap that occurs. You always need to work on awarness.
"Slow down! You are too young
to be moving that fast!"

Old Man Crawfish

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