Intense contractions

[nhojmabon]

Hello everyone,
As I am getting more and more practice at static apnea (dry on bed), my times have increased quite a bit.
This increase has come with some very intense contractions!

After about 1:30, I'm having mild contractions that are bearable.
At 2:00 I'm in a body buckling mode, despite my efforts to relax and resist contractions.
At 3:00 the contractions are very frequent (about one a second) and get so intense that I'm really struggling to hold the air in. When I try and stop the air from escaping my mouth, the air constantly fills my mouth and then is forced back to my lungs over and over.

I was wondering if it possible to damage my airways or my lungs through these contractions? Should I be fine to keep going?

Thanks for your time
John

 

[BennyB]

G'day John.

What you've described is exactly what happens to a lot of static apneists and is almost word for word I felt in the first 6 months. I wouldn't worry too much about any damage - clearly if you have symptoms such as pain after a static, sore chest, coughing specs of blood or blood in your spit, sore throat etc. then you should ease up and give it some time off.

I take it you're not packing (taking a large breath then gulping more air into your lungs)? Packing can introduce a new range of complexity into a dive.

With the forcing air into your mouth and back down again thing, with time you'll learn to use your throat to keep the air in the lungs. Sometimes I bring air into my mouth just to take some of the pressure out of my lungs. Maybe try exhaling and inhaling but use your throat to stop halfway through the exhale and halfway through the inhale, these are the muscles you'll use to keep air in your lungs during a static - particuarly during the exhale it's like when you pronounce the letter K.

But unless you're getting specific signs or symptoms that something hurts or feels wrong, i'd say you're fine to progress.

Cheers,
Ben

ps Where in Australia are you from?

 

[nhojmabon]

G'day Ben, nice to talk to another aussie.
I'm from a small town in NSW, but I'm moving to Albury NSW where I'm finishing my final year of highschool. Hopefully in a year or so I will find myself in Sydney where there will be some freedivers I could meet..... hopefully.

Thanks for your reply, it's quite reassuring to know others have similar contractions. By the way, I don't pack

Thanks for the speedy reply
John

 

[vermin06]

The contractions are normal. I find that the more you work through them, the less intense they'll get, or the longer they'll hold off. Keep up the good work!

 

[BennyB]

Small town in NSW.... haha that narrows it down! I grew up in the same place

You'll be hard pressed finding any Albury freedivers, but once you get to Sydney you'll be fine.

Cheers,
Ben

 

[waxlips]

contractions are fun the more intense the better is what i say.