Training to combat Panic?

[Mike111 0]

If i can;t find the ripcord, lol ill be on that reserve handle allright!!!

1900 - wow thats low!!

Im WAY to chicken for that...

[kelpdiver 2]

training to avoid panic is hard to do safely in any sport. You panic when you're in an unfamiliar situation and the fear of death is taking over. Short of intentionally putting yourself into those situations and then recovering, what can you do? I think it's not bad to have had an 'eventful' jump in the AFF progression before you're off on your own.

training to deal with panic is a bit better - the more you practice your emergency procedures, the better odds you'll do them automatically when the shit flies.

[jtlmd 0]

As a very new beginner but a long time pilot and surgeon, I could not agree more with the idea that an "eventful" AFF experience is paradoxically very valuable. There are dozens of analogies in both surgical training and aviation training. My "event" was loss of altitude awareness at the bottom end of my first AFF 3 ride. The "panic" actually was like being in a time warp--total focus on something else besides pulling and actually kind of like being hypnotized. It was highly embarrassing to have my ripcord taken to the DZ in the hands of the main side JM but I can assure you that altitude awareness was burned into my mind that morning. I believe that we were in the low threes by the time my main was fully inflated. A very experienced woman at our DZ told me that this event was one of the "best" things that can happen because it happened very early in the progression. I think she is right and so are you.

JTL

[Eule 0]

Quote

Thanks for you advice to, but would you recommend doing these in a harness or just kind of miming them when im are not at the dropzone in order to keep currency?

Disclaimer: I've only got 17 jumps at this point; take with appropriate amount of salt.

I'd say do it first in a harness at the dropzone while somebody watches you, to make sure you are making
the right motions. Then, continue at home.

My AFF instructors have been careful to stop me doing "wrong" motions on the ground, so I don't build
up bad muscle memory. For example, on my first few debriefs after a dive, I would tend to kinda-sorta
make some of the motions with my hands (practice pull, wave-off, etc) as I was describing the dive. They
made it a point that I should either do exactly the right motion or not do it at all. To stop myself, I had to
sit on my hands for a couple of debriefs after that. :)

Eule

[Mike111 0]

Thanks Kelpdiver and JTl,

I must agree that it should help our confidence in our ability to deal with a situation because at least we know what to roughly expect, and it will come as less as a shock if we experience it againn.

Although we had these bad experiences, i think we have had least learned and gained valuabl lessons early on, and as you said, have the correct responses burned into our memory...

... With regard to panic, as others have kindly stated above, i think these experiences and practice EP's or whatever other methods we use will help us over these things and allow us to reatc calmly and collectively and solve our own individual issues.

Anyway, glad you got your main out, even if it was a bit late, better than nothing out[;)
Thanks for the other comments,


Mike

[Mike111 0]

Hey Eule,

Thanks also for the imput to.

Doing it in a harness, like you said, is probably my best bet of sorting out my Ep's etc... so they can be corrected by the JM so i don;t build up wrong muscle memory. Then i can go and practice them at home and reinforce them so they stick.

Lol wouldn't want to cutaway at 2,000 grand instead of pulling cause i got the wrong proceedure!

Lol cheers,

mike