The Fear Of Water… And The Journey To Freediving.
Eight years ago, I didn’t even know how to swim.
And more than that - I was afraid of water.
Not because I had a bad experience or had been in danger…
but because of something deeper:
the fear of the unknown, and the discomfort of not being in control.
So, I decided to face it.
I learned how to swim.
I swam in rivers and oceans. I even jumped into deep water from high places.
But still… the fear lingered. It clung quietly to my body.
When I returned home to Taiwan during the pandemic, I took another brave step -
I learned scuba diving.
Even with the gear and the knowledge that I could breathe underwater,
it was terrifying just to put my head beneath the surface.
I nearly gave up after the first session.
But I had my best friend by my side, a diving instructor living in the Maldives.
Her encouragement gave me the strength to continue.
And eventually, I completed the course and earned my certification.
I was proud.
But deep down… I was still afraid of the water.
That summer, I moved to a beautiful island called Lanyu to work for a month.
Though stunning, I was so busy I barely got to enjoy its magic.
I thought I had missed my chance to try freediving.
Three days before I left, I met a group of kind souls who introduced me to the basics.
To my surprise, I did it.
In that short time, I experienced freediving for the first time—
and I told myself: I will come back.
The following summer, that promise came true.
I moved to Lanyu and stayed for six months.
At first, I didn’t take freediving seriously.
I didn’t feel connected to the ocean, instead, I still held fear.
You know how some people say,
"When I see the sea, I want to dive right in"?
That was never me. I couldn’t relate.
Three months later…
I took a freediving course.
And everything shifted.
After gentle, consistent practice, I began to see what I was truly capable of:
-Holding my breath for 3 minutes for the first time
(and feeling the strange, beautiful tension of diaphragm contractions)
-Learning rescue techniques—how to save someone underwater
-Diving down to 20 meters deep
But the most incredible thing?
I now feel peaceful in the water.
People often say, “You look like a mermaid in the water!”
But what they don’t see is that I was once terrified of water,
the very thing I now love and flow with.
To those who feel the same fear, I want you to know:
It’s possible to move from fear to freedom.
You can learn to dance with the water too.
Fear is not the end of the story. It’s often the invitation to begin again.
To meet yourself gently.
To trust the unknown.
And to discover your own strength beneath the surface.
Sometimes, what we fear most holds the key to where we truly belong.
The ocean taught me that courage is not the absence of fear,
but the quiet willingness to dive deep anyway, one breath at a time.
Now, when I see the ocean,
the very first thought that comes to me is:
“I want to be in the water.”
