Blog: Lost at Sea
For those of you who live in Nelson, and probably most of New Zealand, you may have noticed that today wasn't the most ideal weather conditions to don a survival suit and get left out in the ocean for an hour. However in the 30 Fears camp (and on ropes day at Discovery) weather is no obstacle to achieving a goal! I say this now all confident after I have done the challenge, however if you had seen me last night and this morning I was so nervous. The met service predicted two metre swells in the bay and this morning it was hosing down with rain and blowing a gale. The guys from the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology's Marine School assured me I would be safe and almost laughed at my inability to get in the boat let alone the water!
Today was another one of those Murphy's Law days (another camera challenge day). I'm amazed that Hayden (the camera guy) and I were still able to laugh at the end of it, I'm thinking perhaps we should go in the Amazing Race together!
Last night a friend of mine was telling a very funny dating story from last weekend and I couldn't help but notice how my anxiety levels went down when I was laughing and having fun. So today I thought I'd use the "laughter is the best medicine" technique and am please to say it work amazingly! I just changed my state of mind to a playful happy state and laughed with Abby (the boat guy) and by the time I got out to where they were dropping me off I was feeling confident and happy.
Although the sea was really rough and cold water was coming in the top of the suit I just kept smiling and thinking how many people get the opportunity to go out in conditions like this? I also felt I had something to prove to all the people who have thought I was crazy doing this challenge and who have been really scared about the whole idea. It has given me massive confidence about getting buried alive. I had massive anxiety about today, but when I changed my state of mind, focused on the positives and just smiled it wasn't as scary as I thought. If today was like that I'm sure getting buried alive will be the same, and then the rest of life :-)
Lying out in the ocean in rough conditions is an amazing experience and made me realise that the things I see as problems and issues in life are really quite insignificant in the greater scheme of things.
A big thank you to Abby and Brian from NMIT's School of Marine Studies and The Hire Boat Company
Tired but happy
Grant