I started diving about 10 years ago. I had never been particularly interested in diving, or imagined myself putting on a backpack and floundering in the depths. On vacation, however, when such an opportunity presented itself, with a what-if attitude, I signed up directly for the course without trying anything else.

I don't remember what kind of student I was. I vaguely remember that taking the regulator out of your mouth while doing exercises was scary. Somehow, exhaling a steady stream of bubbles just didn't work, and I had to repeat the exercises a couple of times before it started to flow. I thought I was practicing blowing bubbles. Little did I know that I was practicing mind control.

Along the way, diving opened up more and more. I learned to control my lift so that I no longer plowed the seabed or came to the surface like a cork. I learned to breathe. I learned to navigate the shapes of nature underwater, which was a big step of pride for someone who gets lost even in a public toilet. My confidence grew as my skills improved, although it took a long time before recreational diving became a comfort zone.

Diving has become a spiritual hole for me. It doesn't matter how many dives are behind, always under water everything else is forgotten and there is only that moment and nothing else. For me, diving works as a wildly effective head cleaner, and through diving I have also learned how to keep a cool head under pressure - also on the surface. Both beginners and professionals stumble. Sometimes they can scare you, but when you take them as learning experiences, the direction of growth is right. In addition to body control, diving is mind control. Diving teaches teamwork skills, attentiveness, humility and countless other qualities that each diver learns on his own.

Diving is self-development at its best. And like so many other things, the same rule applies to diving too – the more you learn, the less you realize you know.

Diving instructor Netta, Arctic Divers Dive Center, Diving school and center in Helsinki.