Are Diving Certifications Mandatory?

[PrincessNymphiaoftheSea]

I'm actually kind of curious to ask because I know a great deal of mers who get great press without the need of a scuba diving liscense.

I'm in the process of at least getting certified for open water diving so I can do some things in the ocean eventually but as a general question, does a diving certification really help in any way professionally?

It feels like a dumb question to ask :/

[AniaR]

the main way it seems to help is for working in aquariums. MOST (but not all) will only let a mermaid be in the aquarium if they are certified. It can also be a great help for mers that do ocean underwater photoshoots, however I know a few really famous mers that don't have certification and do stuff anyway and it hasnt stopped them.

medically, I can't get scuba certified until I have a surgery I am on a waitlist for. But I have had huge success and it hasnt prevented me from a single thing, including being in an aquarium. I believe if you're going to be in the ocean a lot and going down deep then there's a lot of great overlapping skills you can get from scuba. If you plan to ever use a regulator or breathe off someone elses then yes, I would suggest scuba. But outside of that for me just getting water safety training along with free diving training (for breath holding) has been much more useful.

I feel like there's a big misconception about the importance the mer community places on scuba when super well known mers who do really public stuff, don't have it.

Not knocking it, I am someone who believes any skill aquired is a good skill to have ;) just that if you're prioritizing, unless you fall under those categories I wouldn't worry too much. And even then... lol

[PrincessNymphiaoftheSea]

the main way it seems to help is for working in aquariums. MOST (but not all) will only let a mermaid be in the aquarium if they are certified. It can also be a great help for mers that do ocean underwater photoshoots, however I know a few really famous mers that don't have certification and do stuff anyway and it hasnt stopped them.

medically, I can't get scuba certified until I have a surgery I am on a waitlist for. But I have had huge success and it hasnt prevented me from a single thing, including being in an aquarium. I believe if you're going to be in the ocean a lot and going down deep then there's a lot of great overlapping skills you can get from scuba. If you plan to ever use a regulator or breathe off someone elses then yes, I would suggest scuba. But outside of that for me just getting water safety training along with free diving training (for breath holding) has been much more useful.

I feel like there's a big misconception about the importance the mer community places on scuba when super well known mers who do really public stuff, don't have it.

Not knocking it, I am someone who believes any skill aquired is a good skill to have ;) just that if you're prioritizing, unless you fall under those categories I wouldn't worry too much. And even then... lol

Thank you so much Raina :D I've been debating on it for a while, but that's eventually what I want to work up to, swimming in an aquarium. I found a great diving school in Oceanside that does some great open water training which would be a great place to start since it's an entry level class :D

Also, sappy post, but you're one of my mermaid inspirations. I watch all of your So You Wanna Be A Mermaid vlogs and you give me such great inspiration. ❤️ Thanks for the reply :3


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[Merenneito Nerissa]

I started scuba diving about half year before I got my first tail(nowadays I have dived three seasons, they are pretty short here in Finland). I'd say it have helped me quite a lot, but I neither would say one _needs_ scuba certification to be pro. But it has helped me to really understand differently how it looks and feels underwater in open waters and it has brought depth to my stories as a mermaid :) Also it has given me better skills with handling stress when free diving and also the knowledge how to educate others of stuff. Atm I'm certified assistant instructor and aiming to some day next year be a dive instructor, but already after the first diving courses I did feel my understanding to grow. So I think the certifications and scuba diving as a hobby definitely don't go waste if you think them from mermaiding point :) Also I love to learn about human physiology underwater, it's super interesting :)

[AniaR]

Thank you so much Raina :D I've been debating on it for a while, but that's eventually what I want to work up to, swimming in an aquarium. I found a great diving school in Oceanside that does some great open water training which would be a great place to start since it's an entry level class :D

Also, sappy post, but you're one of my mermaid inspirations. I watch all of your So You Wanna Be A Mermaid vlogs and you give me such great inspiration. ❤️ Thanks for the reply :3

That's awesome! I'm certainly not knocking it, more so saying you don't *need* it to be successful. But I think it's a helpful skill to have.

and thanks for the positive feedback! I am planning a lot more videos, just getting ready to re-brand my youtube so it's going to be a few more weeks I think. ;)


I started scuba diving about half year before I got my first tail(nowadays I have dived three seasons, they are pretty short here in Finland). I'd say it have helped me quite a lot, but I neither would say one _needs_ scuba certification to be pro. But it has helped me to really understand differently how it looks and feels underwater in open waters and it has brought depth to my stories as a mermaid :) Also it has given me better skills with handling stress when free diving and also the knowledge how to educate others of stuff. Atm I'm certified assistant instructor and aiming to some day next year be a dive instructor, but already after the first diving courses I did feel my understanding to grow. So I think the certifications and scuba diving as a hobby definitely don't go waste if you think them from mermaiding point :) Also I love to learn about human physiology underwater, it's super interestin

All totally excellent points!

[PrincessNymphiaoftheSea]

I started scuba diving about half year before I got my first tail(nowadays I have dived three seasons, they are pretty short here in Finland). I'd say it have helped me quite a lot, but I neither would say one _needs_ scuba certification to be pro. But it has helped me to really understand differently how it looks and feels underwater in open waters and it has brought depth to my stories as a mermaid :) Also it has given me better skills with handling stress when free diving and also the knowledge how to educate others of stuff. Atm I'm certified assistant instructor and aiming to some day next year be a dive instructor, but already after the first diving courses I did feel my understanding to grow. So I think the certifications and scuba diving as a hobby definitely don't go waste if you think them from mermaiding point :) Also I love to learn about human physiology underwater, it's super interesting :)

Hmm.....that's actually a very interesting point. I never really thought of it as a sort of storytelling mechanic :D Pretty clever.


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