terrfied of the ocean.w

[pandarider123]

When I was little I experienced a shark attack on beach and ever since then I have been terrified of the ocean. I booked a Caribbean cruise to hopefully get over that fear. Vould a fear of the ocean ruin a cruise. Or could a fun environment help with over coming fear by association with ocean and fun instead of ocean and sharks. Different opinions would be appreciated:)

[Lerin]

As I do not have this fear I really don't know the answer to your question. However some cruise ships are so large that it is possible to spend your entire cruise inside and almost never even see the ocean.

[donaldsc]

When I was little I experienced a shark attack on beach and ever since then I have been terrified of the ocean. I booked a Caribbean cruise to hopefully get over that fear. Vould a fear of the ocean ruin a cruise. Or could a fun environment help with over coming fear by association with ocean and fun instead of ocean and sharks. Different opinions would be appreciated:)

 

I am not sure where you leave but if you live within driveable distances of either California or Florida, there are 2 and 3 days cruises that you can take that are very inexpensive. You might think of doing one of those instead of a longer more expensive cruise.

 

Also, I am not sure if it is still going on but Princess was offering "free" 3 day cruises out of California. It wasn't really free but they give you the cost of your short cruise to apply to a future longer Princess cruise.

 

Check them out.

 

DON

[Keith1010]

We know many people who love to cruise who are scared of the ocean.

 

These cruise ships are so large that it's so much different than being in a small boat.

 

Keith

[beachbum53]

I've heard it said more than once that the best way to overcome your fears is to face them head on. Also, to help ease your mind, I have never seen any sharks on a cruise ship.:rolleyes::D I'd be more concerned about being pestered by the photographers on board wanting to take your picture everywhere you go.:eek: Hope you have a great cruise!

[sherilyn70]

It depends on how strong your fear is I suppose. At what point do you start to panic and what triggers it? Is it being near it, next to it or in it? Are you afraid to wade into the shallow parts or is it just swimming that scares you? Your ship is going to be surrounded by water (obviously) so is that going to trigger your fears? Or is it only when you get to the beach? There is no rule that you even have to go to the beach on a cruise... my husband and I do not. We prefer to do activities that involve history, culture and regional foods and stay inland. We just admire the pretty views and waters from a distance.

[Krazy Kruizers]

You are doing the right thing by booking a cruise to help yourself to over come the fear of the ocean and sharks.

Once you are on the ship, you will have so many things to do that your mind will be occupied with them and you won't have time to dwell on your fear.

Each evening you will get the daily program for the next day. Read and decide what all you want to do when the ship is not in port.

[sparks1093]

When I was little I experienced a shark attack on beach and ever since then I have been terrified of the ocean. I booked a Caribbean cruise to hopefully get over that fear. Vould a fear of the ocean ruin a cruise. Or could a fun environment help with over coming fear by association with ocean and fun instead of ocean and sharks. Different opinions would be appreciated:)

 

I think a cruise could help you overcome your fear of being on the ocean (as stated you can spend most of your time onboard and avoid seeing the ocean if you choose to) but doubt that it would do much for your fear of being in the ocean.

[cb at sea]

Sounds like a bit of therapy would help... and prior to the cruise would make the cruise itself more fun!

 

What you should have is a fear of sharks...not of the ocean in which they live! That would be like being afraid of being on land, because car accidents are possible.

[attilamom1217]

I have lived near beaches most of my life. However I do understand your fear. I am claustrophobic but I love to cruise.

 

The sharks are in the water and cannot harm cruise ships. Even the smallest ones are too big for a shark to bother with. So being ON the ship is safe from sharks.

 

At the different ports, you do not have to go to the beach if you choose not to (as a previous poster pointed out). There are many activities at each port such as sightseeing, shopping, inland activities (ziplining, mountains to climb, etc.) that you can avoid the beaches. You can also stay on the ship for a quiet relaxing day at the pool. There are many passengers who choose not to get off the ship at some or all of the ports.

 

After you have cruised once and see that sharks are not an issue, you may feel more comfortable participating in some of the water activities or going to the beach.

[just4steven]

I am not trying to say my fear was/is as bad as yours, it most likely is not. I do have to say I somewhat have/had it. What I mean is I was pretty scared of going into almost any water just about 4 or 5 years ago. One day I saw some GoPro commercials and thought that being under water was the coolest thing, but no way I would do it. So I did some research. Long story short, I am still very, very nervous about snorkeling in the Florida Keys and have to be "babied" along when I do it. The good thing is I have done land based trips to southern Caribbean islands several times now and have almost zero fear going in and snorkeling quite a bit. I do not have the facts in front of me, but put it this way, if you happen to see a shark swimming or snorkeling from the beach on say St Thomas, it will most likely be a tiny nurse shark sleeping. But really, I don't think you will see one at all down that way and perhaps you can plan a cruise down that way. It is definitely not like Florida and the entire east coast down there! You have to go out quite a ways to see one and they are not of the aggressive type (again, I'm no marine expert, but it is much more shark friendly around the BVI and USVI, especially if you are just right off the beach).

 

Another thing I did last year was the swimming in the shark tank at Coral World on St Thomas. This helped me a ton! The staff was wonderful and kept me calm and seeing how the Caribbean sharks can care less about you really set my mind at ease! Yes, I was shaking at first, but then I really got into it and when I was done I felt like a different person.

 

Now, just a few months ago in late summer I was at Myrtle Beach and that was scary! I don't think I will ever get over that fear. Yes I went in the water a little bit, but it was like every hour or two the life guards would clear the water and when you would see those things "feeding" so close to shore.......... WOW! Not cool if you have a shark fear, lol.

 

Back to a cruise though, I would definitely research some places and the types of sharks they have and also how truly rare it is to see one in a lot of Caribbean locations. I seem to have the least amount of fear on St Thomas, in fact, basically no fear of sharks and more fear of sand fleas. I am taking my first cruise in a little over a month and it will be a Western Caribbean cruise where most places I have never visited by flying. I also pretty much have zero fear right now of snorkeling at all these places, although I did sign up for the stingray sandbar so that should test my limits some :)

 

Either way you will be fine, as others have pointed out how many other things there are to do at the ports that are not near the water. I was just trying to give insight that it is possible to enjoy the water as well, because if you knew me 4 years ago you would not believe the way I can snorkel now. Again, I'm still cautious in some locations, but most of the Caribbean my fear is gone :)

[pandarider123]

It depends on how strong your fear is I suppose. At what point do you start to panic and what triggers it? Is it being near it, next to it or in it? Are you afraid to wade into the shallow parts or is it just swimming that scares you? Your ship is going to be surrounded by water (obviously) so is that going to trigger your fears? Or is it only when you get to the beach? There is no rule that you evenhhave to go to the beach on a cruise... my husband and I do not. We prefer to do activities that involve history, culture and regional foods and stay inland. We just admire the pretty views and waters from a distance.

 

The shark attack happened in Galveston and I have been to Galveston many times.I have fun on beach but if I step in water I have a panic attack. I beleive I'm more affraid of unknown where I'm stepping as water is black.I tried going back in once and got bit by crab.maybe being in Caribbean where water is clear will clear up some the fears of the ocean.

[just4steven]

The shark attack happened in Galveston and I have been to Galveston many times.I have fun on beach but if I step in water I have a panic attack. I beleive I'm more affraid of unknown where I'm stepping as water is black.I tried going back in once and got bit by crab.maybe being in Caribbean where water is clear will clear up some the fears of the ocean.

 

Similar to the one I was around, it was inter coastal of St Petes around Clearwater Beach. Not the clearest of clear water of course. Once I first got to the Caribbean though, WOW! That helped my fears a lot too!

[aquilegia]

As you say that you have a panic attack stepping in the water but are fine on the beach, I don't see that your fear will ruin the cruise, but nor do I think it will do anything to help you get over it. You will usually be way above the water, you certainly won't be stepping into it and when you disembark at a port you will come down a gangway onto the dockside, you won't be at a beach. It's a totally different experience. The only thing I can see that might be a problem is if any of your ports is a tender port, as then you are obviously near the water level when you transfer to the small boats. But if you were really bothered by that, you could stay on board the ship at that port. Not everyone gets off at every port, it's quite pleasant to sometimes have a day on the ship when there are no crowds.

[pandarider123]

As you say that you have a panic attack stepping in the water but are fine on the beach, I don't see that your fear will ruin the cruise, but nor do I think it will do anything to help you get over it. You will usually be way above the water, you certainly won't be stepping into it and when you disembark at a port you will come down a gangway onto the dockside, you won't be at a beach. It's a totally different experience. The only thing I can see that might be a problem is if any of your ports is a tender port, as then you are obviously near the water level when you transfer to the small boats. But if you were really bothered by that, you could stay on board the ship at that port. Not everyone gets off at every port, it's quite pleasant to sometimes have a day on the ship when there are no crowds.

 

I booked a cove balcony just to be close to the waterline.and I booked snorkeling in cozumel and roatan. Hopeing being in water will help. I believe I'm scared of unseen paths. Like when I tried Galveston again I walked about 20 feet out I was doing ok untill I took one more step and dropped off a drop off and felt something slimy on my foot and had panic attack. It really freaked me out I couldn't see where I was stepping.

[SPacificbound]

The shark attack happened in Galveston and I have been to Galveston many times.I have fun on beach but if I step in water I have a panic attack. I beleive I'm more affraid of unknown where I'm stepping as water is black.I tried going back in once and got bit by crab.maybe being in Caribbean where water is clear will clear up some the fears of the ocean.

 

Galveston is muddy water, it's no wonder you are scared. :)

 

Give cruising a try, you don't ever have to get in the water if you don't want to. You might find you really like it and want to go again, and you still won't ever have to go in the water if you don't want to.

[aquilegia]

Well done to you for trying so hard to overcome your fears. I hope you have a great cruise.

[momoftwinteens]

I have a similar fear..well, it's not really a fear. It's just that I absolutely hate swimming in lakes and rivers, anywhere where I can't see the bottom. I think it has something to do with a near-drowning experience I had as a child. I jumped off a dock while swimming, without knowing how deep the water was and almost drowned trying to get back to the surface because I was so deep. To this day, if I can't see the bottom, I won't go deeper than my knees. That being said, I have no problem at all swimming in the Caribbean. The water is so clear it's like looking through very beautiful aqua colored glass. On my last cruise, I was snorkeling in very deep water(probably 75-100 feet deep) and there was no panic because, even at that depth, I could see the bottom. I couldn't reach it, of course, but I could see it. Watching the fish swim about is almost mesmerizing and I could do it for hours. I think you might be very surprised. Good luck and have a great cruise!

[pandarider123]

I have a similar fear..well, it's not really a fear. It's just that I absolutely hate swimming in lakes and rivers, anywhere where I can't see the bottom. I think it has something to do with a near-drowning experience I had as a child. I jumped off a dock while swimming, without knowing how deep the water was and almost drowned trying to get back to the surface because I was so deep. To this day, if I can't see the bottom, I won't go deeper than my knees. That being said, I have no problem at all swimming in the Caribbean. The water is so clear it's like looking through very beautiful aqua colored glass. On my last cruise, I was snorkeling in very deep water(probably 75-100 feet deep) and there was no panic because, even at that depth, I could see the bottom. I couldn't reach it, of course, but I could see it. Watching the fish swim about is almost mesmerizing and I could do it for hours. I think you might be very surprised. Good luck and have a great cruise!

 

Thats how I am I think I'm more afraid of the unknown and never been to a lake or ocean where I can see bottom. Similar to fear of heights. People arnt afraod of heights theh afraid of falling

[JimAOk1945]

My wife was afraid to cruise for many years due to a childhood accident. After coming back from our first cruise a few years ago, she surprised me by saying she wanted us to book another cruise! As you can see below, we have been a few cruises over the years and have two more already booked.

 

I hope you overcome your fears. It's hard work, but it can done with patience and perseverance.

[pandarider123]

My wife was afraid to cruise for many years due to a childhood accident. After coming back from our first cruise a few years ago, she surprised me by saying she wanted us to book another cruise! As you can see below, we have been a few cruises over the years and have two more already booked.

 

I hope you overcome your fears. It's hard work, but it can done with patience and perseverance.

 

Thanks I'm hoping on one the ports of call I can swim with nurse sharks.

[GinLovesToCruise]

I have a fear of water AND the things in it! Lol. But I LOVE to swim as long as the water is clear and I can see the things in it. I will not go swimming in lakes and such if the water is murky. I have been snorkeling a few times but if the fish get very big I start panicking. So I just enjoy the beach and wading in as far as I'm comfortable with at that given time. The water in the Caribbean is clear and so beautiful. As far as cruising itself..... I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!! My favorite type of vacation ever!!!

 

Go! And have a Great time!

Virginia

[lady_cruiser]

When I was little I experienced a shark attack on beach and ever since then I have been terrified of the ocean. I booked a Caribbean cruise to hopefully get over that fear. Vould a fear of the ocean ruin a cruise. Or could a fun environment help with over coming fear by association with ocean and fun instead of ocean and sharks. Different opinions would be appreciated:)

 

My sister is afraid of the water since she almost drowned as a 5 year old. She's in her 60s now but still remember the seaweed, wrapped around her ankles keeping her down. Anything above her ankles gives her a small panic attack BUT she loves cruising. Next November we are going on our 17th cruise.

 

There will be areas on the ship that are interior rooms like the casino and theater which gives you the feeling that you aren't even on a ship; especially when the seas are calm.

 

Go and enjoy yourself.

[pandarider123]

My sister is afraid of the water since she almost drowned as a 5 year old. She's in her 60s now but still remember the seaweed, wrapped around her ankles keeping her down. Anything above her ankles gives her a small panic attack BUT she loves cruising. Next November we are going on our 17th cruise.

 

There will be areas on the ship that are interior rooms like the casino and theater which gives you the feeling that you aren't even on a ship; especially when the seas are calm.

 

Go and enjoy yourself.

 

I dont want to hide I want to face fear head on. I got cove balcony 2/3 excursions are snorkeling.I want to come back changed