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mergeshannah

Diving into my past

Updated: Aug 29, 2022

It might seem clear to many of you that I have an overwhelming love for the ocean. But how did I get here?


Honestly, I just kept finding ways to be close to the water, to study it, to understand it, to learn from it, and it brought me here.


I was tossed into the pool for the first time at just six months old. It was the first day over 50°F following my 6-month birthday. My dad, a dedicated and notably successful swim coach, took me to an indoor pool in Albany, NY to avoid the risk of an ear infection. From what I am told, supposedly the best strategy for dunking six-month olds underwater is to quickly blow air on their face, which results in a startled baby with reflexes to close their eyes and hold their breath.


Considering I had just spent nine months in an aquatic environment and was only in the air for about six, it actually made sense to my body once that mammalian dive reflex kicked in for the first time. Just the other day I learned my mom went snorkeling when she was about six months pregnant with me, so of course it makes sense that I have this deep connection to the water.


Summers growing up were filled with trips to the Jersey Shore and visiting my grandma’s beach club in the Rockaways of New York. Not the most beautiful coastline, but the foamy shoreline and murky, cold waters still piqued my interest. I could sit for hours watching the waves crash on the shore, staring out at the open water and wondering what life was swimming beneath the surface. While I primarily spent time digging for sand crabs and wondering why they “bled” orange, the occasional dolphin sighting was a special treat.


Back home in New Jersey, I picked up swimming, which was no surprise in my family given my dad’s coaching background. I didn’t have a particular talent for it. I was average. Maybe at one short point, slightly above average, but the point is, I was never making it to the Olympic trials. However, this is where my connection to the water was solidified. There is not much that is pleasant about early morning swim meets diving into crisp, early-summer waters or late-night practices in the fall that result in chunks of hair freezing between the walk from the locker room to the bus.


Yet, I found peace in swimming. Being in the water calmed me. It became an outlet. Leaving the pool exhausted after swimming for 90 minutes, the smell of chlorine permanently penetrating my designated swim bag, drowning out all other distractions, and kicking my absolute hardest during championship races– it is where I felt fulfilled.


Sophomore year of high school I stopped swimming competitively. I still turned to swimming as an outlet, pulling out old practice workouts from my dad and keeping up my skills. I could never be too far from the water.


One of the very best feelings is breaking the surface tension and falling completely into another world. Immediately feeling refreshed, awake, alert. Whether swimming in a pool, flipping off a boat or jumping off a dock with my scuba gear, that precise moment of breaking the surface never gets old.


It is going to my happy place. No matter how I feel in that moment, I know I will leave feeling happier.


Because what happens after breaking that surface tension is equally as special. Our bodies begin to experience physiological changes that allow us to hold our breath and exist underwater.


Have you ever just tried sitting at the bottom of a pool to see how long you can hold your breath? Or just dipping below the surface to escape the business of life above, to experience the peaceful quiet of the water that completely surrounds you?

That is what undoubtedly pulls me back to the water every time.


While other factors weighed heavily in my college decision, leaving me a bit farther from the ocean, it only made me more motivated to pursue this as a career.

Check back soon to learn about how I navigated college in Pennsylvania and how I began my travels in the world.



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