Overcoming Water Phobia to get Married
Getting married in church or on somebody’s lawn can be anxious enough for some brides and grooms, but to say your vows underwater while having a mortal fear of drowning certainly shows how ‘deep’ your love is.
Sharon Dow, 36, found the courage to marry her fanatical scuba diving fiancé, Chris, under 25 feet of water in the Caribbean Sea.
Her water phobia began when she was a schoolgirl where she almost drowned whilst taking part in a diving competition, but she overcame this knowing her fiancé would be totally bowled over with getting married while combining his all time favourite hobby.
Sharon, a mortgage adviser, and Chris an IT company director both from Horsham really enjoyed their ‘water wedding’ and said the whole day was just perfect.
"It was really spectacular," Sharon said. "To think I used to be completely terrified of water. "Neither of us could stop laughing and smiling all day long. It was great!"
The couple met ten years ago in the Green Dragon Pub in Horsham’s Bishopric, where Chris belonged to the local town punk band, Clash City Rockers and in celebration of the wedding, the band reformed to play for the first time in six years at their reception.
Scuba Diving Weddings
Many couples today are heading for tropical islands to get married in. Some take the whole wedding party with them and combine their wedding along with the honeymoon.
Scuba diving is a very popular hobby while on holiday but it is also now being incorporated in with the whole wedding package and it is beautiful to ‘say’ your vows while under a few feet of a tropical sea or ocean.
Obviously you cannot utter those magic words ‘I do’ whilst under the water, so your words will be placed on a dive slate, although some companies may provide you with special masks that have communication devices for you both to talk and hear while saying your vows. The dive slate can then be kept as a great memento of your wedding.
Complete wedding outfits can be worn if you wish, just be prepared for your wedding dress to get really heavy, which is why most couples opt for the wet suits. Dressing up can always be done once you have surfaced and you are all ready to begin your celebrations.
Your wedding party is sure to be somewhat smaller than average unless your family and friends all belong to a divers club and if it is just the two of you going abroad you can always hold a water themed reception when you return back home, where you can show any videos of you both taking your vows.
I wonder how many brides and grooms-to-be practice taking off their mouthpiece and holding their breath before hearing those words ‘you may now kiss the bride’?