Brittany Attwood testimonial
Brittany Attwood testimonial
When I reached out to GoHawkeye, I requested a grant to assist me in purchasing an OTS Spectrum Full Face Mask to aid in my adaptive scuba diving lessons and dreams. Prior to my grant application, I had read up on various pieces of diving equipment that could assist a physically disabled individual in more comfortably, and easily, scuba dive. The Full-Face Mask was the number one recommendation— given its various benefits.
While I am still doing scuba lessons and am not a fully certified diver yet, due to some other unforeseen setbacks out of my control, I am so grateful for this grant and my mask. Knowing that I have this full face mask for when I do certification dives puts me at ease. This mask provides several benefits while diving. First, it gives me a wider field of vision while diving. This helps me better see and follow my dive buddies who assist me. Secondly, this mask also helps reduce jaw fatigue and keeps my face warmer and more covered, which both are particularly important due to my spasticity I experience with my disability. The spasticity I have can increase my overall fatigue and require a lot higher energy usage for even the most basic tasks. My body temperature plays a huge role in the intensity of my spasticity so the more I am covered in the water, the better! Even though a mask that reduces jaw fatigue and keeps me warm may seem like a minor thing to some, it actually has a much bigger impact for me because of the way my body works with CP. This mask will allow me to stay in the water longer and more comfortably during my certification dives.
Finally, this mask will allow me to integrate a comms push-to-talk system once I become a better, and more frequent, diver in the future. I picked the OTS Spectrum mask specifically because of the great reviews about integrating a comms feature. Since I will be utilizing webbed gloves when I dive, the ability to have more communication options in the future will be useful when my hands are otherwise occupied and hand signals with my fellow divers are not an option with the gloves. This mask will carry me for years to come as I learn, become certified, and continue to grow as a scuba diver.
Even though I’ve only gotten to be in the pool with the mask a few times so far, I can tell this will be a huge asset to my journey with scuba diving. This investment from Hawkeye was more than just a monetary gift, and while I’m thrilled about the mask, it is about more than that too. This grant was an investment in a dream, a hobby, a pursuit. It has given me a sense of encouragement that someone believes in me and in my right to not just survive life and all the health challenges CP brings, but actually live life too.
-Brittany Attwood