• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Loadout Room

The Loadout Room

Professional Gear Reviews

Hardcore Gear and Adventure

Menu
  • Shooting
        • Pistol
        • Pistol Accessories
        • Rifle
        • Rifle Accessories
        • Shotgun
        • Machine Guns
        • Air Guns
        • Ammunition
        • Optics and Sights
        • Weapon Lights
        • Tips & How-To
        • Concealed Carry
        • Holsters
        • Suppressors
        • Precision Rifle Shooting
        • Firearms Training
        • skorpFull-Auto Fun — Shooting the full-Auto vz. 61 Škorpion
        • p320-full-leftSIG Sauer M17/M18/P320 Pistol Just Can’t Seem to Escape Safety Controversies
        • TISAS_10100520_1__98179Tisas 1911A1 U.S. Army Review: Best Budget .45 ACP WW2 1911 Clone?
        • Photoroom_20250531_143432Pyramyd AIR’s Springfield Hellcat Pro CO2 BB Pistol Is the Ultimate Dry-Fire Trainer
    • Close
  • Gear Reviews
      • Mission Gear
      • Camping Gear
      • Survival Gear
      • Medical Gear
      • Adventure & Travel
      • Knives & Tools
      • Overland
      • Disaster Preparedness
      • Footwear
      • Womens Gear & Clothing
        • Hunting in TexasThese 5 ATV Dealers Will Get You Ready For Hunting Season in Texas
        • ac65a540-2ef3-4598-8d11-afdf53f46e94.__CR0,0,970,600_PT0_SX970_V1___Streamlight ProTac Rail Mount HL-X: A Thoroughly Bright Review
        • Bluetti 2 handsfree power backpackBluetti Handsfree 2 Review: The Ultimate Power Backpack for Off-Grid Adventurers
        • The Gallagator 10 day pack on the shoreline next to a hiking trail.Day Pack – Mystery Ranch Gallagator 10 – The Best Yet?
    • Close
  • Men’s Lifestyle
      • Fitness
      • EDC
      • Eyewear
      • Watches
      • Electronics & Technology
      • Downtime
      • Mens Clothing & Accessories
      • Manly Skills
      • Style & Grooming
      • Gentleman Drinks
      • Crate Club
        • Tom and Blake Sell TeaHow Sasquatch Tea Is Revitalizing a Stagnant Tea Market With Veterans and Outdoorsmen in Mind
        • redcat-blackwidow-articleheaderWar of Words: In the Ultra-Competitive Defense Tech Industry, Storytelling is a Secret Weapon
        • Photoroom_20250525_074933Juggernaut Tactical Frame Review: The Best Upgrade for Your 365
        • craft holstersCraft Holsters Makarov Tuckable IWB Holster Report
    • Close
  • News
  • Video Demo
  • Buying Guides
  • Shop
  • Advertise
Downtime

A Navy SEALs Guide to Mastering Fear | Learning to swim

July 26, 2018 by Scott Witner Leave a Comment

A Navy SEALs Guide to Mastering Fear

I grew up on the water. Love it, spent my childhood in it, and a good chunk of my adulthood, too. But there’s a reason people use water when they want to drive you to the edge of sanity and break your spirit. If I say, “I’m going to drape a cloth over your mouth and soak it with water,” that doesn’t sound too bad, does it? Oh, but it is. It can push strong-willed men right over the edge. In my military training I got familiar with the process of waterboarding: in essence, you are slowly, methodically being drowned to death, engulfed by water. There is something primal about the terror this touches.

When I was a kid, I saw a girl drown because of someone’s carelessness. I was there when they brought her body up and laid her out on the deck,  statue-still, never to take another breath. It was the first time I’d seen death, up close, ugly, and personal. I’ll never forget it. I’ve seen death take others, too, many times since then, including some close friends. Including my best friend. And I’ve seen other deaths, as well— my first business going up in smoke and taking my life savings with it, the dissolution of my marriage, projects that didn’t work out, friendships lost, the death of ego and dreams. Yes, I understood why my friend was afraid.

A few minutes later, Kamal showed up. Right on time. We sat at the pool’s edge, our legs in the water. I pushed off and slipped down under. He followed, lowering himself in slow and tense, hands gripping the lip of the wall. He’d never been in a  ten-foot depth before. “I’m in,” he murmured, but his body language was screaming, and there’s no way in hell I’m letting go of this wall! We got to work. That first day I kept things light. Nice and easy; almost too easy. The second day we repeated everything we did the first day and went a little further. The third day he did ten laps on his back. “You’re swimming, man,” I told him. He was startled to realize that it was true. On day four, instead of sitting down poolside and carefully slipping into the water, he went running to the edge, launched himself in the air, and landed in the pool in a humongous cannonball. Huge splash, water everywhere—and then Kamal’s face bobbing up in the middle of it, grinning like a kid. He had never done a cannonball before in his life. And that’s how every lesson started for the rest of the week: Kamal running to the edge, jumping off, and doing a giant cannonball into the pool, then surfacing with that Cheshire Cat grin. A big, grown-up, silver-haired kid.

I’d never seen anyone so happy in my life. On that third day, the day he did ten laps on his back and I told him, “You’re swimming, man,” and he realized that it was true, we had an interesting conversation at the end of the lesson. “You know, other people have tried to teach me,” he said, “but it never took. They would get me in the water, demonstrate a stroke, and then get impatient when I couldn’t do it. They would get frustrated and say, ‘It’s so easy, man, just try it.’ But I couldn’t ‘just try it.’ I was too terrified.” He looked out across the pool. “Until now,” I said. Still looking at the water, he nodded. “Yeah. Until now.” – Brandon T Webb

A Navy SEALs Guide to Mastering Fear

Pre-Order now and you’ll also receive a Mastering Fear patch, Mastering Fear vinyl sticker and workout shirt


Share This

About the Author

Scott Witner is the Editor of The Loadout Room and handles product sourcing for both Crate Club and Cuna Dog. He is a former Marine Corps Infantryman with 2ndBn/8th Marines and was attached to the 24th MEU(SOC) for a 6 month deployment to the Mediterranean. He has completed training in desert warfare at the Marine Air Ground Combat Center, mountain warfare and survival at the Mountain Warfare Training Center and attended the South Korean Mountain Warfare school in Pohang.

See All Scott Witner Articles

More From The Loadout Room

Comments

Primary Sidebar

Most Read

  • Mossberg 930: the affordable 12 gauge auto-loader
    Mossberg 930: the affordable 12 gauge auto-loader
  • The Biggest Little Roundgun: The 3-Inch Kimber K6s
    The Biggest Little Roundgun: The 3-Inch Kimber K6s
  • SIG Sauer M17/M18/P320 Pistol Just Can't Seem to Escape Safety Controversies
    SIG Sauer M17/M18/P320 Pistol Just Can't Seem to Escape Safety Controversies
  • Vakarian Plate Carrier Review: Elite Comfort and Modularity for Under $300
    Vakarian Plate Carrier Review: Elite Comfort and Modularity for Under $300
  • Breek Arms Sledgehammer: The AR-15 Charging Handle That Gas Can’t Touch
    Breek Arms Sledgehammer: The AR-15 Charging Handle That Gas Can’t Touch

Find Us on Facebook

Recent Comments

  • Winston Smiths on Mossberg 930: the affordable 12 gauge auto-loader
  • Jared Mize on The Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife: A Commando Blade That Changed Special Forces Forever
  • GomeznSA on MAC-10: The Wild History of America’s Most Iconic (and Overrated) Submachine Gun

Latest From SOFREP

SOF

Special Operations Forces: People Are The Number One Asset

Editorial

The FBI Says Epstein Had No Client List and Definitely Killed Himself—And If You Believe That, I’ve Got a Bridge to Sell You

Featured

Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer On First Mission Saves 165 Lives in Texas

News

Morning Brief: Iran’s Foreign Minister Meets Saudi Crown Prince, Canadian Police Arrest Four in Alleged Extremist Militia Plot Involving Active Military Members

Military Content Group

© Copyright 2025 Military Content Group · All Rights Reserved.

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Advertisers
 

Loading Comments...