Question: On my Open Water course, I was taught to drop my weight belt in an emergency. What situations would merit dropping my weights? I am naturally concerned that dropping weights will lead to a rapid ascent to the surface.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n There is one primary ‘trigger’ moment when the diver should immediately and without hesitation drop their weights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n If the diver becomes concerned they may pass unconscious in the immediate future.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This could encompass many scenarios, the main ones being:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The issue of ditching weight at the surface is clear-cut and there are no real variables that discourage this course of action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, when underwater, there is the issue that ditching all of your weight can lead to a rapid ascent. A rapid ascent can cause decompression sickness<\/a> (DCS). Mindfulness of that consequence could lead to a fatal hesitation to ditch weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are precautions that can also be taken to make the issue of rapid ascent less severe. One intelligent precaution is to adopt a weighting<\/a> strategy that allows the weight to be ditched incrementally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In essence… a staged ballast approach to weighting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n