Turtle Envy: How facing the fear of diving added new adventures in life and new depths in love

by A.K. Snyder

Learn to scuba alongside Alycea, a claustrophobic newbie determined to overcome anxiety and explore the reefs.

After a failed scuba class, Alycea swore never to dive again. But when her husband fell in love with the sport, she faced a overcome the fear, or accept her fate as a bubble watcher. Her identity as self-reliant blocked her from trusting her dive buddy spouse, and this conflict extended beyond the water. Was her independent streak harming her diving as well as her marriage?

In lyrical prose, this memoir will have you cheering for small wins and reflecting on what it means to trust your partner.

SCUBA ~ ANXIETY ~ MARRIAGE ~ TRUST

272 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 31, 2020

About the author

A. K. Snyder writes personal narratives that tackle major life transitions. With unconventional lyricism, she lays out the heart of a story in bare bones language.

She also writes speculative fiction, with a focus on how we can apply technology to solve our most unsolvable issues. Her short stories and flash fiction tend to delve deep into a single emotion and carve a way forward through difficult circumstances.

Her work has been published by Fireside Fiction, John's Hopkins All Children's Hospital, and Transmundane Press. Memoirs include Redefining Family: A Birthmother's Path to Wholeness (January 2020, Wandering River Press) and Turtle Envy: Scuba Diving as an Anxious, Cursing Newbie (June 2020).

She is a member of the Florida Writers Association, and she serves on the board of Tampa Writers Alliance.

Rural Minnesota features prominently in her writing, where A. K. spent her first thirty years. She now lives with her husband in Florida. If she's not writing, she's most likely kayaking the local rivers, working in the garden, or walking her beagle around the neighborhood while chuckling to an audiobook on her headphones.

She started Your Next Inspiring Story, an online community where members share their recommendations for stories that change your perspective and leave you inspired.
More information about A. K. can be found at AKSnyderbooks.com.

Reviews

[Ali Jordahl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this memoir! When I first started reading I thought the book was going to be about the trials and tribulations of learning to scuba dive for someone who is scared of scuba diving. I was wrong! It is so much more than that. It is about facing your fears, walking through discomfort and finding a better, more joyous life on the other side. Once I started reading I couldn't stop and had it read cover to cover in two days. I could relate to so much of what she wrote about and it made me want to be brave and do the hard things in life. It's a must read that will leave you feeling uplifted, energized and ready to tackle your own challenges!

[Amarilys Rassler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like how the author shows with candor her relationship with her husband before, during and after learning to scuba dive. I loved being able to go underwater with her throughout the book. I know physically I will not be able to do this but mentally through very vivid images I was able to be part of this author's adventures. She had beautiful descriptions of what she saw underwater in poetic wording. I was moved by the way she grew because of her decision to tackle something she feared. Really loved the book!

[TOM · Rating 5 out of 5]

Turtle Envy is a great read, a story about diving, but so much more. It's about trusting your partner not only in diving, but also in life. The author provides many insights in how to overcome fear, how to face challenges, and how to build relationships. She uses humor and emotions throughout. Chapter 63 alone is worth the price of the book. A wonderful, inspiring story. I highly recommend Turtle Envy.

[K.M.D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I read "Turtle Envy," I had never thought of scuba diving as an interesting pursuit that people could practice while *not* being filmed for a nature documentary, or even - somewhat embarrassingly - thought about modern reefs as anything other than heat-bleached graveyards or a wild version of tropical-fish aquariums. This book cured me of both types of ignorance by painting beautiful, multicolor and multi-texture mental images of a wide variety of reefs, as observed and enjoyed by the author...after she fights through a mountain of fear and anxiety, *and* gives her readers the gift of several extremely useful techniques for dealing with anxiety in the moment. (Like cursing aloud, which forces you to breathe!) Between and sometimes during the diving scenes, she describes her marriage and growing ability to trust her husband with poignancy and nuance, showing the balancing act between healthy independence and healthy cooperation (and demonstrating that it's possible to course-correct if one is veering slightly too far towards "I look after myself - oh, right, you're here, too"). I highly recommend "Turtle Envy" for both general inspiration/reality checks and wonderful marine-life descriptions!