Testimonial
“We are so grateful for the IMURS program. My daughter has genetic problems and severe anxiety. We have not had much luck with traditional medicine. We have tried play therapy, but my daughter was still really struggling. So I went on a hunt for other ways to help her cope with her anxiety. Scuba diving has been a life saver. She has learned how to breathe and relax under water. Learning these breathing techniques have allowed her to better manage her anxiety at home. After each scuba session Sara is full of smiles. With each session brings a reset for her. It has been an incredible change to see her going from being constantly nervous to happy and bubbly. This program has been an absolute blessing for her.”
Christy Snyder
What Makes Us Different
Our three unique programs were developed using the best minds in instructional design and scuba instruction.
Using the power of water, we assist IMURS participants with underwater meditation and mindfulness, coping techniques used both underwater and above, pain management through weightlessness, meditation and mindfulness breathing techniques, and allowing all IMURS participants to participate in SCUBA, no matter their condition.
We Educate
We educate participants about three different programs to help manage their daily challenges.
We Help
We help participants develop skills to find relief with everyday challenges.
We Unlock
We unlock the underwater world to participants, fostering freedom and peace.
Our Mission
We use adaptive scuba diving to help individuals with mental health challenges, cognitive conditions, and physical disabilities build confidence, calm, and connection.
Our Mission
To become a leading organization that uses adaptive scuba diving to improve lives, expand access, and set the standard for therapeutic diving programs.
How It All Began
IMURS was not created from a business plan. It was born from lived experience.
In 2012, North American Divers was founded as a PADI 5-Star Instructor Development Center in Utah County. For years, we trained divers, built a community, and shared a passion for the underwater world.
But over time, something became impossible to ignore.
Many of the individuals we worked with—youth and adults alike—were quietly struggling. Anxiety. Depression. Trauma. Challenges that weren’t always visible on the surface, but were very real beneath it.
At the same time, we began to see something powerful.
In the water, people changed.
Breathing slowed. Focus returned. The noise quieted. For some, it was the first moment of calm they had felt in a long time.
What we were witnessing wasn’t just recreation—it was transformation.
That realization led to a deeper pursuit of understanding. As we explored the science behind scuba diving, we discovered what many in the medical and research communities have confirmed: the underwater environment—through controlled breathing, sensory immersion, and weightlessness—can have a profound impact on mental and physical well-being.
But for us, this wasn’t just theory. It was personal.
We knew what it felt like to struggle. We knew what it felt like to find relief underwater.
And we began to ask a simple but powerful question:
What if more people had access to this?
On November 18, 2022, that question became IMURS.
Founded on both experience and purpose, IMURS was created to provide individuals facing mental health, cognitive, and physical challenges with a new way to heal, grow, and rediscover themselves.
Because sometimes, the path forward doesn’t start on the surface.
Sometimes, it begins with a single breath underwater.