Soldiers Dive Into Therapeutic Waters

Part of that freedom is the choice the soldiers have to participate in whatever way they feel comfortable. While most of the soldiers wear prosthetics while diving, Edwards, a double amputee, said he prefers to go without.

"It affects my buoyancy. I like the webbed gloves better," he said as he showed them off to Woodruff.

Once the soldiers dive into the water, they say they leave the whole world behind.

John Thompson/Soldiers Undertake Disabled Scuba

Wounded veteran Gilberto Correa peers through a coral on a dive.

"There are no more worries about what is going on in your life and in the world," Dulashanti said. "You get down there and you can hear your breath, you can hear your inhale, and you can hear your exhale. You can see it. And it's just an automatic focus."

Claburn said he believes scuba diving offers more than relief from physical pain.

"All those soldiers who need to find some peace in their heart, to find some tranquility," he said. "Slap a tube on your vest and get underwater -- I guarantee you will find some true peace down there."

Underwater, where in the words of Jacques Cousteau, man can fly like an angel.

For more information on Soldiers Undertaking Disabled Scuba, or SUDS, you can visit their Web site, www.sudsdiving.org.