Can you escape from a whirlpool?

I'm not sure at all if this is correct, but my old geography teacher (and an ex-marine) told us that if you're ever trapped in a whirlpool the best way to escape it is by swimming to the bottom, at which point the force pulling you down disappears. Although i suppose you would then swim back to the surface and just get sucked back into it. Sucks to be you.