common cold

[TMHeimer]

I recently dived when I knew a cold was approaching. But no congestion had set in yet. I get sick no more than once every 8 months, usually longer. But it's BAD. Then I get post-nasal drip, where everything from the sinuses drips down my throat causing major coughing (I'm now recovered from the virus and feel fine, but sound like I should be in the hospital--and don't think about diving 'til it subsides --minimum 2-3 weeks). That's why I will do the dive when I know the cold is coming, as I'll be dry for a while. I never take medication then dive. If I have something scheduled (the once a year FL. charter I take) and am not sure about the congestion, I'll try equalizing in a pool. I have heard that chest congestion can be dangerous when ascending as well.

 

[jringold]

I’m in a somewhat similar category – but not really. On my last dive 3 weeks ago I messed up my right ear. I did exactly what I should not have done – I equalized too forcefully. I’m seeing an ENT and have been on an oral steroid and last week I got a direct steroid injection in my ear (ouch). I have a big trip planned a week from yesterday and a scuba excursion scheduled and paid for a week from tomorrow and the day after. It is going to really suck if I can’t dive – I mean majorly. Part of me wonders if I have done all the damage I can do so diving is not going to make it worse. But then if I can’t equalize then I’ll have an issue.


This trip is not one of those “I’ll just reschedule it for next month” kind of trips. This is a trip out of the country that was schedule almost a year ago. It would be another year before I have a similar chance. CRAP!


I see the ENT next Thursday for a followup. Hopefully this will be behind me by then.

 

[TMHeimer]

I hope the ENT visit resolves it. You never want to fool with anything "ear" with scuba. I was recovering from a cold years ago and asked my instructor if I should go ahead with the Advanced Course and he said try it. Once ascending my ear popped and fizzed. He said as long as that happened your OK. Still unnerving. I'm no doctor of course, but I know everyone's passages throughout the head differ (that's why some are fantastic vocalists). I'm one of the lucky ones that has equalized without any of the usual methods (do it internally). So I know I'm "off" when congestion strikes. Good luck.

 

[dmaziuk]

My worry is that I get my wife or my two friends sick and mess up their OW dives. We have planned a Hawaii vacation and our first dive there is in 28 days. Until then we are all living in the same flat, so they are at risk of my germs. We all need OW certification done in time and we all need to not be sick for the vacation! I've been doing my best to wash my hands, no kissing the wife, no touching food or containers before washing hands, etc. I'm still curious, should the unthinkable happen, how bad it might affect our plans and what we might be able to do to mitigate the problem.

We just get paranoid a couple of months before diving vacation. Including daily regimen of emergen-c, berocca, and such. Prevention is the best cure and all that.

 

[NateS]

I've been using a neti pot, as much as I hate it. Still have a cold but it does seem to be improving. The others haven't shown signs of infection yet. Fingers crossed!

 

[dmaziuk]

I've been using a neti pot, as much as I hate it. Still have a cold but it does seem to be improving. The others haven't shown signs of infection yet. Fingers crossed!

When I have to do that, I throw a bit of salt in a glass, fill it with warm tap water, suck it in through the nose, spit it out of the mouth. (Yeah I know they tell you to use sterile HEPA-filtered water but I've an immune system and am not afraid to use it instead.) Not super-pleasant but is does help clear the sinuses faster. Also helps when you get water up your nose during mask-clearing exercise: way less pleasant than warm saline, but you're somewhat used to it already...

 

[kevindsingleton]

If it's available, I'd recommend taking Nyquil, or something similar, every night when you go to sleep, between now and your next dive sessions. Anytime I have any kind of sinus infection or cold virus, I swig some Nyquil, and sleep it off. I've done plenty of dives on Sudafed, and it has never been a problem, for me. I 'll take the medicine about an hour before the first dive, and make sure the 12-hour dose will cover my entire diving day.

 

[KathyV]

One time my husband dived with a head cold in Bonaire, he had taken the decongestants and cold capsules. He was fine during the dive but got a reverse block when coming up. He was unable to clear it. He stayed down as long as he could and then came up with a ruptured his ear drum - and that was the end of our dive vacation. And we've had a few other vacations shortened because one or the other of us got sick.

Now we take some precautions. We get to the vacation destination early to give us time to relax, sleep, and feel healthy. We used to work to the last moment, arrive sleep-deprived and exhausted after breathing recylcled airplane air for hours, and head straight to the reef for a dive. It was a certainty that one of us would get a cold. Now we take it slow and ease into it.

We also take Allegra-D, 12 hour antihistamine decongestants every day and we use neti-pot rinses every night to keep our sinuses clear. We also give each other plenty of time to equalize at the start of a dive. If one of us clears easily but the other is having a problem, you wait for your buddy to clear.

We also avoid dives that require quick descents and we swim over swim-throughs that have significant changes in depth.

These practices have worked well for us. It may seem extreme but as I've said; we've had vacations ruined by head colds and sinus congestion. And if all this still doesn't work and one of us is congested, we stand down and skip the dive.

 

[DogDiver]

Allegra-D. With 120mg of pseudoephedrine in each pill you should be cautious of the lower oxygen toxicity threshold especially in women. And more so in women on birth control pills.


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[KathyV]

Allegra-D. With 120mg of pseudoephedrine in each pill you should be cautious of the lower oxygen toxicity threshold especially in women. And more so in women on birth control pills. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks, that's good to know, but I have been taking Allegra D everyday for allergies for a long time.