GBR near miss for this novice diver

[Bob DBF]

I would agree that narcosis was involved, but IMHO the medication changes on the fly during that time may have set you up for these issues. If you repost this incident in the dive medicine forum you might find a different answer than you find here.


Bob
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Not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV.

 

[Tippytoes12]

I always feel that people who post these stories on he are incredibly brave and your reaction to the advice you have had is so mature , well done.

It sounds like you have identified that getting yourself into better shape will help avoid this in future. My hubby and I learned to dive together and since then we have got ourselves in the best shape we have ever been. You need to be for long haul flights half way around the world , diving our brains out , then flying back the other way and going straight back to work.

Thanks again for sharing and wishing you many happy dives x

 

[Freewillow]

I would suggest in your referendum "none of the above', mixture of concurent factors.

 

[stillswimmingincircles]

I always feel that people who post these stories on he are incredibly brave and your reaction to the advice you have had is so mature , well done.

It sounds like you have identified that getting yourself into better shape will help avoid this in future. My hubby and I learned to dive together and since then we have got ourselves in the best shape we have ever been. You need to be for long haul flights half way around the world , diving our brains out , then flying back the other way and going straight back to work.

Thanks again for sharing and wishing you many happy dives x

Thanks for the nod of kindness....

 

[stillswimmingincircles]

I would suggest in your referendum "none of the above', mixture of concurent factors.

I do think it was being narc'd because it just disappeared upon ascent. it was really scary to lose my vision. I never saw the divemaster come up to me. Only felt him. and was aware of feeling like we were going up, and breathing, seeing nothing. I don't think I blacked out . I just could see nothing, or nothing visual registered on my brain. until 40 feet. But I also agree that there where a lot of factors that certainly exacerbated the narcosis, or were there along side it, and made the whole experience worse. I wonder if CO2 overload had any play, due to my breathing? But I don't remember being overly stressed, jumping in first thing in the morning. And the whole thing lasted only 13 minutes. I also never remember being taught about CO2 overload in any of my OW classes.

 

[NYCNaiad]

I'm not a doctor & I do think posting this in the dive medicine forum would be helpful for you, but my two cents: I think it was a whole host of factors combined...not in great shape (though working on it which I applaud you for), medication changes, barotrauma, diving beyond your capability, overbreathing & narcosis. I get paranoid narc'd along with tunnel vision. I know how scary this can be especially when being narc'd is so often described as feeling drunk. I hate the feeling so much that I'm careful with depth & pay very close attention. If I start to get narc'd, I just rise up a little.

As a side note: On the last dive of a trip, I was sucked into a downward current in a whirlpool & thought I was going to die. The next time I dove I got an underwater anxiety attack--when I'd never experienced this on land before. I was able to work through it, but this continued for quite a number of dives. My suggestion is that the next number of times you go diving make sure you do easy dives & pay a little extra for an instructor to dive with you just in case there's an issue.

 

[Freewillow]

@NYCNaiad , glad to read that others are sharing my opinion.

 

[stillswimmingincircles]

Sound advice. I will heed it. I never felt like a happy drunk. just confused, and then scared. I am glad to hear your whirlpool incident ended with you being able to write about it!

I will try to repost in the medical section. Is there a simple way to do this, or just cut and paste...if you don't answer...ill figure it out!

 

[Freewillow]

maybe ask a moderator to place your post in the medicine sub-forum ?

 

[Steyr]

Regardless of any health issues or narcosis, one thing that seems consistent between both incidents is the lack of observance of gauges. In conditions with excellent visibility, distances and depth can be deceptive. In poor visibility or in mid-water with a deep bottom, you may not have a reference to gauge your rate of ascent/descent against. So you need to constantly read your depth gauge to have much idea of what's going on.

It only takes a second to check your gauges, so do it extremely regularly. Use it to manage your ascent and descent rates, dive time, NDL, and of course your gas remaining.

Your gas consumption definitely seems high - I would suggest working on basic health and fitness plus diving trim, weight, comfort and anxiety in the water to get that rate down a bit. Ascent from around 30m/100ft need only take 3 minutes (less using PADI ascent rates) plus a 3 minute safety stop. That's 6 minutes, with an average depth of only 10m/33ft during that time. 70 bar (in a single 12L tank) is when I would routinely begin my ascent and I would still be back on the boat with 50 bar (reserve for if I need to share air with a buddy on ascent - my regular buddy would use less than 20 bar on a normal ascent; maybe more through the anxiety of a situation needing us to share air).