Had a not so fun experience, any ideas?

[clownfishsydney]

Which wreck were you on and who were you diving with? Prefer to send a private message

Probably Semle Federsen from the sound of it. Unlikely to be vertigo based on what he has said, very unlikely to be narcosis as he was ascending and well above max depth. Possibility it could be overworking as you can sometimes get a current down the slope there and thus CO2 retention.

 

[johndiver999]

It was not narcosis and was not co2. If it was co, I doubt the malady would resolve quickly. If the diver has a slow to clear ear, then I would guess the most likely cause is alternobaric vertigo. Many people seem to be unprepared for the intensity of the symptoms. You can get very dizzy, lose useful vision and have sever nausea.

Perhaps there is some other serious medical issue, but sounds like a slow ear to me.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Except that a slow ear doesn't make you feel like you are going to pass out.

 

[DandyDon]

I can get 24 tablets of the generic at Walmart/Target for about $18.

I'd hate that. My WalAct D is 48 for $8. It's like the old Actifed.

 

[johndiver999]

Except that a slow ear doesn't make you feel like you are going to pass out.

Perhaps, extreme nausea and spinning vision might be described as feeling like you are going to pass out. It is a really terrible feeling and if the victim has no clue as to what is causing the severe symptoms, then they are probably terrified as well. Getting slammed with this while underwater and burdened with a deco ceiling could be extremely stressful.

 

[tarponchik]

Everyone on ScubaBoard has CO on the brain for every issue. Unless there is other evidence I would assume a simpler explanation.

You dove to 43m /141 feet and got seriously narc'ed! This is why is quickly cleared as you ascended rather than perishing from CO poisoning. Everyone gets narc'ed at different depths and experiences vary, but at 141 feet it might be expected.

Common symptoms of nitrogen narcosis:

• poor judgement
• short-term memory loss
• trouble concentrating
• a sense of euphoria
• disorientation
• reduced nerve and muscle function
• hyperfocusing on a specific area
• hallucinations

Exactly. CO bounds hemoglobin irreversibly. Just go into the meat dept in your local grocery and see the nice red color of the CO treated ground beef which will stay red forever for this very reason.

 

[AfterDark]

Except that a slow ear doesn't make you feel like you are going to pass out.

If the result of that is vertigo it can. I had vertigo last year, woke up with it. When I wasn't dry heaving I was on laying on my stomach wishing for or unconsciousness or death the entire day and most of the evening. If that severity had hit me underwater I don't know if I'd been posting about it. The GP said it is caused by crystals in our inner ear that float in the fluid there and bounce between tiny hairs that send signals to the brain of how we are moving. Sometime a crystal or two will get stuck on a hair and keep sending the same signal to the brain. Problem there is the signal is wrong, it does not jive with the other signals the brain is getting from other sources, as a result one will feel however the brain interprets those mixed signals

So my GUESS is equalizing ears may have the same affect at random times even momentarily and one will feel however the brain interprets those mixed signals, sick, dizzy, lightheaded, off balance, you name it.

If one is rising thru the water column and loses one's frame of reference while one ear is under more pressure than the other because of slow clearing I would GUESS those crystals could be a bit discombobulated and the brain tilts a little for a moment.

There have been times where I'll get a little lightheaded on an ascent and it's usually when I'm checking a gage or my PDC and take my eyes off my surroundings for a moment, then when I take a look around again or look up it hits me but only for a second of two.

Just my opinion no medical degree, but lots of diving experience.

 

[johndiver999]

It is not the crystals, it is unequal pressure in the ears that throws things out of wack. If both ears are similarly not equalized, there is no effect.

 

[AfterDark]

It is not the crystals, it is unequal pressure in the ears that throws things out of wack. If both ears are similarly not equalized, there is no effect.

Agreed, but I'm speculating that at times just the pressure regardless whether it equal or not may have a similar effect on the crystals. Our inner ear is compressed, the fluid isn't nor I would guess are the crystals compressible. So I'd guess things may get a little cramped and at the wrong time or turn of the head could have some adverse affect.?

 

[Bob DBF]

Agreed, but I'm speculating that at times just the pressure regardless whether it equal or not may have a similar effect on the crystals. Our inner ear is compressed, the fluid isn't nor I would guess are the crystals compressible. So I'd guess things may get a little cramped and at the wrong time or turn of the head could have some adverse affect.?

Positional vertigo:
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) - Symptoms and causes



Bob