OP
luvspoodles
Contributor
Ishie:Certainly don't give up diving...
Stuff happens. Recognizing where something went wrong and taking steps to ensure it doesn't happen again is part of building self confidence. Thanksgiving weekend, I got the unique opportunity of not paying enough attention to changing conditions while submerged, ascended in a (long) surf zone accidentally and promptly experienced what it was like to get thrown on rocks and pounded into them by waves until your buddy rescues you. I screwed up, learned some lessons, and got lucky. No chamber ride in the world cures a broken neck. But I'll still dive. Next weekend, to be exact.
Onto your issues, I'm not a doctor, so take anything I say with a grain of salt. I've done various things related to diving that have caused muscle aches. Determining whether something is worrisome is a judgment call, and it's best to err on the side of caution, as has been pointed out.
Now my ears pose a problem for me, not really with diving, but with being extraordinarily sensitive to equilibrium. As a result, when anything goes wrong with my ears, or if my equilibrium is screwed up, say by being on a boat, I am instantly miserable. Pressure changes seem to be absolutely fine so long as they are bilateral.
I haven't had dive-related barotrauma, but I have had an untreated ear infection. I realized it when I was watching Dark City in the theater, tried to run to the bathroom to throw up, and literally could not walk in a straight line. My head was spinning, I was listing badly to one side and I felt like I was going to pass out. I also know that the pain in my ear and head and the nausea the feeling was inducing was sufficient that if I'd had a gunshot wound to the leg, I wouldn't have felt it.
It sounds like you had some really hideous stuff going on with your ear. With a slightly iffy dive profile, again, caution is best, but from personal experience, I can tell you that nasty ear problems can cause a real downward spiral. If the pain had subsided or disappeared (and the sudden popping could easily cause an equilibrium shift), it might have made you more aware of a pain in your arm.
Relax. People screw up and accidents happen. If you quit or beat yourself over something, what have you accomplished? If you learn from things that happen and use the gained knowledge to improve future situations, it makes you a better person.
You are right Ishie! It sure feels like the barotrauma caused a nasty downward spiral. I have never felt anything more painful in my life, and I've even had kidney stones (lots of them!) Friday and Saturday night I just sat in my hotel bed and cried...and by the time the airplane ride came around on Sunday evening I felt like I had gone insane. It now just seems like a blur. I have been achy all over for the past few days, and I am definitely noticing it now that the barotrauma is getting better. I wonder if I am just sore from all of the diving and walking around that I did? I feel like a real fool...I feel sorry for those people on Continental who had to sit by me while I was on the O2. And did I mention for some very odd reason we were in first class? Those people probably demanded their money back! Anyway, thanks so much for the encouragement.