Last week, I had the opportunity to dive several sites throughout the Bahamas on the liveaboard Avalon. One potential incident could have marred an otherwise great experience. Two buddy pairs (me and my lady friend; my daughter and her boyfriend, all intermediate to advanced divers with at least 150 ocean dives in various conditions) descended on the Lost Blue Hole site. As we descended into the hole, with a plan to level out at 80' to explore a cavern cut into the side of the hole, my lady friend ("S") appeared to lose depth control and sank fairly rapidly to greater than 100'. We had been at these depths before with no issue, but my thought is that some combination of a) dehydration; b) first full day of the first liveaboard experience; and c) some emotional distress, plus the more rapid than normal descent induced narcosis. She ignored repeated signals to ascend (I was never more than 5' from her), and eventually bottomed out at 123' before I could gain control of her BC and slowly ascend.
This is where it got "interesting". Shortly after starting the ascent, she became very docile (afterwards, she claimed she was asleep, and liked the feeling so much she didn't want to wake up). From the start of the ascent at 123', I had a firm hold on her tank valve, and ensured she was still breathing, but she gave no effort to sustain her position in the water and did not kick or make any other diver like movement. Frankly, I thought at first she was just throwing a tantrum. At one point, she became combative and tried to shove me away, but quickly relented and resumed her docile manner.
We reached safety stop depth after a very slow ascent, and it was only then, after looking into her eyes, that I realized she was fully asleep. I made several attempts to wake her with increasing aggression, but each time, she opened her eyes briefly, then proceeded to nod off again. We reached the surface safely, and started to reboard, but only then did she become more fully aware. She thought. however, that we were just starting the dive, not ending it.
So, can simple narcosis induce such a lingering effect, or was this something as troubling as a more passive attempt to succumb to something that felt peaceful? She scared me quite a bit, but we completed more than a dozen more dives on the trip without incident, including several wall dives that took us to similar depths. I'll have to admit I was never fully comfortable with these dives because I was worried about her response, but they all went okay.
If you want more details, let me know, or PM me if you have clinical suggestions. I'd like to believe this is a one time thing, but I'm not sure what to make of it. She just wants to "forget" about it, but not sure that's wise if there is an underlying emotional instability.
Anyway, thanks for reading and for any comments you might have.
This is where it got "interesting". Shortly after starting the ascent, she became very docile (afterwards, she claimed she was asleep, and liked the feeling so much she didn't want to wake up). From the start of the ascent at 123', I had a firm hold on her tank valve, and ensured she was still breathing, but she gave no effort to sustain her position in the water and did not kick or make any other diver like movement. Frankly, I thought at first she was just throwing a tantrum. At one point, she became combative and tried to shove me away, but quickly relented and resumed her docile manner.
We reached safety stop depth after a very slow ascent, and it was only then, after looking into her eyes, that I realized she was fully asleep. I made several attempts to wake her with increasing aggression, but each time, she opened her eyes briefly, then proceeded to nod off again. We reached the surface safely, and started to reboard, but only then did she become more fully aware. She thought. however, that we were just starting the dive, not ending it.
So, can simple narcosis induce such a lingering effect, or was this something as troubling as a more passive attempt to succumb to something that felt peaceful? She scared me quite a bit, but we completed more than a dozen more dives on the trip without incident, including several wall dives that took us to similar depths. I'll have to admit I was never fully comfortable with these dives because I was worried about her response, but they all went okay.
If you want more details, let me know, or PM me if you have clinical suggestions. I'd like to believe this is a one time thing, but I'm not sure what to make of it. She just wants to "forget" about it, but not sure that's wise if there is an underlying emotional instability.
Anyway, thanks for reading and for any comments you might have.
