jands
Registered
Hi all,
I have wanted to dive since I was a kid, but was never given medical clearance in my home country, because I have asthma. So, I focused on many other sports (windsurfing, white water and surf kayaking, rock climbing), but the desire to dive never went away.
Last year I was at a resort in the Philippines and they allowed me do to the Discover Scuba Diving course (you may agree or disagree on their wisdom in doing so), but FINALLY I was under the water. Only 10m, but it was enough! I saw barracuda, a school of jack, an amazing vertical wall of fish, sea snakes and even a green turtle.
Well, I was hooked...absolutely addicted. I am an expat now, so I went to a dive center close to where I live, and they had no problems with letting me do the Open Water Cert.
Finally, 40 years old and I am living the dream. As soon as I get my head under water the magic begins (even though I have only done training dives so far).
As for the asthma, I have read all the DAN reports and understand the risks I am taking. So, I take extra safety precautions and let nature take care of the rest.
From DAN reports I understand there are two major dangers:
1. If I get an asthma attack under water then my lungs will narrow, and even though can breathe in I have a lot of trouble with breathing out. This puts me at risk of decompression sickness when ascending.
My preventative measures are: taking a cortisone steroid tablet before diving, not diving in any situations where I may encounter strong currents.
2. The other problem is that Asthma medicine can slow down my bodys ability to release nitrogen. This means that I am putting myself at risk of decompression sickness simply by ascending the normal way.
My preventative measures are: no deep dives (no deeper than 18m no matter what), a slower than usual ascend rate with numerous safety stops, longer than usual surface time between multiple dives. It may mean less bottom time and less dives in a day, but at least I get to dive.
If things do go wrong, then so be it. I put my live at serious risk every day just by riding my scooter to work, even crossing a road on a pedestrian crossing can get me killed where I live.
My instructor recommended this forum, and I have spent a great deal of time here recently reading many helpful posts about gear, photography and more. Right now I will keep my eyes on the photography forum (as that will be the next big purchase).
I have wanted to dive since I was a kid, but was never given medical clearance in my home country, because I have asthma. So, I focused on many other sports (windsurfing, white water and surf kayaking, rock climbing), but the desire to dive never went away.
Last year I was at a resort in the Philippines and they allowed me do to the Discover Scuba Diving course (you may agree or disagree on their wisdom in doing so), but FINALLY I was under the water. Only 10m, but it was enough! I saw barracuda, a school of jack, an amazing vertical wall of fish, sea snakes and even a green turtle.
Well, I was hooked...absolutely addicted. I am an expat now, so I went to a dive center close to where I live, and they had no problems with letting me do the Open Water Cert.
Finally, 40 years old and I am living the dream. As soon as I get my head under water the magic begins (even though I have only done training dives so far).
As for the asthma, I have read all the DAN reports and understand the risks I am taking. So, I take extra safety precautions and let nature take care of the rest.
From DAN reports I understand there are two major dangers:
1. If I get an asthma attack under water then my lungs will narrow, and even though can breathe in I have a lot of trouble with breathing out. This puts me at risk of decompression sickness when ascending.
My preventative measures are: taking a cortisone steroid tablet before diving, not diving in any situations where I may encounter strong currents.
2. The other problem is that Asthma medicine can slow down my bodys ability to release nitrogen. This means that I am putting myself at risk of decompression sickness simply by ascending the normal way.
My preventative measures are: no deep dives (no deeper than 18m no matter what), a slower than usual ascend rate with numerous safety stops, longer than usual surface time between multiple dives. It may mean less bottom time and less dives in a day, but at least I get to dive.
If things do go wrong, then so be it. I put my live at serious risk every day just by riding my scooter to work, even crossing a road on a pedestrian crossing can get me killed where I live.
My instructor recommended this forum, and I have spent a great deal of time here recently reading many helpful posts about gear, photography and more. Right now I will keep my eyes on the photography forum (as that will be the next big purchase).
