So here is the dive profiles and a little about being treated. It's much more entertaining in long form. I've watched all types of DCS movies and done a lot of reading in both my DM and deco tech classes, nothing prepares you for the actual event.
4 day of diving, prior day - 4 dives, had about 3 minutes of deco on the last dive of the day. Did my usual routine of double deco obligation and add 3-5 minutes (don't remember specifics). Went to be kinda early, after dinner and shooting some pool with friends.
day of accident (4th day of diving) -
1st dive a great site (don't remember name), ran into napoleon wrasse, a pair of turtles and finished with a huge school of black and white heniocius (or however you spell). Max depth 162', came up to 115 after about 6 minutes (memory a little fuzzy here). then proceeded to 70 for a 1-2 minute stop. Then up to 15 with 8 minutes computer deco obligation. Did 16 minutes + 2 more. had a weird stomach ache after the first dive, sharp pain. Thought I might have accidentally drank some local water.. but wasn't sure. about 2 hours.45 minutes before 2nd dive. Max depth here 118, then up to spend most of the time at the 70-80 foot level. Again, 8 minutes of deco and did the same 16 minutes + 2-3 more. Came up very slow as usual (10 fpm). All dives on air.
Was out of the water for a while, maybe 30-40 minutes before I climbed up the stairs to my room to change batteries. Was in the room 5 minutes before my hand went numb, hurt real bad. Said, "sh**, I'm bent, but only my hand, probably not bad". Changed out of my wet shorts to dry shorts and started to go get help (it was less than a minute). Didn't make it across the room before I fell to my knees throwing up, violent and painful, somewhere around here my arm to the elbow starting hurting like hell. I yelled for help, lucky my roommate was in his room (2 room suite), he went to get O2. He wsa gone maybe 3-4 minutes, by this time arm was numb to the shoulder and I had no control of that arm, it was painful dead weight. Got up off the floor and sat on the edge of the bed thinking, oh crap, this might be pretty bad, but still I wasn't worried. Just before my buddy arrived with the dive shop guys my legs just went numb, no pain, it was if they were not there. I lost my balance and fell backwards onto the bed (lucky not the floor). somewhere around here it felt like someone jammed a pillow on my face, I couldn't breathe.
Ok, Im not too proud to say... this is where panic set-in. I started thinking, oh crap, might die here. The O2 arrives within a few minutes, I have no idea how long, everything from this point is flashes of memory. The one thing I do remember is being in a hell of a lot of pain, it felt like my entire body was being punished. How valid is this memory I don't know, all I know is that at this point there is probably 10 people in my room. My friends wife and sister are crying, everyone is completely freaked out, I'm screaming in pain according to my friends. The O2 makes an immediate difference; don't feel good, but at least I feel like I can breathe. Each time they take off the o2, to move me for example, the difficulty breathing starts up in 2-3 minutes. It takes a while to get me out of my room and onto the truck heading to the hospital (and hour ++ in the rainstorm). The local doctor, Mario, arrived about 15 minutes later and started an IV on me. Both he and the resort owner (a personal friend)accompanied me on my 22 hour journey to the start of treatment. Small planes that fly low don't fly at night in the Philippines, so I was evacuated via overnight ferry (12 hour ride). Spent an hour in the hospital as the doctors debated was it DCS resullting in a stroke, or a stroke that caused the DCS. They draw what feels like a gallon of blood to do tests.
The ride on the ferry was relatively uneventful, getting there a different story.
By morning, I had minor movement in my legs and could breath without the O2, felt better with, but could walk with help at this point. Had to wait 4 hours to get into the chamber, the doc was concerned that I was on O2 for so long that I would have seizures in the chamber. After a table 5 treatment (yes, Ive learned I was significantly under treated according to most docs), I was able to walk, but still had some balance and fine motor skill issues. Doc told me that would continue to be true for the next 90 days.
Spent a week rehabbing in the Philippines with my buddies (I have about 10 friends who live there). Its a terrible way to extend your vacation a week, but I made the most of thanking everyone who traveled to pick me up, and make special arrangements for follow-on treatment. Without their help I would have missed the ferry and not gotten the followup care I needed. like the fact that the ambulance broke down on the way from the hospital to the ship and if it wasnt for my friends in the local government dispatching troops to stop the ship from leaving I would have missed it
. This is just one of several made for TV events that complicated my evacuation, treatment and follow-on recovery. ((Im cutting out long parts of this story because it's late and I've told it so many times before even I"m bored with it))
So wrapping up this long message, after returning to the states I went to go see a hyperbaric doc who put me back in the tube for a Table VI, at least I had TV this time. Came out (having to pee real bad, next time pee before you go in the tube), but feeling about 98% normal, only minor balance issues and only slight loss in handwriting ability.
A little background, had exactly 601 dives on the day of the accident, accident was dive 601. Have about planned 20 deco dives and maybe another where entered deco during a rec dive. Have deeper dives to 180 and longer deco times , never had a problem prior to this. I believe I was well hydrated and rested prior to the dive.
All in all, a learning experience.
Note: all spelling mistakes are intentionally to see if you are paying attention.
dave
