sleepy, scuba makes me very sleepy, zzz

[Northeastwrecks]

I'm not a doctor. However, I've read some studies that suggest that extreme fatigue may be the result of so-called sub-clinical dcs, or decompression stress.

Anecdotally, I've noticed that the time I became the most fatigued (to the point that I almost checked into a hotel instead of driving home) came after a rescue that resulted in an overly rapid ascent.

I've also noticed that increasing my safety stop times, doing deep stops and maintaining slow ascent rates eliminates this problem, which suggests to me that there is some basis to this theory.

Switching to Nitrox results in less nitrogen loading vis a vis the same dive for the same time when done on air. However, if you push your dive to the Nitrox NDL, you eliminate this factor.

That said, I've got to believe that breathing higher partial pressures of O2 does something that makes you feel better, even if PADI says no.

 

[kelpmermaid]

I am Nitrox certified and don't get to use it much, but when I have, I personally have not noticed a real difference. Northeastwrecks, could the after-effects of an adrenaline burn also have contributed to your fatigue after the rescue?

 

[shellbird]

I get so sleepy I don't want to do my second dive and my dives have been relatively shallow, 25 - 30', mellow dives.

I like the thought that Hallmac had that it is just so damn relaxing down there, an excape from the surface element, into a completely different reality, scenery, sensation. Like going back to the womb. OK, so I exagerate, but perhaps that is part of it.

I would be interested to hear why this happens as well. I know I am not bent, perhaps fatigued from all the weight, but sleepy, sleepy, sleeeeeeeepy. I too have had to stop roadside to "visit the land of nod"...

 

[lucid]

I get the same way if I surface too quickly or hurry through deco stops. I learned that if I always do a 3 minute safety stop, even on shallow dives, and take my time ascending I feel good after the dive. If I omit the stop or rush up the line I feel ran down. Try slower accents with a safety stop.

 

[SDAnderson]

shellbird once bubbled...
I would be interested to hear why this happens as well. I know I am not bent, perhaps fatigued from all the weight, but sleepy, sleepy, sleeeeeeeepy. I too have had to stop roadside to "visit the land of nod"...

How do you know that you aren't bent?

DAN estimates that as many as 3% to 4% of recreational dives result in some form of decompression illness - that's scary!

Straight up, folks, recreational diving should never be so strenous that you end a dive so exhausted that you have to go to sleep. If you do, something is wrong, no matter how good it feels.

Guys like me have long used geezer gas for years because we feel better after diving on it. Some will tell you that the benefit comes from the increased oxygen intake, but the clinical evidence indicates that it comes from the reduction in nitrogen.

Likewise, there are more and more reports that slowing ascent rates from the old 60 feet per minute limit leaves divers feeling better and more alert after diving. This clearly is attributable to an increase in offgassing.

"Bent" doesn't necessarily mean hospitalized. Even if classified as mild or "sub-clinical" DCI, the short and long-term impact of micro-nucleated bubbles on your body is not good. A nice nap doesn't fix osteo-necrosis or transient ischemia or...

Steven

 

[shellbird]

Diving in water in the mid-50s, granted I am toasty in my 7mm wetsuit, hood, gloves and booties, but could that have an impact on overall fatigue?

 

[Arnaud]

By combining dry suit and Nitrox, I'm no longer tired after diving.

I dove wet during the holidays in the Carribean. Next thing I know, I'm tired again.

Here in SoCal, the only people I have seen napping on a liveaboard were diving wet. Everybody else was fine. There's a lot to be said about exposure to cold water.

 

[shellbird]

A walk on a brisk Autumn day. Sometimes that makes me tired too, but I don't have DCS...

 

[SDAnderson]

shellbird once bubbled...
Diving in water in the mid-50s, granted I am toasty in my 7mm wetsuit, hood, gloves and booties, but could that have an impact on overall fatigue?

Possible, but cold temperatures are definitely implicated in DCI. In particular, having a warm core and cold(er) skin can lead to "skin bends", where nitrogen is unable to offgas as effectively due to vascular constriction in the skin and extremities. You end up with discoloration or mottling of the skin that sometimes itches like crazy and typically resolves itself within a day or two. Semi-common occurence up here where bottom temps rarely reach 50F.

No doubt about it, a little exercise is relaxing and sometimes the best follow-up is one of those really sweet naps that refreshes the soul as much as the body. Once the nap crosses the line from "wouldn't it be nice" to "I can't stay awake" I would hope that every diver carefully consider the cause. If nothing else, try a slower ascent and maybe a little EAN mix and see if there is any change.

Steven

 

[shellbird]

thanks.