Was I Narked?

[oreocookie]

thanks for the responses so far. I was laughing about it after the dive and to some degree I wouldn't be surprised if I was laughing in the middle of it all. I kinda wanted to be at the surface at that point, but I didn't feel at any point like I was going to bolt. I was quite prepared to wait for the instructor. I knew I had to calm my breathing and I was focusing on that, even putting my hands over my mask to block out everything else and remind myself that my mask was on my face and everything else was fine, but it didn't seem to help.

I didn't sleep well last night and was tired before the dive this morning, which may have played a role in whatever it was that I was experiencing.

 

[tomboyy]

Me neither..
First off its not 100 feet for a ow diver for many agencies but 60.
2nd, the nitrox part has so many holes it dont even begin to be fun, especially considering the fact that o2 is widely regarded to be as narcotic or even more so than nitrogen as well as the o2 toxicity issue..

As for the OPs questions, it could well have been a case of dark-narc.
Ive been narced at 90 ft and fine at 100+ and it varies not only on a day to day basis but conditions can be a big factor as well. Dark, dark, murky waters can make you much more narced or aware of a narc than crystal-clear tropical waters.

Ummm... yep

 

[oreocookie]

what do you do when your mask fogs up?
wear a nose clamp problem solved.
the more dive time you get in the more used to water being in your mask you will get.
it happens, you need to learn to not panic over it.
did your instructors require you to pull your mask off under water then put it back on?
if you did not have to I would suggest you are taught how to do it.

I do what everybody else does when my mask fogs (let some water in and clear it). I did learn to take my mask off and put it back on, I even did it in the pool on Wednesday partly because I was bored and partly because I wanted to see how good my hovering was. When I do get anxious over something like this, I'm calm again in a breath or 2, which was NOT the case here.

 

[Scuba Ken]

Probably had something to do with narcosis. At that depth it was likely starting to affect you. No mix of nitrox would help with narcosis, only trimix would.

I've felt narcosis effects at that depth the first time. On subsequent dives though it seemed to go away. I've heard people say your body learns to adjust for it. Just my experience everyone is different.

 

[The Surly Mermaid]

what do you do when your mask fogs up?
wear a nose clamp problem solved.

I have to ask. Mobid curiousity is getting the best of me. What exactly do you mean when you mention 'wear a nose clamp'? I want to ask to see if you are suggesting wearing something that would completely pinch a divers nose closed during the dive. If that's the case how exactly would you have someone equalize the air in their mask and prevent mask squeeze, or clear any water out of your mask, with said nose clamp on.... Unless you are one of those uniquely talented individuals that could expel enough air through the corner of your eyeballs to do it. Just wondering...

 

[Katamuki]

I am still stuck on the fact that you were told to "sit down". What a horrible instructor. You should be able to hold your position in the water by the time your diving deep IMO. Sit down is for extreme newbies or instructors that have very very VERY low standards... in my opinion...

 

[reo]

what do you do when your mask fogs up?
wear a nose clamp problem solved.

If you're wearing a nose clamp, how do you clear your mask?

Are you sure that was a Holiday Inn?

Ron

 

[daniel1948]

I just have a thought: You are a new diver, as shown by your stats (0-24 dives). You were sitting on the bottom. I presume that means your head was upright. We spend most of our dive time horizontal, looking more or less down. With your head upright, water in the nose pocket is more noticeable. It could have been that, along with some nervousness at being so deep, so early in your diving experience.

 

[elmer fudd]

Right around 100' is where I start to notice narcosis and I find it's more pronounced if you're active. The first time I realized I was narced was after chasing around after a dungenous crab at close to 100'. After the exertion I realized if not for my regulator I would have had a big stupid grin on my face and I felt like I'd had a couple shots of tequila. That's a "good narc", although anything that makes you stupid 100' underwater is not good. Another time I had that same happy giddy feeling at 120' on a wall dive. I wanted to go deeper and explore a bit more, but fortunately my buddy had a cooler head and signaled that we had already used up over 1/3 of our air.

A bad narc is that same stupid and irrational feeling, but instead of being coupled with a feeling of adventure, you have an overwhelming sense of impending doom. Dark narcs suck and my own sense is that they're much more dangerous because that fear is hard to control. If you're just a little pleasantly narced, then it's mostly a matter of realizing it, (you should just assume you are after 90' or so), and not letting you or your buddy do something impulsive and foolish. That dark narc anxiety on the other hand is much harder to control because it seems so overwhelming.

 

[kaerius]

Dark narcs suck and my own sense is that they're much more dangerous because that fear is hard to control. If you're just a little pleasantly narced, then it's mostly a matter of realizing it, (you should just assume you are after 90' or so), and not letting you or your buddy do something impulsive and foolish. That dark narc anxiety on the other hand is much harder to control because it seems so overwhelming.

On the other hand dark narc means you feel something is wrong, and will likely seek to bail, ie: ascend, which fixes it. A happy narc can have you trying to give your reg to the fishes and not giving a bleep that you actually need it to survive, or it might have you want to follow that beautiful friendly fish on its way down to 300'.