what happened ???

[MXGratefulDiver]

I had the same experience once. I had a slight cold and was coming over the side of a wreck. The whole world started spinning, and became flat. I think that I had vertigo from a pressure imbalance between my ears. It only lasted a minute, but boy it felt crazy.

Babar

Those who know me well have long maintained that I have an imbalance between my ears ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MikeFerrara]

Bob, I doubt that this has anything to do with experience and/or skills. It sounds physiological to me.

My first impression from the crackling ears is that a pressure imbalance in your ears may have caused the dizziness. It also makes me wonder if the headache was really CO2 related. What lead you to draw this conclusion?

R..

This would be my first guess. Crackly ears means a squeeze to me. You don't have to "have trouble equalizing". You only need to be a little slow getting to it.

Being midwater without a reference could do it alone...add in a little squeeze and I don't think a little virtigo is out of the question.

I'm no doc but there but there are lots of other possible causes too...how was your diet that day?

 

[lamont]

narcosis, darkness and lack of adequate reference points can give me a small vertigo hit, but every time i've had one so far i just focus on a reference point and it passes in seconds...

what's a little weird is that if the viz is starting to get *really* bad i can use the entire silt cloud as a reference and this seems to actually be a little less disorienting than moderately bad viz...

doesn't sound like what you describe though -- i'm with the CO2 hit theory -- i think you would have noticed any ear squeeze...

 

[retnug]

Bob,

I have two possible thoughts for you.

1. Could it have been a slight pinched nerve caused by lugging around the extra weight during the entry and swim. Your body and head position under water could have caused this to manifest in dizzyness. Since that was the first symptom. The breathing and co2 headache could have been caused by the uncomfortable/panic. I am not saying you paniced but maybe anxiety at the dizzyness.

2. You may have had a reverse squeeze. I had this happen once You can clear just fine but when you start to ascend you get a reverse queeze that can pinch nerves causing dizzyness, This could also account for the crackling you got in your ears. I had this happen once. It scared the crap out of me. When I got to the surface one side of my face was numb. Much like I imagine a stroke would be. By the time the aid car arrived the feeling was coming back and the pain had subsided. My point is that maybe you had a milder version of this.

 

[Rick Inman]

Has happened to me twice (been a bout a year now), both times on the way up near the end of the dive, and relatively shallow. I've just assumed it was ear/equilibrium related.
After 1100 dives, one time is pretty good!
Glad you're OK!

 

[theskull]

I would go to an ENT and have my eardrums checked. May have just been a squeeze, but could also be a small puncture. This would have caused headache as well as vertigo and crackling sounds.

Hope you have no further trouble. A small puncture could heal on its own, but I'd see the doc anyway.

theskull

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'm thinking it's an ear thing. Last night's dive I didn't get vertigo ... but I did realize I was having difficulty maintaining my directional sense (unusual for me). I kept swimming "arcs" and nudging into my dive buddy ... and wouldn't realize I'd changed course till I looked at the compass.

Time to call the doc ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Laurence Stein DDS]

I'm thinking it's an ear thing. Last night's dive I didn't get vertigo ... but I did realize I was having difficulty maintaining my directional sense (unusual for me). I kept swimming "arcs" and nudging into my dive buddy ... and wouldn't realize I'd changed course till I looked at the compass.

Time to call the doc ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Hi Bob.

Contrary to what other may have posted, I don't think that CO2 retention has anything to do with your vertigo. Reverse squeeze, yes, possible and possibly painless...the air got trapped for a second than then squirted out suddenly causing an imbalance in pressure between the two ears.

Vertigo and dizziness caused by CO2 are not the same. Vertigo is a result of mixed signals sent to the vestibular apparatus of each ear. CO2 creates a chemical change that affects the body and the brain. Superficially, both may make you dizzy but they are not both vertigo.

Since what you describe is vertigo, my first inclination is to think that something, somehow affected your ears. Unequal pressure...alternobaric vertigo is possible and a reverse sqeeze is one of several ways this can happen.

You didn't notice any unusual pressure changes before the onset of the vertigo and while this doesn't prove anything, I don't think unequal pressures is the cause. You certainly have enough experience to be aware that you have pressure building up in your ears.

Another cause of vertigo is caloric vertigo...differential temperatures in each ear. This can easily happen and if the water is cold even more likely. Were you wearing a hood? If so, it is possible that there was a sudden inrush of colder water into the external ear canal that contained warm water. It is also possible that the external ear canal did not have any water deep inside...a bubble is often trapped there.

If this bubble (of warmed air) is suddenly dislodged by a change in head attitude, then cold water can rush in to one ear and BINGO...vertigo.

I've had this happen to me....especially when lobstering under rocks. I'm busy minding the bugs, the current and the rocks and then I stick my head in a hole...upside down and I can feel the trapped air in my ear suddenly become exchanged for water. If that water would be cold then I'm sure it could trigger vertigo....except I dive in FLORIDA! and WE DON"T GET NO STINKING COLD WATER HERE! Well, not very cold.

The crackling in the ear?...probably something unrelated to your vertigo...unless you had just enough fluid in the middle ear to trap and then release some air...reverse block...alternobaric vertigo...But here we go again.

Why the headache following the dive...donno. May be unrelated to your other problems. You may also have altered the way your were breating when stressed...short shallow breaths that didn't remove the CO2 properly...eventhough you were breathing more volume of air.

You might still want to see the ENT to check on the middle ear. Perhaps you do have some fluid in one ear affecting balance and orientation. Hey! What's wrong with swimming in arcs (circles)?

Glad everything turned out OK.

Larry Stein

 

[Hank49]

I'm thinking it's an ear thing. Last night's dive I didn't get vertigo ... but I did realize I was having difficulty maintaining my directional sense (unusual for me). I kept swimming "arcs" and nudging into my dive buddy ... and wouldn't realize I'd changed course till I looked at the compass.

Time to call the doc ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I don't know Bob. Maybe do two or three more dives just to be sure of the symptoms before wasting valuable time going to a DOCTOR. (and people call me hard headed.....sheeeeesh) Just kidding Bob. Good luck and get better.

 

[Groundhog246]

Another cause of vertigo is caloric vertigo...differential temperatures in each ear. This can easily happen and if the water is cold even more likely. Were you wearing a hood? If so, it is possible that there was a sudden inrush of colder water into the external ear canal that contained warm water.
Larry Stein

I've never seen the term "caloric vertigo" but had it a couple of years back. Turned my head to check on my buddy and had a rush of cold water across one ear. Instant vertigo and nausea. (water was 42F) Hope to never do that one again. Didn't have any headache after I got ashore and settled though.