Who is diving after Covid?

[lexvil]

Fully vaxed double boosted, many exposures to Covid before finally getting it, so mild that I only tested myself because at the time there was talk of tests expiring, felt slightly off when diving on a Saturday but nothing was bad enough to cause concern. Monday I took the test and was positive, got a script for Paxlovid and skipped a weekend of dives and right back into it. Since multiple infection is possible with this one (I had it the last week of May) I’ll get the new booster when it’s available.

 

[CyberHiker]

Got COVID twice (BA.1 first time around and BA.5 the second time) and dove about a month after the second time (I always get a stuffy nose after every cold that lasts a week or two). I did get my lungs and heart checked out but everything was normal. Felt great in the water.

Even though the new strains amount to a common cold level of symptoms/pathology, it's better to get checked out beforehand though, you never know. There's some evidence to suggest some people are hit harder due to some genetic predisposition.

 

[Ken Kurtis]

Allow me to play devil's advocate (and let off some steam) . . .

When you wonder why COVID won't go away, just reading through this thread and seeing so many responses about taking it more seriously that essentially translate into, "I don't wanna," always confuses me. Yes, it's a bit of a pain to go get medical clearance but at least it insures that what you believe about your health status is true. I mean, when you get a new tank you don't just say, "I believe it to be full and they've always been full in the past so there's no need to confirm that." Or do you check your SPG?

And the other thing is that, while you may truly feel you know your body better than some silly scientific medical test, there's the story of Maya Lindemann, someone I actually know an dhave been diving with. And her story is the reason you want to make sure that what you believe about how weel you handled COVID is actually true: COVID destroyed Maya’s health: Please help!, organized by Maya Lindemann

 

[Marie13]

Read the linked post in another SB thread. Another diver whose health has been ruined by Covid.

Post in thread 'NSS-CDS Full Cave: The Live-Blog'
NSS-CDS Full Cave: The Live-Blog

 

[Russjstewart]

My partner tested positive at the end at of March, and I was was symptomatic and tested positive 4 or 5 days later, and sick for two weeks. I got my Doctor ( not a diving doc) to check my lungs were clear and we dived in Fiji at the end of June, I seemed to be a bit heavier on air, and my partner was fine other than being a bit tired at the end of the day.

 

[PirateFoxy]

I might feel “fine” but that doesn’t mean I should dive.

Especially with the evidence about Covid and lung damage and Covid and micro clotting issues. One of the things that can cause an air embolism is gas being trapped in the lungs on ascent - scarring or a clot could do just that. And the clotting at least has been documented to happen even in some asymptomatic people. Treating it as "just a cold" and not getting cleared before diving seems like asking to have your own thread here sooner or later - the damage does appear to be cumulative if you get reinfected.

 

[kinoons]

Especially with the evidence about Covid and lung damage and Covid and micro clotting issues. One of the things that can cause an air embolism is gas being trapped in the lungs on ascent - scarring or a clot could do just that. And the clotting at least has been documented to happen even in some asymptomatic people. Treating it as "just a cold" and not getting cleared before diving seems like asking to have your own thread here sooner or later - the damage does appear to be cumulative if you get reinfected.

I’d like to see some stats for this.

Over 95 million cases of Covid in the US alone. 600 million world wide (that we know of, likely millions more)

How many divers in the US? Maybe 2.5 million?

So a little under 1% of the population is a scuba diver. Let’s also assume that at least 1/3 of divers have had Covid. We’re looking at at least 800,000 divers who are post Covid. Likely many more.

If there was truly some danger associated between diving and Covid I would expect to see a higher rate of diving related injuries post Covid. With at least 1/3 divers having had Covid if there was a strong safety signal there should be evidence. Even something that was one in 10,000 would have 80 injuries associated, which should be enough patients to raise some alarms since everyone is hyper vigilant right now.

I’ll admit to working in an area that isn’t big for diving, so I’ll defer to physicians more on the coast or closer to water - is anyone seeing a jump in dive related injuries the last 12 months or so? I sure haven’t heard of any.

 

[barth]

I had COVID, it started on november 5, 2021. I started working again on november 15, 2021.

On november 19, 2021 I did a dive to 36 meters (10 minutes deco).

On November 26, 2021 I did a cave dive to 43 meters, dive time 120 minutes (30 minutes deco).

On December 30 I did a cave dive to 48 meters of 180 minutes (60 minutes deco).

All dives were cold water dives. It was not smart to start diving that fast. I did also start running very fast after COVID. The result was that it took a lot of time to get my body in the same condition as before COVID.

 

[mdwalter]

How many on this board have gone back to diving after Covid? specially technical diving? How is your body taking it? Any DCS hits?

Yes, I had COVID. Yes, I returned to tech diving after. No, I did not consult a physician first. No, I never had a DCS hit before or after this.

[MOD EDIT]

 

[hollywood703]

Diving with Covid should be the same as diving with any other illness....If you are congested don't dive. If you have trouble breathing don't dive. Covid in itself should not be dive prohibitive (outside of exposure control), but common sense should be used regarding any symptoms you may have that would interfere with your ability to equalize, process air exchange etc. Obviously, many different countries have different rules so you definitely should be aware of their requirements surrounding covid.