Why do i get sick everytime I ascend?

[Cornboy_99]

Hi Tazman,

I just got back from the same cruise--just this Sunday. We were on the Carnival Legand, but the ports were identical. Roatan was awesome! I would have been breathing the same air (Anthony's Key) as you so we can probably eliminate bad air.

Cheers,
Doug

 

[Diver0001]

Hi everybody,

My girlfriend and I just got back from our cruise on the Carnival Valor. We stopped at the Grand Caymens, Isla Roatan, Belize, and Cozumel.

We went diving in Isla Roatan and on our first dive my stomach felt kinda funny when we were ascending. And once i got into the boat I almost felt seasick.. But I knew it wasnt from the boat because we only went out from shore approx 1 mile and I have been on boats my entire life so I thought this has to be from something else. Then on our second dive we were down approx 70 feet, on our way up we did our safety stop and about 15 feet from the surface i started throwing up like a madman. I threw up for approx 5 minutes straight...

The same thing happened the last time I went to Florida to dive. What could cause this?

Really made me upset because we had just bought new gear and had planned this vacation to dive at Roatan and Cozumel...we didnt end up diving Cozumel because I didnt want to drop another $200 to feel like crap again....

Taz, can we get you to answer a couple more questions?

- how much dive experience do you have?
- have you had this before?
- were you drinking or eating anything the day of or the day before the dive that you don't usually do (in such quantities)?
- how were you feeling about the dives?
- do you have any medical conditions or medications that you think might have contributed to this?
- how did you sleep the day before the dives?
- have you recently been ill in any way?

Frankly, I can't think of anything obvious that it could be but maybe if you give us more information someone can help you.

R..

 

[cofford]

I have the exact same problem on occasion, and its an equalization issue. If one of your eustachian tubes is a little clogged you get a different pressure in each inner ear. This confuses your brain and you feel sick (similar to seasickness or vertigo). I've found that if I clear my ears as soon as I notice feeling sick, my ears are definitely at different pressure, and once I correct that the sickness goes away. This only happens to me during ascent (can happen at any depth). A really slow ascent seems to help as well.

 

[seaducer]

The only time I have seen someone throw up for 5 minutes straight after a dive he had something like an ulcer, I guess from stress as he was divorcing his wife of 20 years.
Kept puking till blood was coming out, I towed him into shore and wanted to get him to a hospital but he refused. It was the first day of a dive vacation. He seemed to be fine after that, some nausea but no vomiting. He stayed much more shallow however.

Not saying you have this issue, but it may be something to consider...

 

[tazman7]

There is still a chance it's from the boat, nobody is completely immune to seasickness


When are you starting to feel sick? At roughly safety stop depth? What was the water doing when this happened? Any wave action at all? Current? Surge? Particles in the water column? Were you hanging onto an anchor line? Was it moving at all?

You CAN get motion sick underwater and it's going to be noticeable in the shallows where the water motion is more pronounced. I get seasick while swimming if my mask is not completely submerged, looking at the water/air interface as it moves makes me nauseous.
Ber :lilbunny:

I started feeling sick after being at 50 ft for about 15 minutes I would say. Safety stop was at about 15 ft deep.. it was pretty wavy, not much of a current. Fine particles in the water. I hung onto the anchor line while doing a safety stop, it was moving a little bit.

 

[tazman7]

Taz, can we get you to answer a couple more questions?

- how much dive experience do you have?
- have you had this before?
- were you drinking or eating anything the day of or the day before the dive that you don't usually do (in such quantities)?
how were you feeling about the dives?
- do you have any medical conditions or medications that you think might have contributed to this?
- how did you sleep the day before the dives?
- have you recently been ill in any way?

Frankly, I can't think of anything obvious that it could be but maybe if you give us more information someone can help you.

R..

I think 8 or 9 dives, so not much.

Yes. in florida and now roatan

I was on a cruise..ate lots of food, nothing out of the norm.


Excited- only other place I have dove was in florida and in a man made lake..

no medical conditions, slept great and havent been ill


my left ear is always kind hard to equalize. And it is always my left ear that hurts while flying in an airplane too.

i talked to the guy at our local dive store and he said to try ear candleing, so I did and obviously that didnt help.

 

[Phil G]

Hi Taz,

I've had this problem too when I started diving, and I also have some trouble equalizing when diving.

The best non-medical explanation I have is a pressure differential in your inner ear, as someone said.

See a doc for a better and safer explanation.

I found an easy solution: when coming back up to the surface, i actively equalize my ears by swallowing.

I hope it helps, or that you find a solution.

good luck,

Phil

 

[IceIce]

Hi Taz,

Against your will, my opinion that it could be the boat & surface wave -- sea sick.
I took all kind of boats and never had problem with seasick until I take up diving.

When we near the surface with waves, most of the time I would feel my digestive system starts to work up. In swelling surface, it can be unbearable to stay shallow.

Consider you have to go through this, then taking up your fins before climbing up the boat while sniffing the boat engine gas, this takes significant effort. When we finally in the boat, it would still be rocking side to side because the engine is off and it sways with the wave. It's a far comparison with other boat experiences.

Sea sick.
Try good seasick pill and see whether the problem still occurs.
Hopefully it's nothing more than seasick.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

One other potential issue...

where were you sitting in the boat?

Diesel fumes can really do a number on you.

Depending on where you're sitting on the boat, and other factors, you can get a much higher exposure to diesel fumes than in other locations.

If just a hint of vertigo or inner ear issues exist, or simply a hint of nausea based on the swells and the motion of the boat - and no matter how much time you've spent on the water, the first couple dives of any season can still result in seasickness - adding diesel fumes to the mix can result in explosive vomiting. Seasickness can happen to nearly anyone, given the right conditions.

One of the things I encourage you to do is to consult an ear/nose/throat specialist. Particularly if you can find an ENT who is a diver, their input can be invaluable.

Best,

Doc

 

[highlandfarmwv]

I vote on motion sickness. It cames to everyone sometime, even seasoned boat captains. Especially on an empty stomach. With only 9 dives under your belt, you may have been a little apprehensive or just excited (without even knowing it) and that adds to motion sickness. Hope you conquer the problem soon, whatever it is.