A personal milestone

[Thumpalumpacus]

There is, CD, there is. You know better than most that you'll simply have to work for it.

Keep on keepin' on, bud -- and enjoy Vallarta, you two. Don't do anything I wouldn't enjoy!

[Kitty Galore]

Wish you all were here!

[rexbeccarox]

Excellent, Cthu! Congrats

(I wish I could be in PV right now. I love it there!)

[AFTT47]

Congrats, Cthulhu.

I was major into diving but I ended up doing it for a living (PADI Master Instructor) and lost interest eventually. I have afib now (an irregular heartbeat). I could theoretically dive safely again because it isn't bad but I live in Phoenix now so not likely. I've done over 2500 dives so I've had my fill.

You didn't mention if your embolism makes you more likely to have another but keep this in mind: The closer to the surface you are, the greater the pressure changes. Going from 99' to 66' reduces pressure from 4 atmospheres to 3 - a 25% reduction. Going from 33' to the surface though reduces pressure from 2 atmospheres to 1 - a 50% change. Physicians not familiar with diving often mistakenly advise divers susceptible to embolism (like asthmatics) to be conservative and dive shallow. It's bad advice. The shallower you are, the more likely you are to embolize - from holding your breath or from various physiological issues.

You can get the best diving-related medical advice from DAN (Divers Alert Network). They are a non-profit organization and have dive physicians on staff.

Have fun and take care.

[Brakeman]

Today, thanks to the encouragement of an old friend and scuba instructor here in Puerto Vallarta, I got back in the water and did two very successful dives.

You must have accidentally pleased god with a burnt flesh offering, he loves the smell so! Did you leave some bacon on the stove too long?

[JuliaL]

Congratulations and best wishes for future successes.
I've never dived deeper than the bottom of the YMCA pool and am not likely to- I'd freak, not a shred of doubt.
I'm always impressed by what others can do that I can't.

[Jackalope]

Congrats, Cthulhu.

I was major into diving but I ended up doing it for a living (PADI Master Instructor) and lost interest eventually. I have afib now (an irregular heartbeat). I could theoretically dive safely again because it isn't bad but I live in Phoenix now so not likely. I've done over 2500 dives so I've had my fill.

I chose to not go the professional route although I certainly could have. It simply wasn't compatible with my lifestyle at the time.

You didn't mention if your embolism makes you more likely to have another but keep this in mind: The closer to the surface you are, the greater the pressure changes. Going from 99' to 66' reduces pressure from 4 atmospheres to 3 - a 25% reduction. Going from 33' to the surface though reduces pressure from 2 atmospheres to 1 - a 50% change. Physicians not familiar with diving often mistakenly advise divers susceptible to embolism (like asthmatics) to be conservative and dive shallow. It's bad advice. The shallower you are, the more likely you are to embolize - from holding your breath or from various physiological issues.

Different kind of embolism entirely than what you're talking about. Mine was blood clots and was completely unrelated to scuba, not gas bubbles. I'm no more likely to have a gas embolism than anyone else, and the chances of a repeat event are greatly diminished as I have a permanent IVC (inferior vena cava) filter installed.

I'm fully aware of the phenomenon you describe and have always done safety stops religiously and done slow ascents. Every dive, no matter how shallow. My reasons for staying shallow at the moment have little to do with DCS, but rather that I know that I can do an emergency swimming ascent from that depth, and I'm much less sure of my ability to do so below 60 feet. Basically, I'm initially treating myself as a newly minted open water diver should do while I redevelop my skills. I feel it would be reckless to jump right back to where I left off, diving wrecks with overhead restrictions and such.

You can get the best diving-related medical advice from DAN (Divers Alert Network). They are a non-profit organization and have dive physicians on staff.

Yep, I was a member of DAN, but let my membership expire when I thought I would not dive again. I'm going to join up again, it's a good outfit.

[Jackalope]

Congratulations and best wishes for future successes.
I've never dived deeper than the bottom of the YMCA pool and am not likely to- I'd freak, not a shred of doubt.
I'm always impressed by what others can do that I can't.

I can totally relate. The greatest difficulty I have faced was in the first five feet of descent - making the transition from breathing at the surface to underwater has led to some anxiety, first time when I did my open water certification, and most recently yesterday. It only crops up when I haven't been in the water for a long time.

It's a perfectly natural response and something that can be very difficult to overcome.

[Kitty Galore]

Congratulations and best wishes for future successes.
I've never dived deeper than the bottom of the YMCA pool and am not likely to- I'd freak, not a shred of doubt.
I'm always impressed by what others can do that I can't.

Exactly. This is why I choose to snorkel while he is diving. I have a problem just putting my face in the water for that.

I love supporting what makes him happy, but I doubt I will do scuba myself.

[Jackalope]

Congratulations and best wishes for future successes.
I've never dived deeper than the bottom of the YMCA pool and am not likely to- I'd freak, not a shred of doubt.
I'm always impressed by what others can do that I can't.

Exactly. This is why I choose to snorkel while he is diving. I have a problem just putting my face in the water for that.

I love supporting what makes him happy, but I doubt I will do scuba myself.

You tried, baby - gave it your best shot and I love you for it.