Question about DCS

Hi,

I went diving last weekend, 2 wreck dives on Saturday, with max depth on both dives of about 25m, with a bottom time of about 40 mins on each dive. Everything went normal, and we (DM and I) did our 5 minutes safety stop at 5 meters, and listened to the most conservative of both our computers, as one should.

However, the next day I felt very lightheaded and a bit nauseous so I didn't dive on Sunday, which was especially unfortunate since it was my birthday. I attributed it towards not having slept at all on Friday night and only 5 hours on Saturday, not to DCS since as far as I know we ascended safely from my 2 dives on Saturday.

However, now as I look on my dive graph on MacDive from my computer, I see I did indeed have an ascent rate warning on my first dive that day, which I wasn't even aware of during the dive (I will need to pay closer attention to that), and since it's now Wednesday and I still don't feel 100% back to normal, my suspicions are much stronger that I do indeed have mild DCS.

The weird thing however, is that the lightheadedness (my only symptom, really) attacks me right after I've eaten, as in within 5 minutes, and stays with me about 1 hour, then goes away, only to come back after my next meal. It's been going like that the past 3 days.

I'm about to go see a doctor and ask about a recompression facility in the city, but I'd like to know, does this sound like a case of DCS to you, or something completely different?

Thanks!

Disclaimer: I'm not a physician (I don't even play one on TV) and certainly not an expert in DCS.

That being said...

It really doesn't sound like DCS...I've never heard of DCS symptoms only occuring after a meal. However, it would be a most fantastic idea to call the Diver's Alert Network...the phone number is +1-919-684-9111, and the website is www.diversalertnetwork.com. They have trained dive medics available to answer questions just like yours. At any rate, it would still be advisable to discuss your symptoms with your doctor; even if they are not dive related, because it seems like they are causing you some distress.

Note: Some dive computer's ascent alarms are very, very sensitive. I can set off my Nitek Duo simply by raising my hand up quickly.

bamamedic:

Note: Some dive computer's ascent alarms are very, very sensitive. I can set off my Nitek Duo simply by raising my hand up quickly.

Click to expand...

On that note, maybe it's a good idea to let you see the graph in question. Does this look like an unsafe ascent?

http://media.offcentric.com/dive_graph.png

Looks like ~15m ascent total in ~4 minutes - so no, not IMHO anyway. Same for your DCS symptoms

What is the other symbol at 30 minutes?

Tortuga68:

What is the other symbol at 30 minutes?

Click to expand...

The other symbol is indicating a mandatory safety stop. I use a Suunto D4 with RGB model so it gives more safety stops than an other non-RGB computer would I think. Like I said i didn't notice this alert going off, so I just followed my DM in the ascent. Had I noticed the safety stop alert at 15m, I would have let him know. Something to be aware of in the future, I suppose...

EDIT: Oh I'm sorry, I didn't even read the sentence correctly (is that a symptom too? ), I thought you meant the other alert at 35 mins. At 30 minutes I just have a standard dive time alert going off, just a factory default I didn't bother to change. Now that I think about it, perhaps the ascent rate warning was only triggered because I didn't heed the safety stop at 15m.

Thanks for uploading the graph.

It looks like the gist of your dive profile was:

Max depth: 24m. Average depth 20m. Bottom time: 35min. I assume you were breathing air?

From one non-medically-trained recreational diver to another, that's not a very risky profile in my opinion. Furthermore, it looks like your total ascent rate from 20m to your 5m safety stop took about 5 minutes, an average of 3m/min. Again, that qualifies as a slow ascent and not a risky one.

Based on this, I don't think DCS is very likely. Also, generally speaking, the risk of DCS is pretty darned slim for typical recreational dives; it's hard for an average rec diver on an AL80 to rack up significant time over NDL, and there are a host of other safety issues that deserve more attention than DCS.

That said, if you're feeling unwell at all and have access to a service like DAN, it's *never* a bad idea to call them and speak with one of their trained staff. From what I've heard, they're extremely knowledgeable and willing to help regardless of whether you're a member.

OK, I started this thread hoping to be proven wrong or an overreactor, and it seems that might be the case, so I'm releived at that . Thanks for the replies, I'll keep taking it easy and see a doctor or contact DAN if it doesn't improve.

As I said I think it's unlikely you have DCS but if you're a DAN member, just call them now anyway. Nothing to lose

If that graph was of your first dive what does the second dive look like? How hydrated were you? How long of a surface interval? With a profile like that a deep stop would definitely be a good idea. You can get bent on a very benign profile depending on a lot of factors - the symptoms you describe are not textbook DCS but there may be other problems you are not aware of-- one of the most common signs of DCS is a general feeling of being unwell or tired, feeling light headed can also be a symptom. I would go see a doc and get examined - a ride in the chamber doesn't hurt a bit.