Stupid concerns or not?

[cbliss85]

Ever since I have decided to go into commercial diving I have had family and friends sharing their "two cents". Not only is it annoying, but the same things just keep being said..but by different people. Is there a website that lists this crap?! lol. So I was thinking that there has to be a reason why these "concerns"(though, to me, they seem idiotic) are able to exist. For example, the things that have been said to me more than once:

"You better get life insurance before you leave for school because I don't know how long I'll be able to play the role of Mom for your daughter when you die."

"You are going to look really pretty in a couple years after your eye sockets have been sunken in and your eyeballs start protruding."

"The average lifespan of a commercial diver is 2 years, tops."

"After years of breathing the mixed gases you start to go a little insane and get kooky. You stay that way the rest of your life!"

I"ve been in contact with quite a few commercial divers of whom still work in the industry and have been for 15+ years. They do not seem "kooky" and are still very much alive...and do not have bulging eyeballs. Has anyone else had to deal with this?

[ScubaSteve1962]

Ignorance is bliss, when people don't know, they only believe what they hear. Won't take the time to research it for themselves.

[socaljohn]

Oh man that's a relief, I thought I was born this way...buggy eyes and a little kooky.

[richkeller]

The people you are talking to do not have a clue. Commercial divers have a much lower death rate then sport divers. The jury is still out on breathing mixed gas but sport divers do that too now. Bone necrosis is also an issue that the jury is still out on but that applies mainly to saturation divers.

[DivingOtter]

When I was a pilot people told me the same thing. I flew civilian helicopters for a period of time and even fixed wing pilots would say things like your crazy! If you lose your engine your blades stop and you fall from the sky!! wrong. Do what you YOU want to do and dont worry about what anyone else has to say unless its your immediate family, ie. wife. Just be prepared for a long and difficult road. Schooling is far from easy and getting started in the industry can be difficult. You wont become a millionaire like alot of people think. Even today I was at a friends scuba shop and 3 people saw my company shirt and said yeah, I was thinking of doing that,I heard the money is INSANE! I said go take a look outside, if the pay was that insane i wouldnt be driving a nissan sentra.. While you CAN make a very lucrative career which ive met a few owners with more money they know what to do with, it is no easy task. Since i started my own company I havent had one day off which means alot of missed holidays, birthdays, and no time to really relax. Forget about kicking back beers at the barbecue because if that phone rings i need to be able to respond 24 hours a day. You will need to pay your dues which alot of people cant take and throw in inconsistent pay periods and you have the perfect storm that drives a majority of divers away from the industry. I know for a fact that from a class of 18 while i was in dive school only 7 people are actually working as divers. sorry to be so long winded but thats my rant for the night.

[Bombay High]

I am in my 22nd year as a commercial diver - 16 years in saturation breathing mixed gas upto 2/98. My eyeballs dont bulge. I can't vouch for the insane part - the jury is out on that one

---------- Post added ----------

On a more serious note - the North Sea, where I spent most of my career, has not seen an accidental fatality amongst divers in 11 years. Part of that is the very strict legislation and procedure in place. Part of it is the kind of Divers who come to the North Sea.
Take your training and apprenticeship seriously and you can build yourself a solid career.

[DCBC]

I was a military/commercial diver for 40 years. During this time, I've known several people who have died or been crippled on the job. I believe that commercial diving is a "high risk" activity. It is for the most part construction related and the environment is far less controlled than an on-ground building site. Accidents happen in the construction industry, however all things considered, the government and the commercial diving industry have a relatively good safety record. This wasn't always the case and history seems to hang around for quite a period of time.

I believe the highest risk is with the smaller companies that are underfunded when compared to big oil. Insurance rates keep big oil in-check and these large companies sincerely attempt to keep a good public image. That said, accidents will continue to happen. Unfortunately, it's the nature of the business.

[Sat Diver]

Bombay High and DCBC have valid points . The North Sea Oil Patch is the exception rather than the rule.
It had a disproportionately high fatality rate in the 70's, and became better over the years, due in large part to the high cost of poor safety.
I am not greatly familiar with US legislation, but from my understanding, there are 2 organisations (OSHA and the US Coast Guard) that have jurisdiction over offshore safety, and that has been quoted to me as being part of the reason for the relatively higher incident rate in the US - a kind of ambiguity of standards.
Maybe Akimbo or DCBC can correct me here ?

And the less said about the 3rd world the better ...

[cbliss85]

Thank you all for your input. Now I will have something more accurate in response.

[Superlyte27]

Ever since I have decided to go into commercial diving I have had family and friends sharing their "two cents". Not only is it annoying, but the same things just keep being said..but by different people. Is there a website that lists this crap?! lol. So I was thinking that there has to be a reason why these "concerns"(though, to me, they seem idiotic) are able to exist. For example, the things that have been said to me more than once:

"You better get life insurance before you leave for school because I don't know how long I'll be able to play the role of Mom for your daughter when you die."

"You are going to look really pretty in a couple years after your eye sockets have been sunken in and your eyeballs start protruding."

"The average lifespan of a commercial diver is 2 years, tops."

"After years of breathing the mixed gases you start to go a little insane and get kooky. You stay that way the rest of your life!"

I"ve been in contact with quite a few commercial divers of whom still work in the industry and have been for 15+ years. They do not seem "kooky" and are still very much alive...and do not have bulging eyeballs. Has anyone else had to deal with this?

You and anyone else who has children and doesn't have long term life insurance is dumb. I'd heed that advice and disregard the rest.