Medical Condition Keeping Me Out of the Water

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Have you tried just sitting on the bottom of the pool with your rig off and next to you?

Concept is to see if your rig as configured is somehow adversely affecting things when on.
 
Have you tried just sitting on the bottom of the pool with your rig off and next to you?

Concept is to see if your rig as configured is somehow adversely affecting things when on.

Yes, Today it occured in the bathtub with only tank and regs. At this point i would have to guess it would even occur out of the water. Sounds crazy but in the tub i must have been around only 1 ft under.
 
ONLY in water? If you lay on the floor and breathe off the reg does it happen? It a tub you simply don't have enough pressure to do much of anything but be wet.
Since you snorkel OK it would not seem to be simple contact with water.
FWIW I have somewhat more trouble transitioning to breathing off snorkel than a reg. There's more dead space (C02 recycling) in a snorkel and you have to overcome that.
 
Background: I have about 100 dives under my belt, but mostly from about 10 years ago. I started back up last year by building my first BP/W rig, piece by piece. It's completed and I have been experimenting in the pool. But.

Unfortunately the first time diving in the pool, I experienced a concerning reaction: tingling in my hands, feet, and stomach that increased in intensity the longer I stayed under. The first time it occured, I got out immediately, thinking it was something very serious. The tingling sensation begins about 20 to 30 mins underwater, even in the bathtub. At first I thought that I might be breathing too fast (see the affects of hyperventilation), but I have tried different regulator settings and I am extremely calm underwater taking careful note of my breathing. After a lot of thought, I believe it is occurring do to a back injury which is pinching on nerves and creating an O2/CO2 imbalance, lack of C02. I do get very light tingling at times topside, but nothing like the increasing intensity issue; therefore, I believe the regulator (SP g260) is contributing. I have had the injury for about 2 years now (you may have seen some of my earlier posts on lighter tanks). Anyone have any experience with this? I am a pretty skinny dude, and I believe the lack of fat around the nerves is contributing. I'm not giving up. Any thoughts?

Other ideas I'm considering: try a mix with more O2, try a different reg. Edit: first step will be seeking doctors advice.

I simply cannot dive until this is sorted out. And any testing will be done in the bathtub or shallow pool with buddies. For now, you can find me around Florida snorkeling the coast.

Thanks good folks.

David

David, when you say tingling in your stomach, does that mean internally, or on the surface of the skin? How about the hands and feet? Does it feel more internal or external?

Best regards,
DDM
 
David, when you say tingling in your stomach, does that mean internally, or on the surface of the skin? How about the hands and feet? Does it feel more internal or external?

Best regards,
DDM

Pretty definitively external, near the surface of the skin.
 
Update: I tried breathing from the tank on the surface, in my basement to be exact. I'm pretty sure I could feel the same effect coming on, but I beat it back with focused, measured breathing. This experiment lasted 35 mins. Later this week, I'm going to repeat the experiment but for longer, in part to confirm these results. I'm leaning towards irregular breathing being the cause of the immediate effect, but not ruling out other conditions or components playing an underlying role.

Again, I'm going to look for a doc in the Atlanta area.
 
Update: I tried breathing from the tank on the surface, in my basement to be exact. I'm pretty sure I could feel the same effect coming on, but I beat it back with focused, measured breathing. This experiment lasted 35 mins. Later this week, I'm going to repeat the experiment but for longer, in part to confirm these results. I'm leaning towards irregular breathing being the cause of the immediate effect, but not ruling out other conditions or components playing an underlying role.

Again, I'm going to look for a doc in the Atlanta area.

If it took intentional hyperventilation to reproduce your symptoms but you're not aware of it in the water and you're mindful of your breathing while diving, I would lean away from that as a cause. Also, hyperventilation can lead to hypocapnia, i.e. too little CO2 in the blood, but a poorly adjusted regulator would more likely lead to hypercapnia, i.e. too much CO2.

You mentioned a back injury in your first post, were any films done afterward?

Best regards,
DDM
 
If it took intentional hyperventilation to reproduce your symptoms but you're not aware of it in the water and you're mindful of your breathing while diving, I would lean away from that as a cause. Also, hyperventilation can lead to hypocapnia, i.e. too little CO2 in the blood, but a poorly adjusted regulator would more likely lead to hypercapnia, i.e. too much CO2.

You mentioned a back injury in your first post, were any films done afterward?

Best regards,
DDM

Yes, an MRI was performed where they found moderate facet arthropathy in the L4-L5 region and slight bulging near L4. Later it was revealed my hip was misaligned and we have been working on that through physical therapy. I am curious now if a lower back problem can affect the hands in this way, as someone else mentioned.
 
Yes, an MRI was performed where they found moderate facet arthropathy in the L4-L5 region and slight bulging near L4. Later it was revealed my hip was misaligned and we have been working on that through physical therapy. I am curious now if a lower back problem can affect the hands in this way, as someone else mentioned.

That's interesting. L4 and L5 might explain the feet but not so much abdomen and hands. Linking a dermatome chart below. I'd recommend that a neurologist be among the physicians you consult with.

Dermatomes and Myotomes Poster

That said, I don't think that a respiratory origin can be ruled out, so I'd keep pursuing that avenue as well. How does your regulator breathe? Does it feel as if it's delivering too much air to you? How is the cracking pressure?

Best regards,
DDM
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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