DCS question

[wes923]

Hello everyone, been observing for awhile now love the site and have learned a lot.... quick question, the girlfriend and I did a dive over the weekend, spent roughly 30min at 25-30ft of water then descended to 60ft. We were only at 60ft for a couple of minutes as she hit the bottom of the lake and kicked up a bunch of mud and started to get panicked. At this point she inflated her bcd and started to go up, I grabbed her to try to slow her down in fears of DCS but was ultimately brought to the surface rather quickly with her....upon surfacing she never showed any signs of DCS which was my concern. Myself however the next day I was a bit fatigued, nothing crippling or overly painful just kinda a nag and general tired feeling... I called DAN just to be sure and was told not to worry about it because even with the rapid accent we weren’t at 60ft long enough to do anything. So I chalked it up to just me worrying and didn’t do anything. Three days after the incident I started getting some general aches and pains in my ankles in addition to the fatigue that never really went away. Once again nothing to keep me from going to work or anything but it just sits in the back of my mind.... anyhow lesson learned from this experience is I should have still done my safety stop and let her go to the top but too late for that now. Any general thoughts on this or should I just quit worrying about it? Thanks!

 

[Storker]

the next day I was a bit fatigued, nothing crippling or overly painful just kinda a nag and general tired feeling...

Sounds like what's currently called "subclinical DCS". Some bubbling, enough to trigger an adverse physiological reaction, but not enough to unequivocally diagnose it as DCS. Happens rather often to some degree if you're careless about your ascent. Annoying, but generally not dangerous. Unless you fall asleep at the wheel while driving home...

Three days after the incident I started getting some general aches and pains in my ankles in addition to the fatigue that never really went away.

Three days is a very long time for DCS symptoms to manifest. That alone makes me rather doubtful that it's DCS.

 

[michael-fisch]

We have all been extremely tired after a day of deep or decompression diving - to the point where it's dangerous to continue driving home since we can't stay awake behind the wheel.
Another manefestation of subclinical DCS.
Driving over into a rest area on the highway for an hour or so's nap and a bottle of water is a really good idea.

Michael

 

[Lorenzoid]

It COULD be "subclinical DCS," or it could be just plain old fatigue and achiness from one's body doing things it isn't used to having to do. There is also the possibility of the mental stress of having to deal with an unusual situation underwater causing fatigue.

I don't have much doubt that "subclinical DCS" is a real thing--divers who are out there doing aggressive/decompression dives on a regular basis say they can feel when their body is telling them they have been pushing the limits--but I have to wonder if "subclinical DCS" is not becoming the dive community's analog to gluten intolerance. Not every ache, pain, and bout of fatigue after diving is due to subclinical DCS. Diving can be strenuous, especially if, like hitting the gym, you don't do it on a regular enough basis for your body to adapt, or if something happens during the dive that stresses you.

 

[caruso]

Once the crisis is past and some time before your next dive, sit down with your girlfriend and explain to her that competent divers do not inflate their BCD's prior to ascending. The inflate/deflate mechanism on a BCD inflater hose are not to be treated like up and down elevator buttons.

 

[yle]

I called DAN just to be sure and was told not to worry about it because even with the rapid accent we weren’t at 60ft long enough to do anything. So I chalked it up to just me worrying and didn’t do anything. Three days after the incident I started getting some general aches and pains in my ankles in addition to the fatigue that never really went away. Once again nothing to keep me from going to work or anything but it just sits in the back of my mind.... anyhow lesson learned from this experience is I should have still done my safety stop and let her go to the top but too late for that now. Any general thoughts on this or should I just quit worrying about it? Thanks!

Here's what I'm getting from your story:

You ascended more rapidly than you should have, so you were worried about DCS.

You were then "on the lookout" for any symptoms... so you naturally assume anything could be a symptom.

In other words, stop worrying about it. Listen to DAN. You were at 60 feet (which isn't really that deep) for a few minutes. And if your rapid ascent was going to cause problems, they would have shown up very soon after the dive. You're being extra cautious to compensate for your inexperience, which is fine. But as you gain more experience, you'll get better at putting this in perspective.

So go have fun, gain more experience, and stay reasonably cautious.

 

[yle]

lesson learned from this experience is I should have still done my safety stop and let her go to the top but too late for that now. Any general thoughts on this or should I just quit worrying about it? Thanks!

A safety stop is always a good idea... even if it's not "required" it's still a good habit.

BUT... staying with your buddy, especially if they are panicky, is a more important habit. In this case, you did the right thing. Imagine if you had let her go to the surface by herself so that you could do a safety stop... and then either of you had a problem that required buddy assistance.

Stay with your buddy.

As caruso mentioned above, the lesson to take away from this incident is working on buoyancy control and proper use of the inflator.

 

[Miyaru]

60ft requires almost an hour of diving before you can't make a direct ascent.

The good thing:
You're prudent and aware of the risks.
The next good thing:
You contacted DAN. Listen to them. Follow their advice.

...
Any general thoughts on this or should I just quit worrying about it? Thanks!

Quit worrying.

Dive nitrox. Although not proven scientifically, many people feel less tired after a dive with nitrox.

 

[wes923]

Thanks for the help guys, I kinda figured I was overreacting to it and potentially seeing symptoms that I wanted to see.... I guess the main two questions that I couldn’t get answers to which prompted this post; is a rapid accent in itself enough to potentially cause DCS or other harm? I knew we didn’t technically have to stop, it was more the rate of accent that concerned me. And second question, is DCS generally a all at once type of thing or can symptons start small and eventually get worse in the following days if not treated? My thought was if somebody ignored small signs that started quickly and then it didn’t get worse for three or four days later could be an issue, or is it pretty much within 24hrs whatever is going to happen has already happened? Not having been around it first hand there’s some confusion there for me... as for the girlfriends skills we’ve already discussed it, she’s going to need to go back with an instructor and work on it some more. This was her first dive after getting certified, she was very calm and in control during the certification so I didn’t think much of it, but at this point we both think the best plan is to get an instructor to work with her more on buoyancy control.... thanks again for all the input -wes

 

[Esprise Me]

I've noticed I often feel fatigued after a stressful situation has passed and my hormones have had a chance to return to normal. This seems to be especially true when the stressful situation involved new skills. I still remember falling asleep in the backseat after driving the mountain roads back from Yosemite at age 15. In order to get my license, I had to log 50 hours of driving with and a parent, so I started doing all the driving with my family. But after I did the grueling stretch of twisty mountain roads coming back from a camping trip and we stopped for gas before getting on the freeway, my dad urged me to let him take over. I insisted I wasn't tired, but grudgingly agreed. Twenty minutes later I was out cold. And I NEVER nap. I especially struggle to sleep in cars or airplanes (even once when I took a sleeping pill on a red-eye--worst night of my life!) But somehow the adrenaline draining from my body left me exhausted. Getting over the stress of a near-miss as a new diver might have done the same to you.

Also, using fins can overwork the soft tissues in your ankles at first. I used to get sore ankles from snorkeling; I'm quite sure that wasn't DCS.