Diving with a bad back

[Kilroy]

My son and I are considering scuba certification. The only reservation we have with going forward is my lower back. I have had 5 lower back operations over the past 15 years with the last one 1 1/2 years ago. I know only I can decide if my back is capable of the strain but I was hoping for insight from others that may have faced the same issue. I don't want to go through the expense and time to later find out that the added weight of scuba gear is going to cause additional lower back problems. I should add that I'm a fairly big person at 6' 4" and 260 so based on what I have read I may be carrying a fair amount of weight during scuba diving.

Any thought or suggestions are appreciated.

Kilroy

 

[mossym]

i'm no doctor, but i reckon you want to stick to boat dives if you do take it up...lugging the gear up and down the beach will be torture...

for what it's worth, i pulled a muscle in my back on a week long trip to maui last november..happened me first night..i got all my diving in..gearing up and standing up on the boat with the gear on nearly killed me, but as soon as i got in the water i was fine...if i didn't feel it on my back then you won't now either..it's outside the water you'll be in trouble..

 

[elliptikal]

I have suffered back pain for the last 6 or 7 years. I had a snowboarding accident that compacted one of my vertibrae. I then reinjured myself in ju-jutsu from being thrown wrong and constantly have pain from sitting in my office chair all day...not cool.

How does all this effect me? It doesn't, I don't feel anything when I dive and that's what's great! Good advice was already given to stay on boats for your dives although a lot of OWC dives are from shore where i'm from.

Good luck! Your injuries are definetly more serious then mine though and I would consult a doctor who has a good knowledge base on diving and what is involved.

 

[BigJetDriver]

Kilroy,

Glad you are here!

Try the DUI Weight and Trim II weight harness. It takes the weight off your lower back. It will help a lot.

 

[ranger]

I too suffer from a bad back but dive constantly. My back flares up without notice and I can't figure out what I did to re-hurt it, I'm sure you've been there. There are times that I have someone put my BC into the water and I get in it while in the water, and then when the dive is over I get out of it in the water. This way I'm not being tossed around on the boat with extra weight on my back. This works well for me, and I've seen other people do it also. You should probably check with a physician before making the attempt. I don't know what agency you are contemplating using, but if PADI, there is a lengthy medical checksheet you must fill out. "Back problems" is one of the questions, and if you answer "yes" you will be required to go get medical clearance to dive from a physician.

 

[davsholm423]

If you dive and do shore dives one tip would be to assemble your gear and than put it on in the water. This isn't possible at all places but makes it so you don't have to walk around with the weight of scuba gear. Also get your son to do some of the lifting and hauling of gear, and sometimes "pay him back" with an air fill.

 

[rsilva708]

I have had to lumbar surgeries now with rods and screws holding the front and pack of my spine together. I waited about a year after my last operation to get back into diving. My doctor said he would sign the medical release as long as I used my best judgement as how my back was handeling it. When I started back, I was weighted with a normal weight belt, and after about my second dive in a day, I was hurting pretty bad. My LDS thought I should try the DUI harness, and it made all the difference. I can dive all day, and my back doesn't feel a thing. I am also a large guy, 5'11", and 230 pounds. I would just say start slow, and get a weight harness, it really helped me enjoy diving again.

 

[Xanthro]

You won't feel the weight in the water, and my back always feels better during a dive.

However, you have to get into the water, and this means you'll have a bunch of extra weight, and this can cause a bunch of lower back stress.

While boat dives mean you don't have to lug your gear across a beach, you still have to gear up, get into the water, and even harder, pull yourself up a ladder back onto the boat. This could present a problem.

If you can find a boat that will let you get into and out of your BCD in the water, that will be easier as another posted stated.

In short, the diving isn't the problem, it's starting and ending the dive.

 

[Bill51]

I underwent two laminectomies for disk and bone damage done years earlier. Fortunately my neurosurgeon is well known nationally as a specialist in sports injuries so he had plenty of helpful tips and put me through extensive physical therapy before I started diving again.

The two biggest things he had me pay attention to were potential scar tissue obstructing nitrogen reabsorbtion and maintaining sufficient abdominal strength to lesson the stresses on my lower back. For the past 7 years I’ve kept my dive computer dialed in to an extra 10% more conservative than standard and I never push the limits at that, and I work out consistently to make sure that my abdominals do as much to support back as my spinal erectors. Not knowing your age, I’ve learned that as I got older I started letting my back muscles carry more of the weight than I should have and I let the abs off too easy.

You may be able to find a BCD that fits correctly enough to keep the weight up on your shoulders so your stomach can help carry the load, but you may find that nothing short of BP and harness gives you that kind of fit. As others have said, once you’re in the water you shouldn’t have any problems unless it’s from getting too cold or tensing up and arching your back too much.

 

[Canadian_Diver]

Firstly, welcome to the forums!!

In answering your questions, my friend broke his neck about 5 years ago. He is about to start diving and had similar concerns. Once in the water, you are weightless. The only concern is when you are out of the water.

Get a medical form from the dive shop that you are planning on taking your training with, take it to your doctor, and have him assess your situation. If you're uncomfortable, get more than one opinion.

Cheers!

My son and I are considering scuba certification. The only reservation we have with going forward is my lower back. I have had 5 lower back operations over the past 15 years with the last one 1 1/2 years ago. I know only I can decide if my back is capable of the strain but I was hoping for insight from others that may have faced the same issue. I don't want to go through the expense and time to later find out that the added weight of scuba gear is going to cause additional lower back problems. I should add that I'm a fairly big person at 6' 4" and 260 so based on what I have read I may be carrying a fair amount of weight during scuba diving.

Any thought or suggestions are appreciated.

Kilroy