Well, looks like I'm done diving.

[Code Monkey]

Well, after more than 300 dives, it happened. I got the bends. 7 hours in a hyperbaric chamber and a day and a half later and I was feeling mostly OK. The tingling had gone from my fingers and toes and, a week after the incident, the nausea had mostly gone. Months later, I had another follow-up with a dive doctor. I told him of symptoms that lingered, it turns out, longer than they should have -- the dizzy spells, the foggy brain, and the hearing loss. While they've now completely gone (I'm nearly certain), based on the progress of my symptoms, my dive doctor told me that, if I were to go back to diving, it's just a matter of time before I got bent again but, this time, the effects would likely be permanent, neurological, and severe and that there was a good chance that it would kill me.

Myself, my wife, and multiple doctors here and in Indonesia where the accident happened have been over my computers and the hit was undeserved. I dove 6 days, 3 dives per day, always on nitrox, always well within my no decompression limits, and finished every dive with a safety stop. I dove with several other people who dove the same profiles I did (many of whom dove 4 dives a day) including my wife. I was the only one who got symptoms.

This email isn't really to discuss the incident (otherwise I'd have posted it in the "incidents" forum). I'm just explaining that, while I haven't posted here in a while, I'll only be around long enough to sell my gear and say goodbye to some good friends. I've enjoyed diving with Christian, Ken, Claudette, Missy, and several others on this list and off. I'll miss diving, in general, and with divers on this board in specific. I'll miss the posts and I'll miss the people.

Thank you all.

 

[fisheater]

SO sorry to hear this.

 

[g1138]

Keep the skin gear. I hear snorkeling is nice.
Sorry to hear it.

 

[japan-diver]

Sorry to hear about the hit. I would definitely get a second opinion on the effect on future diving. I took a CNS hit a few years back after a hard week of diving and spent a few trips in a chamber to clear things up and was back diving within a couple weeks and have been now for over 4 years with tech dives and teaching daily with no problems. (I had one opinion from the original doc that treated me to stop diving) I then consulted a series of dive docs and leading experts on DCS and the consensus seems to be that one case of DCS does not seem to link to having another and the overwhelming majority of the docs I have consulted saw no problem with me diving or returning to the level of diving I was doing at the time of the hit. I have been diving hit free for a over 1000 dives now and counting.
I would not be selling my gear just yet if I was you. Get a couple of opinions and see what they have to say- everyone's case is unique but I did find many docs that would recommend not diving again after a hit but they could not explain why or give any good reason for the recommendation.

 

[Texasguy]

How did you find out that you had bends? Did you have insurance? How was your trip to the hyperbaric chamber handled?

 

[koozemani]

Tough choice. Sorry to hear it.

 

[AfterDark]

Sorry man. I'd get a second, third and forth opinion before I'd hang it up.

 

[Wookie]

Sounds like a vestibular hit, which is undeserved. Is it upsetting? Yup. Is it fatal? No. Are you likely to be hit again? Well, only as likely as you were the first time. I took one in 2006, I still dive, I know of 3 folks who have taken one, we all still dive. It's a roll of the dice. I'm not willing to give it up.

 

[Doppler]

... I took a CNS hit a few years back after a hard week of diving and spent a few trips in a chamber to clear things up...

That I would like to hear about.

 

[Rhone Man]

Sorry to hear it bro. Good luck, wherever your path may lead you.