On Fri, 13 Oct 2000 14:38:17 +0100, Carol Reid
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>8th Oct., 7 weeks later I did a very gentle, totally problem-free
>dive, using Nitrox 32%, to 20m for 25 mins including the safety
>5 min stop at 5m.
>
>  Unfortunately, <sob> 45mins after the dive the same numbness
> I had felt before returned and it resulted once again in a table 6
>in the Millport chamber.

Hi Carol, this is Dr. Ling, arriving at the scene a bit late, to offer
you my non-medical advice -- which is what I always do when it comes
to ACTUAL cases that REQUIRE medical advice from YOUR diving physician:

NONE of us is qualified (nor do we have the ADEQUATE info from what
you gave even if we are qualified) to answer the questions you asked,
regarding whether you can/should dive again.

On the info you gave in the 1st paragraph -- it is virtually WORTHLESS
info to determine whether your hit was "deserved" or "undeserved"
because it's lacking at least TWO sets of the most important determinants
of a hit:

(1)  Your PHYSICAL state at the particular dive (which no computer
     or max depth/duration) knows a whit about:  hydration, exertion,
     etc, but are known to be the prime contributors to DCI.

(2)  Your PERSONAL medical history (other than your absence of PFO)
     that your PERSONAL and TENDING physicians should be the ones
     you seek the advice.

(3)  You actual PROFILE of the dive (other than saturation levels
     at various compartments of the computer) -- the most obvious one
     missing was whether you might have ascended too fast!  If your
     computer has a downloadable DETAILED profile, it may be useful
     to discuss the PROBABLE cause and DIAGNOSIS with you hyperbaric
     physician who advised you "not to dive EVER" and ask "WHY? in
     more specific terms".

You can study (3) yourself to find out whether you had done something
that provoked your hits even though the depth/duration stats were
clearly non-provocative.

Only YOU, in consultation with YOUR physician(s), can take (1) and (2)
into proper considerations.  The best we can do is to offer you
sympathy, encouragement (which may or may not be advisable), and not
much else.


>And I have been warned "NO MORE DIVING EVER"

There must be REASONS accompanying the advise.  This seems to
contradict a later statement of yours that your physician said
you might try 10m 6 months later.  Whatever the case, it's NOT
the advise itself (go or no go), but the REASONS behind such
advise that's more relevant to your ability to make the proper
educated (as opposed to emotional) decision yourself.

>Now this is my question for the NED.
>"No diving EVER?"
> OK so I'm no spring chicken - and that in itself probably
> contributed to the problem.

See (2) above.  But by the "spring chicken" criterion, you can't
possibly come even CLOSE to this "supermale" (terminal phase :-))
Feeesh in terms of AGE (no pun intended).  Talk to the Specialists
who is MEDICALLY familiar with your body.  I talk to MINE and closely
monitor my own body and diving style.  Some (hell most) might even
say I "deserve" to get hit on the basis of max-depth/duration/profiles.
But they would be all WRONG (and I lived to prove them so!  :-))


>Has this got to be the end?
>Carol

It's not for any of us to say.

It is true that thousands of divers continued to dive "safely" after
one or more hits, but more importantly, EACH of the thousands have
different REASONS for the hits and none of them has YOUR characteristics
(physical or actual profiles) that must be considered on a CASE BY CASE
basis -- not not on scuba discussion advice <BG>, but on the advice
(best medical judgment) of your physician/specialist(diving physician).

Wish you well,

-- Bob.