Excess mucus in your lungs not only makes it tough to breathe and increases the stress on your body, but it also heightens your risk for a potentially fatal arterial gas embolism AGE should air get trapped behind a glob of mucus in your lungs. At best, you will be miserable as the cold, dry compressed air you're breathing triggers underwater coughing jags.
Ditto for a bad sore throat. A little scratchiness is OK, but if you're struggling to swallow, cancel the dive. Serious symptoms aside, you probably don't have to abort your dive over a case of the sniffles. There are a number of low-side-effect drugs you can take to relieve your symptoms safely and effectively, says dive enthusiast and researcher Simone Taylor, PharmD.
So in a dive situation where everything is not going quite to plan, it can predispose those people to problems. When using a decongestant, be sure to choose a long-lasting, hour formula, so you can be sure it won't wear off and set you up for reverse block mid-dive.
Also give your decongestant ample time to kick in. Another good choice for stubborn sinus inflammation is Flonase, says Knafelc. For allergy-related congestion, most new-generation antihistamines, like Claritin, are considered safe for scuba. Skip to main content. Follow us email facebook twitter instagram pinterest youTube rss.
Dive Savers Serious symptoms aside, you probably don't have to abort your dive over a case of the sniffles. Only wearing the extra sweater does add more buoyancy to the top of your body and knocks your hovering trim out a bit. To keep yourself in trim, wear the socks and bottoms too. The thicker the under-glove, the more air gets in your gloves to keep you warm. Just make sure both inner and outer gloves fit you… well… like a glove! Be cautious of misusing the burn-time usable power of the vest; diving with your vest warming your body and keeping blood circulation going during the first part of the dive normal on-gassing , then finding towards the end the battery runs out will cause your blood circulation to slow down, preventing normal off-gassing and can cause your body to develop DCI symptoms.
Turn the second stage breathing adjusters down, easier breathe — easier freeflow. Inflator buttons can stick through lack of use, so as usual, make sure all your equipment is serviced properly.
Always suck a negative pressure test on the second stage regulator to check it works before you connect to the cylinder. Cold-water diving may not appeal to everyone out there. But for some, cold water brings the best visibility, solitude, and a very unique aquatic environment.
Around the world, quarries, lakes, rivers and even ocean dive sites are swamped with people when the weather is warm and the required exposure protection is minimal. When the weather turns cold, you often have many of these dive sites to yourself. This means when you head to the water to dive, you and your buddy may not have many other divers to ask for support, so you need to take the items you need to remain comfortable.
A few of the items that you may wish to have are listed below. When the weather is warm and the sun is shining, it is much easier to recognise that we have been sweating and need to replace fluids.
Conversely, cold weather often makes us bundle up and avoid cool drinks. When you head out to any dive site, especially a cold-weather site, remember to throw some water in the car.
Between dives and around our aquatic activities, we need to remember to replace fluids and stay hydrated. This will make us feel better and ensure time at the dive site is much better.
Similarly, cold weather always means it is a good time for hot drinks. Prepare a thermos and take some hot chocolate or another hot fluid out to the dive site. Nothing is better than leaving the water, throwing on your warm clothes, and then sipping a hot cup of coffee or chocolate drink. Your dive buddy will think you are the greatest person in the world. The act of adding bulky equipment such as extra exposure protection and the longer preparation time needed to set up and don gear for cold-water diving can make a diver burn off a large number of calories.
As we exercise, we get tired and our bodies need more fuel to operate at a maximum level. Taking snacks to the dive site will make sure we have something to munch on and to replace calories after a long dive in cold waters.
Essentially, these snacks can be true comfort food to make a diver feel better. If you do not know what these are, they are clothes worn beneath a drysuit to provide thermal protection. When you pack your gear up and head to the water, why not throw some extra items into the car?
Most companies that make undergarments often make layering systems. By taking more than one set of thermals to the water, you will know you have multiple options available to you to help you stay warm. Things like liners also fall into this category. Liners help wick sweat away from the body and provide an extra layer of thermal protection beneath normal undergarments. In many instances, liners can really help your hands and feet to stay warm.
They are inexpensive items that take up almost no room. So why leave them at home. Many divers would be surprised to know that a first stage can freeze in water temperatures well above freezing. Cold high-pressure gas moving through tight spaces expedites the freezing process. So, if you know you are planning on diving in cold water, why not give yourself peace-of-mind? Make sure you get your hands on regulators ready for cold-water diving. Often, these are diaphragm first stages or a first stage with an environmental seal to protect the system.
You should not have to worry about temperatures and failing life-support gear during a dive when worries such as these can be completely avoided.
Cold water against the soft tissues of the head can be a miserable experience. Similarly, if you have stayed in chilly water too long before, then you know what it is like for your hands and feet to begin to chill. Eventually they become like blocks of ice. For these reasons, thermal protection for your head and hands should always be carried along for cold-water dives. Hoods and gloves take up minimal space, so it may even be worth carrying multiple options with various levels of thickness and protection.
If you do not need these items you will not mind leaving them at home, but you will kick yourself if you need options and just did not throw them into the car. Once they get too cold, it seems like my feet will never be normal again. This worry causes me to pack multiple socks when I head out for a cold-water dive.
These socks may include normal running socks, heavy wool socks, and even Thinsulate undergarment socks. The ability to layer thermal protection on your feet will help you stay warm, but having extra pairs of socks means you can keep your feet dry and warm no matter what happens.
This is because having a stuffy or congested nose will ultimately make it difficult for you to breathe properly while underwater. Some colds are also accompanied by fevers and chills, which again are signs that you should avoid diving for now.
In such cases, coughing will make breathing through your mouth difficult and the excessive phlegm or mucus in your lungs can lead to a fatal case of arterial gas embolism. Just be sure to take stock of your body and how you are feeling, and do consult a physician about what medications you can take. The ocean and all its wonders will still be there when you get better.
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