Putting my unit away for 9 months

vlada

Can't help you with the storage part as my PFO odyssey happened before i had a rebreather, but do not worry about diving skills - they come back very fast once you are all fixed and get back in the water again.

I was back in a gym less than 3 weeks after surgery, so it did not have much impact on overall fitness. You will be on blood thinners for a while afterwards, so any contact sports would be prohibited for fear of bruising, but running, swimming, etc are all OK.

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Vlada

www.wrecksandreefs.com

Dive Sprite

Dear all,
Thank you so much for the excellent advice - and also for the positive support. That's really what this message board is all about and I appreciate it.
I've had an ultrasound only so far and the hole was very obvious (it looked huge on the monitor) even without straining or valsalva.

The doctor wants to do more tests including treadmill, 24hour ecg and a TOE scan to visualise the hole more thoroughly. I already had an MRI of the brain to look for lesions - (the reasons for going to see the doc in the first place were related to loss of short term memory, increased clumsiness, numbness in the legs as well as difficulty exercising hard).

My next appointment is not until September as a follow up - though I am uncertain if this is the date for an operation (I am in the NHS system, so getting answers is not at all easy since the doctors are so incredibly busy).

I am just very grateful that they found it this time as a previous scan with a TOE following a skin bend in 2003 found no PFO at all. I have been doing some pretty aggressive diving since then - so its a wonder that I wasn't more bent, more often.

One of the doctors helping with the ultrasound made an excellent point - that all divers should have the test for PFO before they start diving (or before they start decompression diving). She indicated that the tests themselves using ultrasound and a good bubble contrast medium were a lot easier than just a coupe of years ago.

Perhaps I should write this all up in another section of Rebreather World. I will give that a go.
Meantime, thanks again for all the support. I do like the idea of dropping into the pool on pure O2 each week, but I'm under strict orders to not go into the water at all (even the pool) on compressed air. I assume its the same for O2. I also don't like the idea of chlorine and my unit mixing - just a personal thing :-)

I will do a lot of reading, remain active in my diving club, and I might also do more teaching. Those were very helpful suggestions, thank you PaulTG2.
I'l stay in touch to let you know what the procedure is and how my experience develops.

For now the unit will go into its case, disinfected, dried, batteries out and cells removed. It will sit in my living room away from any heat sources and it will come out once every two months for a clean off, assembly and testing before going away again.

All the best, D.

si_b_lanzarote

DUDE!!! long time no speak!! how your world has changed....get it sorted and hope to see you out here diving again!!! we'll find another manta!!!

all the best with the surgery keep us informed buddy.

best wishes Simon

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http://www.thediveshoplanzarote.com

Sutty

From my limited hyperbaric medical knowledge I can't see much of a problem doing very shallow (pool) O2 dives. It sounds like you have a big PFO from yor description, but remember that a very significant number of divers do have an asymptomatic PFO. Overall (important word) risk is still low for those divers.

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Never forget that life is a finite resource.

Dive Sprite

Hi Guys,
Well, I am still going through the testing regime that the NHS has imposed on me for a PFO closure. So far I've had a standard echo, MRI of the brain to explain increased loss of memory, clumsiness and numbness in the legs (I think its 'cause I am 42); then last week a TOE (hose pipe down the throat) - and then next week its a treadmill test and 24 hour ECG.
The closure op should be in July or August.
During the TOE test there were bubbles showing up in odd places which might indicate a lung shunt as well - though the medics would not discuss it with me on the day :-( I'm keeping my pecker up and not assuming anything until the consultant has found time to chat with me in more detail.
Meantime, the rebreather gets great treatment, sat upright next to me in its box in my office :-) Every now and then I dismantle it, reassemble it and do a pre-dive check. If the closure is good I will be going back to basics for a while before heading into mixed gas territory again.

Dive Sprite

Hey Simon - thanks chap. I really miss being in the water - and once fixed my first stop will be a trip to Lanzarotte to dive with you guys again. Can't think of a better place to get back into the water, relax and enjoy the company - and get some time on the unit with an expert instructor :-)