You’ve arrived at your tropical paradise vacation destination, or maybe you’ve been there for a few days then one morning you wake up not feeling so well. Maybe it was something you ate or drank, that’s not agreeing with you. Perhaps your head and sinuses are stopped up. This is not how you wanted to spend your days on vacation. Nothing is more miserable than being on vacation and getting sick.
Now, let me get in my disclaimer here, I’m not a doctor, nurse or any other type of medical professional, nor do I play one on TV. I have gotten sick a few times on vacation though. Everything from sea sickness, to just a common cold, and several things in between I’ve come down with it while on vacation.
As divers, we need to pay attention to our health. Evaluate ourselves before every dive. Determine if we should or should not dive. If we can not clear our ears, if we’re actively wheezing, or coughing up phlegm, we probably should not dive. These types of symptoms run a greater risk of trapping air in our lungs or sinuses during a dive.
Prevention
When it comes to other ailments prevention is worth a pound of cure. Other ailments such as seasickness, allergies, or sunburn. All of these can make you so sick that you won’t want to dive. This can really put a damper on your dive vacation fun.
When packing for your vacation you really should take along a few preventative items. Items that will prevent many of the common afflictions that might put a damper on your vacation fun. I always pack allergy medicine, Imodium, Tums, Dramamine, ibuprofen, triple antibiotic ointment, sunscreen, a handful of band-aids of assorted size. These items don’t take up that much room nor do they weigh that much, but they might just save your vacation fun.
To hear from the real medical professional talk to your doctor or check out what DAN has to say at https://www.diversalertnetwork.org/
