What if you were told you could never Dive again?

Question

Have you ever been told by a Doctor that you shouldn't dive anymore? What would you do if you did?

I had to have a surgery this year in which one Dr. says I should be able to dive again but I have to wait 6 months to a year before trying, and another Dr. saying that I might be able to dive again but only to 30ft, no more than that... so far thankfully I haven't been told that I will never get to dive again, but it got me thinking, what if that was the case? I would be so bummed out since I only just got Advanced Open Water Certified 2 years ago and the health issue popped up right after that so I haven't been able to do any diving in over 2 years... It's been tough because I love it so much... just wanted to see what other peoples experiences were if they had a similar situation. Obviously health comes first, so I will listen to my doctors, but i hope that I'll be able to go more than 30ft again someday, it will all depend on how i feel and how it effects me once I try again...

wish me luck please :) thanks and God Bless.

Answer 1

First, I would find a diving medicine doc for a second opinion.  If he said no then I would just have to find something else to do.

Comments

second opinion form a doc that knows diving would be a good idea. Agreed, if he said no i'm sure i'll find other things too do.

Answer 2

I missed a year of diving due to shoulder surgery. It was awful but there was no choice. If it had been a medical condition I would certainly obtain a second opinion. In general, second opinions are good. Retired doc here.

Answer 3

First of all good luck!!!! Second.... I really would t know. Terrible thought

Answer 4

Sad day my friend. The ocean is my attachment to the earth, and as such it would be like not being able to visit a loved one. I would of course continue to swim, support it’s conservation and do other water sports activities but it would not be as much fun.

Answer 5

Good luck and I hope everything works out for you. I honestly dont know what I would do. I'm sure I would continue teaching classroom and confined water atleast. I love teaching as much as recreational diving. I guess it depends on the illness. If it were something terminal, God forbid, I think I would continue diving anyway.

Answer 6

I am still not scuba certified because of my doctors being iffy about me diving. I had leukemia at 5, a bone marrow transplant at 8 and a kidney transplant 6 yrs ago (I'm 27 now). With all the treatment, they are worried about my lungs. I fell in love with the environment and the ocean developed because all I could do was fish after my bone marrow transplant as I was not allowed to swim in anything other than a pool for a year following. It is really hard accepting that I might not ever dive but I try to make the best of it by snorkeling and enjoying what I can when in the water! Life isn't too bad near the surface and I have been very lucky to observe many great things snorkeling!

Good luck NinjaShark! Hope everything turns out well and in your favor!