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scuba diving

buzzer, i'm wondering this too. i'm very newly diagnosed, and don't have particularly good control yet, so perhaps not this time round (2 weeks time), but i'd be interested in finding out the answer too!

suppose you'd be a bit stuffed having a hypo under water...

LJ
 
Any diabetic surfers out there? We should do a series of interviews/profiles with active diabetics
 
Hi,

You didn't use to be allowed to dive if T1, but this has changed and you can get insurance I think. There is someone on here who doea know the answer, because I remember reading about it. It may have been Clare. For those who don't know, Clare had a gorgeous baby boy at the weekend, so it might be a while until she is back on line. I have no personal experience of this, but I know that it is now possible. Obviously, you do need to have good control though.
 
i learned to scubas about 4 years ago in Cyprus but since then it has been a no no. I am type 2.
you should get info from a diving school where you are holidaying before you go.

Look up diving schools inthe place you are going to.
Hope this helps
Silks xx
 
I tried to do it on holiday in mexico, but as soon as they found out i was type 1 they wouldnt even let me do the free trial in the pool !!!

next time im concidering not telling them and just making sure my sugars on the high side

Darren
 
Hi
Before diabetes I used to be a diving instructor with the British Sub-Aqua Club, unfortunately with BSAC diabetes is a disqualifying medical condition although I am unsure about other organisations. I personally would not like to dive as a diabetic as you use a lot more energy underwater than on the surface. Your physiology changes due to the increased pressures on the body and the changes in the partial pressures of the gasses you are breathing. Additionally you may encounter different situations which require more physical effort (swimming against tidal flow etc)which may result in you using more glucose than you bargained for and ending up hypo either underwater or on the surface.
 
How come you can dive as an experienced diver and have diabetes wheras a novice diver gets all the discrimination :?: :!: I spent two weeks in hospital getting told with diabetes I have the freedom do do whatever I want. I joined a diving club and paid £1,000 for the annual membership and training, found friends that didn't get drunk all the time, a sport I loved and a real pleasure in life. I was told they had a diabetic in the club - and so when I went for my medical the last thing I was expected to be told is "forget it as you are diabetic Type 1 I wouldn't even bother wasting your money if I were you". It broke my heart :cry: I now don't have anything I enjoy sports wise apart from walking but it's always too cold here. I reckon a controlled diabetic (as I was at that time a few years back) who is a novice diver should have the same advantages and regulations as an experienced diver not be persecuted. I tried in Australia too and they wouldn't allow it either :!: The risk I could take is to not tell people and then end up with the possibility of being uninsured and having a hypo and nobody would know what to do. So the regulations are daft as hell :evil: Diabetes and freedom to do anything.... nope I don't think so!! We are becoming more and more restricted too, with animal insulins getting taken off the shelves and normal synthetic insulins (i.e. not analogues) supposedly getting eradicated eventually too. As well as my favourite sport and social life down the drain.. I feel like a sodding prisoner :!: Also a diabetic who is well controlled and is novice could only go a certain depth and be fine. If they have symptoms and are controlled it is fine. It turns out on the Isle of Man the only other option is drinking or motorsport - so as those aren't suitable for diabetics either then there is a chance that I could go to a monotomous gym or an overcrowded chlorine filled pool - joy!!!
 
The "you can do anything you want" line is a somewhat sanctimonious self serving line that the medical establishment and pharma industry uses to make up for the fact diabetes has been neglected for decades. It is used as indirect moral justification for the lack of money put into curative research, and the lack of education given to non-specialism medical professionals.
 
Aah that will explain it then and I gained a false sense of security. That was more of a rant but it is how I feel and I've been sore about this for years. I can understand a poorly controlled diabetic not being able to dive but a few years back I had good control albeit BG was a bit higher than usual but it was stable and I had no complications and good recognition of hypos. I feel there was no need to ban me from diving without checking my control and general health. The diving was something I loved and where I felt really connected. I've tried hockey but ended up hyperventilating as I am not adapted nor suitable for this sport and swimming has become boring. I like going for walks but the rest of the time everyone just drinks and smokes and to be honest it is just so dull. I miss the feeling of dive training and the friends I met. I hate having to be restricted it just really bothers me that's all. In a way I see it as discrimination too :!:
 
So there's hope for me for the future :!: 8) I am so happy about this. I looked at further links provided by your link. Judging by these I would need to gain a better HB1AC and BG level though at the moment. Also a few months ago I was dealt with by paramedics but maybe in a year or two - if I get controlled and am physically fit - I can dive :!: :mrgreen: Always glad to hear of hope - thank you :!:
 
Hi All
Im type 2 diabetic with no meds and i am allowed to dive. I am a Padi open water dver and also a BSAC sport diver.

You are allowed to dive provided you can prove you have NOT had a hypo in the last year and that you suffer no complications.

To do this i obtained a diabetic Medical form from the bsac website at

http://www.bsac.com/page.asp?section=00 ... n=diabetes

and the actual diabetic info pack and forms that you will need

http://www.bsac.com/page.asp?section=00 ... n=diabetes

i think padi have an equivilant form.

Basically you fill in the first part of the form about your condition, you gp/consultant fill in the oher half about hypos and complications. Some doctors charge for this, Mine charged £15. You then take this form to a dive referee, lists of these of BSC website. The dive referee then looks over the form and basically gives it his/her seal of approval. In the case of bsac this form is then sent to bsac who sendyou back a certificate to dive with a few restrictions on it. My restrictions are

Dive no deeper that 20m
Must test BG levels before and after every dive
Carry glucose(lucozade) in case of hypo. Even though im unlikly to have a hypo i need it just in case.
Must dive with someone familiar with diabetes and how to test me in case i cant. This meant teaching a few lads at the club how to test, Bit of a laugh really :)
After a year if i send my test results back to bsac and all is ok ie no hypoes etc then i may be allowed to go deeper :shock:

These forms can also be used abroad with most dive organisations. Remember to take your dive logbook if you have one, that way you wont have to do a trial dive first.

Hope this helps

Any questions then please ask

Brian
 
Thanks Brian. For some reason they used to allow Type 2 diabetics under good control to dive but not Type 1's. It seems that in 2005 they changed this but I didn't know about it. My diabetes isn't so great at the moment. I had two faulty glucose meters which led to an ambulance being called for me and my BG's haven't been too well controlled with all this new insulin I'm on. However there is hope for the future. I didn't realise before my post that there was but the information in this thread has proved otherwise. I read that diabetics were just going all out anyway and not disclosing the fact that they were diabetic :shock: I was tempted at the time but realised the potential and very real dangers of this so didn't do it and reluctantly accepted I couldn't dive. I am happy now though that when I get my BG levels normal and after a year if I'm physically fit I could have a chance of doing something really enjoyable and which I miss. I did do the training and went to a special med after taking up the time to fill in a form. However he said outright - "I'm going to be honest and I'm going to be straight. There is no point in you wasting your time and money taking this medical because you are a Type 1 diabetic and this is against the rules so accept you can't dive and get on with your life". That was a big slap in the face and I was in a rough housing estate but I just burst into floods of tears and resorted to the pub while my friends got plastered and blew cigarette smoke in my face whilst moaning about nothing in particular. After that I went travelling but got a similar response - albeit it was more sympathetic but still a big resounding no. I can accept these regs now - and I understand you have to be medically fit otherwise it is dangerous. I actually told my boyfriend when I got home from work how happy I was about it so thanks guys for letting me know :-) Also a hope for other Type 1's who may want to do an exhilarating sport that non-diabetics can do too :)
 
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