"Rapture of the Deep"

[huvrr]

How about any fresh water divers experiences with "dark narc" in cold water. I have exerienced this a couple of times this year.

[navyhmc]

Ummm..."Dark Narc"????

[monant]

"Dark Narc"

Sounds like a super hero.

[navyhmc]

Or a deep, deep, deeeeeep undercover DEA agent.

[MSilvia]

"Darc narc" is sort of the "bad trip" of narcosis. Not the usual scatterbrianed euphoria, but a very "bad" feeling of isolation, helplessness, and/or impending doom. Kind of like the "bad feeling" some folks occasionally call a dive for, but magnified significantly by narcosis.

[navyhmc]

Well, I can say I haven't had that yet...

[huvrr]

Originally Posted by MSilvia

"Darc narc" is sort of the "bad trip" of narcosis. Not the usual scatterbrianed euphoria, but a very "bad" feeling of isolation, helplessness, and/or impending doom. Kind of like the "bad feeling" some folks occasionally call a dive for, but magnified significantly by narcosis.

Yep, you got it M. It happens in the great lakes and in fresh water as far as I have studied it. Water is usually at it's maximum density around 39F, often dark, poor vis, cold. It is strange and not at all like the euphoric narcossis with the drunken behavior, etc. I have experienced this a few times and it is very disconcerting. Like to hear others experience too. If you know it can happen and have experienced it it can help you deal with the effects. Occurs as shallow as 80 ft in my experience.

[ianr33]

Originally Posted by MSilvia

"Darc narc" is sort of the "bad trip" of narcosis. Not the usual scatterbrianed euphoria, but a very "bad" feeling of isolation, helplessness, and/or impending doom. Kind of like the "bad feeling" some folks occasionally call a dive for, but magnified significantly by narcosis.

Thats a good description.

On dark,100 foot+ air dives I sometimes start thinking "It would be real easy to die down here"

I remember one dive where I was bringing up the rear of a team of 3. We wee diving along the face of a dam. Very deep and black below us. The diver in the middle was a lot less experienced than the leader or myself.
I could not stop thinking that the middle diver could just drop onto the darkness and we would never find his body! That feeling was absolutely caused by nitrogen.

Took me a while to realise these feelings are narcosis,after all it is spooky when its deep,dark and cold. Do the same dives with some helium and it feels very different.. Still a spooky place but the irrational dread goes away.

[tfd86]

Been to 125ffw at 48 degrees f and haven't felt it

[Splitlip]

For me it was like a light switch at 145. The chamber ride which followed was to 165ft. The switch went off at 145.