I had an anyurism rupture and had it repaired with clipping.
I have a question about scuba diving? Is it safe?
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Hey Constance,
This really is a question for your surgeon. There can be a few variables such as type, location, size and intended depth of your dive, all of which can have an impact. Depending on your surgeonâs view/opinion some may recommend a minimum length of time post procedure, some may be of the opinion âAll fixedâ.
But, until you have your surgeonâs opinion, I would suggest some precaution ie snorkelling for a bit before scuba, reintroducing a bit more depth each time, examining the affect for you. I had a similar concern with flying, so the wife and I took a scenic flight. That was OK. So I took an interstate flight, that seemed OK. Next was a long haul flight, Australia to the UK. It was exhausting but again, I seemed OK.
Whilst in the UK we went to mainland Europe by ferry. We caught a flight back to the UK and no sooner were we up, then we were back on the ground again and OMG, I had this man with a sledgehammer trying to bash his way through my forehead, it was horrible. I needed a dark, silent room to recover.
My theory was that with the longer flights, my system had time to adjust with the pressure changes. But with the straight up, straight down sort of trips, the pressures didnât have that more stable plateau where my system had time to adjust. The medicos had given me the OK to fly and due to the reason for the flight I had to have a medical certificate to travel anyway. But that was nasty bad.
Other than the surgeonâs approval, the only other advice Iâd suggest is the old boy scouts motto:
âBe Preparedâ Have a plan. If something happens (Heavan forbid) what would you do? Have a âdive buddyâ, someone to keep an eye, at least initially anyway. The last thing you want is to get down there, something go âPOPâ and you canât get yourself back up to the surface. There are also devices such as an inflatable life vests. If you feel something is not right, you can turn a tap and a little gas bottle inflates the vest, hauling you to the surface.
You may be able to simply call the surgeonâs office for an opinion. Often if you need it stated on a document you may need an appointment, but Iâd suggest asking the question of them.
Merl from the Modsupport Team
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Merylâs advice is really good - ask your surgeon. I used to scuba dive when I lived in California, the first rule was always to have a diving buddy. Hopefully you always follow that rule. You never know whatâs going to happen. I loved going with my brother to get abalone. My favorite place to dive was in Baja California. The ocean was crystal clear there. I havenât gone into our local waters here in NC. Iâve been told by several divers that the catfish in our man made lakes have catfish bigger than a tall man. One diver had his arm taken off. In NC one doesnât have to be certified to dive. Hopefully you have been certified, itâs worth the extra cost.
I found this https://dan.org/alert-diver/article/diving-after-brain-surgery/. Reach out to DAN, they may know of a doctor in your area that can clear you to dive, especially if your surgeon doesnât know much about scuba diving.
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I use to scuba. My dr said no deeper than 10 feet. Ask yours
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Curious to why your doctor put a limit of 10 feet, is that a âforeverâ rule or can you dive deeper now? Does your doctor dive? Again, just curiousâŚ
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He said the deeper you go the more pressure. We did study about the pressure during class. He felt the diving could have been one cause
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Thank you so much for answering my curiosity, itâs much appreciated. I have t read anything. About scuba diving being a possible cause of an aneurysm rupturing. I do recall Dr. Q-W saying they donât really know what causes one to rupture. I imagine his guess is as good as any. My cousins are strong believers that mine ruptured because of stress of my job. They are in the medical fields and their guess is as good as any.
I do think if you reach out to DAN, you may find the answer youâre seeking. If you do, please let our members know. I remember after my third procedure, I wanted to try hang gliding. BH said no, I called Dr. Q-W and she said I could do anything I wanted. Unfortunately it rained the next day and our vacation was coming to a close.
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My neurologist is also a fitness buff, so I was able to ask him some related questions because I enjoyed spending time at a local gym before Annie claimed squatterâs rights in my brain. When I asked him which PT (physical training) activities should I stay away from, he said, âthose that increase your heart rate (HR) are generally good, and those that increase your blood pressure (BP) are generally not as goodâ. Itâs the sideway pressure against the arterial walls (BP) that I need to more mindful of than the increased heart rate in the arteries. When I ran this by my cardiologist who has some athletes as patients, he agreed with my neurologistâs comments. Increased and unmanaged BP is also an often by-product of stress.
Oops! My bad. My daughter will use my laptop when she visits, and my laptop inadvertantly logged into her account instead of mine. Mea culpa. 
@Peter
@Peter thatâs always good knowledge to have! Please let your daughter @911Dispatcher know we said hey!(NC way of saying âhiâ
)
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Iâll check for sure, Iâve been on the flight to Europe with no problems, play a mean game of racquetball and of course sing lead in a rock band as I said. Some rock songs can be exhausting, especially when I sing Rush songs, but I get through them quite nicely!
Thanks,
Constance
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Thanks for the advise before I go I will be certified of course! 
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Excellent. Iâll reach out to DAN!
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I went parasailing. I donât see much difference!
C
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I only had an unruptured one, but while watching it two different neuro surgeons gave me the OK to scuba dive which I did during that year. I have also been diving since my coiling. All has gone well.
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