[efattah]

Originally Posted by Lobo Marino

What you are referring to is type 1 DCS (pain in the joints,skin rash etc),which almost never happens with freediving.

When freedivers do get DCS ,it´s more likely to be a type 2 DCS (more serious and possibly life-Threatening) ,that is arterial gas embolism or neurological problems.

This is not correct. I got bent 8 times while freediving and every single one was a type 1 hit.

After years of experiments, the primary factor in my hits was the ascent rate. A dangerous ascent speed is much more likely with a monofin, and in my opinion it is much easier to get bent when using a mono.

I was able to avoid DCS by controlling my ascent rate to less that 1.0m/s, with an additional reduction to 0.5m/s in the last 10m. Even better is a short apnea deco stop at 6m, but this can increase the risk of blackout.

For me, I found that with a very fast ascent (1.35m/s), it would take just two 40m dives to get a small type 1 hit.

The worst hit I ever had was in late 2005, during a wall diving session (30m, 44m, 48m, 51m, 30m, 32m). I ended up in the chamber on Navy Table 6 for several hours. Symptoms: tingling & numbness in fingers & toes, extreme unbelievable fatigue and weakness, pain in elbows, wrists, knuckles, and clouded thinking.