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Old 07-29-2010, 09:47 AM   #1
jcaulkins
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Dramamine for longer bottom times?

so i pose the question - does anyone use Dramamine to lower their heart rate? I have been told that the "sleepy" Dramamine does this and have found it to be true when I take it. I haven't done much research on the subject and was wondering if someone had a definitive answer.

- Football and baseball have steroids..... divers have Dramamine haha
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Old 07-29-2010, 10:13 AM   #2
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

It is just mho. I am not a hard core free-diver and the reason is that I don't have the discipline to safely free-dive. And I would think that drugs will also diminish the discipline for divers and that might be very dangerous. I would think that under the influence of Dramamine things can go wrong very fast.
But like I said before. I didn't earn the right to comment other than just a humble opinion
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Old 07-30-2010, 03:49 PM   #3
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

many use it when scuba diving & spearfishing to make air last longer I have done it & it works for me but everyone may react differently so I would not suggest that anyone uses it for anything other than what it is for.
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Old 07-30-2010, 05:44 PM   #4
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

I have to take seasick meds in choppy conditions but I don't take dramamine- too many side-effects.I think it lessens your dive ability. I wouldn't take anything to try to increase bottom time. It could cause you to black out.
You can do the right things with an alkaline diet , drink lemon water prior to diving, stay hydrated, and avoid; caffeine, dairy products, alcohol, and sugar.
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:01 PM   #5
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

Avoid alcohol?
Hahahahaha Good one!
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:19 PM   #6
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

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Avoid alcohol?
Hahahahaha Good one!
yes, don't over drink the night before you dive- it dehydrates you and increases your chance of black out. you can drink after diving if you want but drink water,too.
you have some of the best divers in the world there in New Zealand-- ask them- they'll tell you.
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:23 PM   #7
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

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Originally Posted by mermaidgirl View Post
I have to take seasick meds in choppy conditions but I don't take dramamine- too many side-effects.I think it lessens your dive ability. I wouldn't take anything to try to increase bottom time. It could cause you to black out.
You can do the right things with an alkaline diet , drink lemon water prior to diving, stay hydrated, and avoid; caffeine, dairy products, alcohol, and sugar.
Can you provide some examples of alkaline foods? Also, why does lemon water help? Lemon water would be acidic, not alkaline... I'm not doubting, just curious if you could explain these further.
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:32 PM   #8
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

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Can you provide some examples of alkaline foods?
Duck eggs for one....Carter look for foods that are recommended for cacer patients as hiagh alkaline foods have also been shown to slow the rate of cancer cells.

Personally, I like to eat some blue lotus that's been soaking in wine prior to a dive.Seriously.
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:48 PM   #9
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

"why does lemon water help? Lemon water would be acidic, not alkaline."

The effect it has on your body has nothing to do with its natural acidity. Lemon juice is extremely alkalizing. The citric acid becomes citrate after digestion, which is alkalizing, but, you would need lot's of it and preferably just lemon juice and no water to get a good effect from it, alkaline foods and supplements act as a CO2 buffer so you can start the apnea with CO2 which kicks in Dive Reflex and other benefits yet you have the hemoglobin releasing the O2 in the blood, must use a relaxed breath up each time though.
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Old 07-30-2010, 08:17 PM   #10
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

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Originally Posted by ApneaAddict View Post
Can you provide some examples of alkaline foods? Also, why does lemon water help? Lemon water would be acidic, not alkaline... I'm not doubting, just curious if you could explain these further.

yes, actually the acidity has the reverse effect and actually increases your alkalinity. Baking soda works,too but it is harder to stomach and might make you feel bad. An alkaline diet is good for overall health as stated by Aaron but it is especially good for breath hold diving, as it helps you access the oxygen in your blood. Figs, alfalfa sprouts, wheat grass, chia seeds- excellent for recovery after a hard day of diving. Breath hold makes you acidic and eating these things will help you get back to normal faster; adding more of these to your diet may help increase your bottom time.
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Old 07-30-2010, 09:16 PM   #11
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

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it is good for overall health as stated by Aaron but it is especially good for breath hold
See Carter....I'm not a total idiot.
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Old 07-30-2010, 09:27 PM   #12
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

Quote:
Originally Posted by mermaidgirl View Post
yes, actually the acidity has the reverse effect and actually increases your alkalinity. Baking soda works,too but it is harder to stomach and might make you feel bad. An alkaline diet is good for overall health as stated by Aaron but it is especially good for breath hold diving, as it helps you access the oxygen in your blood. Figs, alfalfa sprouts, wheat grass, chia seeds- excellent for recovery after a hard day of diving. Breath hold makes you acidic and eating these things will help you get back to normal faster; adding more of these to your diet may help increase your bottom time.


I can't verify the list on this link, but here is a nice table of foods categorized by acidic/alkaline... If anyone was wondering.

http://heartspring.net/list_of_alkaline_foods.html
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Old 07-31-2010, 06:52 AM   #13
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

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Originally Posted by mermaidgirl View Post
stay hydrated, and avoid; caffeine, dairy products, alcohol, and sugar.
Other than the alcohol the rest is pretty much on my pre-dive check list. It may not be the healthiest thing for me but carbs and a Red Bull is usually a manditory thing for me prior to a deep dive involving complex issues and spearing fish. Alert and focused is my primary concern as I already feel relaxed enough when I'm diving. But then again I am as adult ADHD as it gets and the caffine works well for me. I do make it a point to compensate for my sins by staying completely hydrated though, as I think that is paramount to proper off gassing.
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Old 08-05-2010, 10:03 AM   #14
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

ok ok ok. im not thinking of loading up on dramamine to get better bottom times. I was just wondering about the prescribed dose - and if it helps anyone

Here is a great e-mail i received from the PFI group on alkaline isssues.


Hey everyone!

I couldn't help jumping in on this one since I've thought about and played around with this one quite a bit. Thanks John for an accurate summary of the alkaline/acidic effect on our pH. For some time, I tried using Cytomax pre-dive. My overall feeling was that it was harder to get warmed up, but I was able to dive more comfortably, longer. It actually makes sense that it would too. Cytomax is a sports drink that has a buffer, therfore adding base to your system (alkylotic). As you create lactic acid, it buffers it. So, when you dive, you are trying to shift the hemoglobin curve to the right to the acidic side (increase H+ acid). This allows better unloading of oxygen and better utilization of each oxygen molecue. As you warm up, you use progressive breath holding to stimulate this shift (low oxygen, high C02 - acidotic). Things start getting easier. So, if you are loaded up with base, or alkylotic, it may take you longer to warm up, to find that shift when things get easier. For me, it certainly held true. However, being acidotic isn't exactly great either. You get fatigued, massively hungry, a headache, vasodilated, increased respiratory drive reverse the acidity, etc. The extra buffering of a basic/alkylotic drink did indeed help me extend my period of exertion before feeling fatigued. I also used it for aerobic sports. However, I also found Cytomax to make my stomach a little unsettled when diving. Overall, I didn't find it all that helpful or all that harmful. I think having a good store of energy from the evening meal, a very light breakfast with a very small portion of protein, fat, and carbohydrate (I found 1/2 of a PB&J a perfect blend) and being well hydrated the optimal dive combo for me. The body is pretty efficient at neutralizing our pH, so most pH effects are pretty short lived. As for targets and optimal performance, I think it's all individual to warming up and doing what you need to do to stimulate the oxyhemoglobin curve, yet not get real acidotic in your whole body. In other words, brief exposures of acidosis, hypercarbia (high CO2), and hypoxemia (low O2) can get the hemoglobin molecue warmed up to unload more O2. As you recover, your body still has a lot of buffering capability as long as you don't exhaust yourself in the process.

I hope that helps for anyone out there trying different pH foods/drinks. I know I sort of abandoned the concept, thinking more in terms of hydration and a good warm-up doing more for me.
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Old 08-07-2010, 10:31 PM   #15
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Re: Dramamine for longer bottom times?

all nature grown food such as vegetables and fruits are alkaline which our body loves to intake to mature healthy with good stamina to endure all days duties eg: putting up with the wife, playing with the kids and not to mention work 9-5. God given food will do us good. Can i get an amen...lol
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