Although not as severe as loss of life, adverse events in scuba diving may also lead to other forms of loss. This page explores a range of losses that may affect divers after an accident/incident while diving.

Information on Bereavement

Forms of Loss

Accidents/Incidents in scuba diving may lead to various forms of loss. These may occur in combination with each other or bereavement.

  • Loss of physical function due to diving-related injury

  • Loss of confidence in self or others / change in sense of self

  • Shaken sense of safety

  • Loss or change in relationships

  • Distancing of community (e.g. club, dive centre)

  • Loss of diving equipment during event/rescue

  • Leaving or temporary absence from work

  • Loss of role (e.g. guide/instructor, leader)

  • Ending or taking a break from diving, or a specific activity

  • Other financial losses

Lost or damaged diving equipment

Although this loss is not comparable to an injury or death of a diver, it can have an impact.  For those with the financial means, replacement may be relatively straightforward and not a concern.  However, when there has been financial investment in diving equipment, or the kit is needed for working in diving, then the loss can be substantial.  Especially if not covered by insurance.

The loss of trusted diving equipment can also lead to uneasy feelings.  This may especially be the case in high risk diving activities, where divers have learned the reliability of specific equipment and are understandably attached to tools that have kept them safe in the past.  Loss of such kit can contribute to issues of confidence. 

Struggling with a loss of diving equipment can feel shameful, or embarrassing.  It is important to note it is an understandable reaction and can be worked through. 

Social impact and changing relationships

Buddies, communities and families

Traumatic events not only impact the individual who experienced the trauma, but also those around them.  Trauma can change relationships significantly, whether drawing people closer or triggering conflict, avoidance and endings.  Where an incident has lead to significant physical or psychological injury family members and partners may become carers.

An adverse event in diving can affect the buddy relationship, where divers were consistent buddies or a team.  Sometimes one diver may chose not to dive again, not to dive in that location or not with that friend.  This change in the relationship or separation from previously trusted buddy is a form of loss.  

Many divers are part of a community of other divers: a club, a group that dives together or a professional team at a dive centre. Sometimes, divers have met long-term partners in these communities, or perhaps their whole family dives with the group. Traumatic events can have substantial impacts on relationships within a community. Sometimes positive, but not always. There is also research that found significant psychological issues arising out of the shame, guilt or embarrassment of diving-related injury.

For individuals who have dived for a long-time and whose identity and community is woven from diving, a distressing or traumatic event in diving can have an impact across their whole life.  If leaving diving, either through choice or on medical basis, then there may be the loss of social relationships and identity to face.



Should we do a debrief?

Information about trauma-focused debriefs and alternatives

Community response contributes hugely to recovery and healing of individual divers after an incident. A safe group of friends or colleagues and access to support helps. Often groups will want to support each other, but it's not easy to know how. There is also the risk of harm to the survivors and other members of the group due to re-traumatisation and vicarious/secondary trauma.
Debriefing after trauma and alternatives

Wondering how to support a buddy or loved-one?

​Perhaps you were not yourself involved, and are here looking for ways to support a diver who needs help. Check out the resource page on for supporting a diver who has been through such an event.

Ways to support your buddy

Physical function and health

Temporary and long-term impacts of diving injuries

Diving injuries can lead to physical losses that are wide-ranging in terms of severity and impact on function.  If you were a witness or a rescuer, you may not have been injured in this way at all.  Often, timely hyperbaric treatment can lead to a full resolution.  But not always.

Decompression injuries can lead to conditions such as paralysis, brain injury and nerve damage that can have a significant impact on daily function.  Long-term rehabilitation and healthcare may be required. Drowning, suffocation and hyperthermia can also lead to impairments.  Rarely, divers experience hazardous encounters with marine life leading to bites or other injuries. In extreme cases, this can include loss of body parts. 

Without describing a full list of ways divers can be injured, it is easy to see there is scope for temporary, or life-changing, losses.  Such physical injury/health conditions may require significant support, from multiple healthcare services (e.g. medicine, physiotherapy, health psychology, occupational therapy etc). These kind of losses necessitate adjustment and can lead to psychological distress/conditions.


Leaving Diving

Medically unfit or choosing to stop

Adverse events in diving may lead to an outcome that either means the diver is not able to dive again, or is questioning whether they wish to.  Either way, for a keen diver, this could be a significant loss to cope with.

In some cases there are clear, medical grounds to stop diving.  It may also be that opinions differ.  Seek medical opinion on fitness to dive. 

A case of decompression sickness where diving was within recommended limits may be suggestive of PFO (a common condition in the heart).  In this case, a hyperbaric doctor may refer for further assessment.  I know the possibility of PFO can be a concern for divers, information about how this affects health and diving is available here.  One outcome of a confirmed, or suspected, PFO may be to stop diving.  This decision will depend on the nature of the condition, the doctor's recommendations and the diver's attitude to risk. 

For a diver who is medically fit to dive again, there may be other considerations.  After a significant incident, a diver may review their motivations and reflect on risks.  It may also be the case that the diver does wish to return to diving, and yet is experiencing significant anxiety, panic or other psychological reactions to diving again.  See this page for a list of issues that can often respond to psychological therapy.

For a new diver, or someone who only dives occasionally, leaving diving may not feel like a significant loss.  However, for others, the loss may have a wide-ranging impact on life. 

Where to access psychological therapy & support

Recommended options for post-traumatic stress, stress injury, anxiety or other mental health concerns due to diving trauma are similar to those for people who have had an accident / incident in any other area of life (e.g. road traffic incident, assault, severe illness). You may also want to consider how important it is to you that the healthcare professional understands scuba diving.

  • NHS

    In the UK psychological therapy is available via the NHS, accessed via your GP. If you have received care from a diving doctor (e.g. recompression therapy), and have signs/symptoms of PTSD or other mental health issues, the diving doctor may include this in the referral to your GP. Your GP then provides follow-up care & further referral to local mental health. To our knowledge, there are no specialist Diving Psychology services via NHS.

  • Health Insurance

    Private Health Insurers will often cover psychological therapy for post-traumatic stress and other mental health issues. You may need a formal diagnosis of PTSD to access therapy. You would need to check with your provider whether or not you are able to claim therapy sessions; and whether their providers have expertise in diving.

  • Self-Funding

    If self-funding is an option for you, access a therapist / psychologist in private practice. This option often opens more options to access a therapist of your choice. You can also access private therapy without a diagnosis (e.g. concerns that are specific to diving, prevention and improving skills). Therapy can be within practice or remote, online.

INDEX

List of all resource pages to support divers after an adverse event

Safer Diving

After witnessing, or being involved in, an adverse event in diving you mare probably keen to find ways to avoid similar events happening again! If you want to equip yourself for safer diving in future, please check out this page:

Safer Diving with Human Factors

Returning to Diving

Adjustments and Opportunities

[TBA] If you have been through a distressing or traumatic event in diving, you may be considering whether or not you want to continue diving. Or perhaps you are clear that you will be diving again and want some information to support your plan. Here is a page with considerations and tips for returning to scuba diving after a bad experience.