Medical Questions
Stress and diving
A few days ago, I started a drug treatment for stress using the following medications: Wellbutrin (brupropion hydrochloride) and Xanax (alprazolam). Is my diving activity still compatible with the use of these medications?
Answer from DAN experts:
It is important for you to visit a specialist in diving and hyperbaric medicine, before you keep diving while taking the drug treatment you describe. It will also be imperative to obtain, before the above-mentioned visit, a written medical consent from the psychiatrist currently providing treatment. As a general rule, alprazolam and brupropion are drugs that are not compatible with safe diving practices, since they have different side effects such as, for example, a sedative effect on the CNS; in particular alprazolam, which would impair your attention levels, and create a synergy with the potential effects of nitrogen narcosis when diving.
