This event should not be cause for alarm. There is certainly no evidence to warrant pregnancy termination because the fetus was briefly exposed to higher pressures. However, if the dive was complicated by injury to the woman, then the specifics of the case need to be discussed with the diver's obstetrician and, if necessary, a dive medicine specialist. Any man who abridges a woman's chance for self-sufficiency by insisting on doing things for her not only demeans her but also perpetuates an outdated stereotype. Also, if the woman is his dive buddy, he may weaken skills she may one day need to help him .
Equality certainly reigns at the professional level.
Hundreds of women instructors teach open water and advanced courses to men and women. Women run dive shops, operate dive boats and lead diving expeditions. Resorts that carry tanks, attach BC's or perform other dive-related chores for its customers do so for men and women alike. Today, it should be as acceptable for a man to ask a woman for help with equipment or some other problem, as vice versa. When diving, women and men should wan t and expect to be treated as equals.