Nitrogen narcosis

Okay kiddo, imagine you are swimming really, really deep in the ocean with your grown-up friends who are scuba diving. Now, the deeper you go, the more pressure there is from the water all around you. This can cause some changes in how your body works.

One of the changes that might happen is something called "nitrogen narcosis." Nitrogen is a gas that is in the air we breathe, but at high pressure, it can start to make you feel a little funny.

Imagine you're playing with some bubbles underwater. You blow a bunch of bubbles and watch them rise to the surface. Now imagine those bubbles are inside your body. When you're scuba diving, you breathe in air that has oxygen and nitrogen in it. Your body needs the oxygen to keep you alive, but the nitrogen can start to build up in your body if you go deep enough.

When you have a lot of nitrogen in your body, it can start to make you feel like you've had a few too many cookies before bedtime. You might feel dizzy, or start to laugh for no real reason. You might start to do silly things, like forgetting where you are or playing games you normally wouldn't play.

It's like having a little too much fun at a party and feeling a little bit silly. But just like you need to be careful not to eat too many cookies before bedtime, your grown-up friends need to be careful when they scuba dive really deep to avoid getting too much nitrogen in their bodies and experiencing nitrogen narcosis.