Heidi, I'm happy to hear of the good news for you and your mom. It is very welcome after all the not-so-good news.

Re dives, I was fortunate to be in a large chamber and we were able to bring in reading material and just about anything that wasn't electronic or that might cause a spark, especially from static electricity.

That was a safety precaution due to risk of fire; I imagine the overall oxygen level in the chamber would be such that a fire would kill everyone inside. Before treatments, we would strip down to our underwear and then put on special jumpsuits and slippers which were supposed to be static-proof.

I believe I wrote in a post on another thread that most people read books/magazines, there was one lady who knitted, and I wrote letters to my fiance (now my wife). We weren't allowed to bring food or drink in but each time we surfaced between descents, twice per session, they would provide us with drinks - juice, soda, water - and light snacks, such as crackers IIRC.

That was 17 years ago; I'm sure there have been some changes since then.