Ears and diving

[Lord Northern]

I have two question.
I know it's not a medical forum and I'm not looking for a medical advice. Just if you had the same problem or know about it, share your thoughts.
I never really had any problems with my ears except for what might seem like one: the pressure. The feeling when you go downhill in a car or when your plain takes off, and your ears get stuffed - so I sometimes get the same stuffed ears effect without any cause I could think of or after doing little sports.
I'm generally a healthy person but I was wondering if this thing could mean that my ears are weaker than normal and that I shouldn't possibly dive? Or...
Share your thoughts on this. I'll certainly talk to a doctor about it sometimes soon, before I start diving but I just wanted to know what people say about it.

Also, my other question would be: is there any kind of statistic that amateur divers have a bigger chance of becoming deaf or something? Is it proven to cause some kind of harm?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Mantasscareme]

That's perfectly natural. This is something that happens to every diver. When the pressure in the environment is different from the pressure behind your ear drum, your ear drum will flex in or expand out depending on where the greater pressure is. When you're diving, there is a lot of water pressure on your ear drum. Your regulator (mouthpiece thingy in layman's terms) delivers air at the same pressure as the surrounding environment, so the pressure in your mouth is as high as the water pressure. What divers do is called a vasalva maneuver (spelling?). You pinch your nose and try to exhale through your nose gently. This opens up your eustachian tubes, which connect your ears to your mouth, and equalizes the pressure. The pressure becomes equal on both sides of your eardrum, and the pain stops. This will all be explained the first day of SCUBA 101 (Open Water Certification). The only time that divers could have ear problems related to diving is when they're trying to dive in spite of a cold or allergies. In that case, the eustachian tubes may be blocked with mucous, leaving you unable to equalize properly. I've heard of people popping their eardrums that way (extremely rare), so don't dive when you feel congested. In short, DON'T WORRY, GO DIVING
-Mantasscareme

 

[Lord Northern]

Hehe, thanks that was a good explanation however, I think I didn't explain my question right.
I have this "plain taking off" feeling in the ear OUTSIDE OF water more common than a normal person. Meaning I can sit still and get that stuffy ears feeling.
And my question was: would it mean that I might have weaker than normal ears?

 

[scubafool]

Had a nice long reply typed up and than BAM! my internet connection software freezes up. I HATE that!

Anyway, it isn't a question of strong or weak ears, as nobody's ears would be able to handle the pressure differential between the surface and normal scuba diving depths. It is a question of whether or not you can equalize the pressure in your ears. Some people pick this right up and have no problem from dive one on, while others struggle with it for a long time. It does seem that in time, almost everyone gets to the point that it is not a major issue, though. If you have problems with sinus and nasal congestion, equalizing consistently might give you more trouble than normal, but I can't think of any reason why you might feel pressure differentials in your ears while sitting in a chair or such.

 

[balance]

It definitely gets easier. My OW pool classes were two days on a weekend, and I saw a massive improvement for the second day as opposed to the first. I was a bit nervous for my certification dives the next week due to one ear being a bit clogged and/or having some water in it, but it was clearing and I didn't have any problems.

I've also taken the suggestion of carefully practicing during non-diving days. Apply just a bit of pressure and you will feel your ears clear.

Be careful, but keep in mind that it does get easier.

 

[Mantasscareme]

I missread your post, sorry about that!

 

[plot]

A few days before I go diving, I start "clearing" my ears just to get them used to it. That way when the time comes, it's all good.

Also at the surface I start clearing my ears... and for the first 15-20 feet of the dive I descend very slowly and clear them all along the way. That first 15 feet seem to be the killer, after that the deeper you go the easier it seems to eqaulize the pressure in them. Also, whenever I do start feeling a slight pressure becuase I didn't clear them soon enough, I ascend a few feet until the pressure feeling stops, then start clearing and descending again. And if for some reason I can't clear them (like my sinus's clogged up or something), then I simply ascend a few feet so the pressure is off.

Now, take what I typed above about ascending a few feet when you have ear problems into serious consideration, becuase the few people I've seen that have had major ear problems it happened becuase they over stretched an ear drum becuase only one ear would clear due to allergies or whatever and they tried to force the other to clear... with bad results. I made this mistake my first time diving (OW Cert) and had a very sore ear for the next few days, but luckily it went away. I know a few other guys that stretched an ear drum and ended up at the doctors a few days after there dives becuase the pain didn't go away.

If you're cautious and take your time descending, you shouldn't have any problems and shouldn't harm your ears in any way.

 

[rawls]

Sounds like it could be some kind of sinus problem. I know what you are talking about and it happens to me sometimes. If I roll up the window in my truck my ears get that going up in a plane feeling. But I think you may have some kind of sinus issue or maybe your septum is deviated. Or maybe it's just wax. Wax will cause it too. Weak ears...Nah. You can rule that out. Have you always had this problem or is it something that has occurred recently?

 

[Lord Northern]

Sounds like it could be some kind of sinus problem. I know what you are talking about and it happens to me sometimes. If I roll up the window in my truck my ears get that going up in a plane feeling. But I think you may have some kind of sinus issue or maybe your septum is deviated. Or maybe it's just wax. Wax will cause it too. Weak ears...Nah. You can rule that out. Have you always had this problem or is it something that has occurred recently?

Not always but also not recently. Maybe two years or more but it never was a problem for me because it's not a big deal. Though, I'm worried about it because when diving it could cause problems. Or that's what I'm trying to find out.

 

[knotical]

You might want to do a “try scuba” program. Most, if not all, certifying agencies offer one. They are usually pretty inexpensive, or even free. They take place either in a pool or very calm open water. It gives you a chance to actually submerge on scuba, with an instructor. Explain your concern to the staff in advance. If you can’t equalize, you can just stay on the surface.

I’m most familiar with PADI, who calls it “Discover Scuba Diving. They offer it at eleven locations in Israel. See:
http://www.padi.com/padi/common/dcnr1/results.aspx?country=ISRL