New Diver - Water in ears problem.

[wguy00]

Head to your local drug store and pick up an eye dropper. Only a couple bucks.

 

[lionajoy]

Dear Friends,

I have been a competative swimmer for many years - I was swimming only in swimming pools - Thinking of Diving deep in swimming pool scares me of Ear Pain which I noticed same happening whenever I was on flight decending and blaming the pilot for sharp decend, Thinking of scuba diving always got me this scare of ear ache - At this age of 51 I finally took the Discovery Dive in swimming pool and somehow got a bit confidence and took up Open Water Dive course of PADI - With water in the mask going right into the nose, throat while doing mask removal and wearing back by blowing air thru nose - all those exercises I did it without any scare at all levels - Happy with Scuba mouthpiece air coming easily, mask or water going thru nose did not much matter but during my OWD tasks I was bit slow than the other members of the team equalisizing while diving to 8 to 12m dives and on accent/surfaceing I felt like air was getting blown out of my ears - almost asked my buddy to see if bubbles were coming out of my ears like a puncher in tyre-tube - without any pain after my OWD certification - I noticed my ears did not clear for quite a long time and all the technique to remove water from the ears as a swimmer did not work. I roll my head and hear water in the ear which does not come out - no pain but sort of head filled half with water, bit of difficulty hearing - the ENT doctor confirmed that I had water in my mid ear and ear drum was intact. Finally had to use nastal decongistion sprays and anti-infection tablets before having a congested throat and now have dried up mid ear and after which I did couple of deeper dives without any problem in equalising. Wonder if the sea water has come out of my mid-ears what about its salt contents - or someday one can find salt crystals !!! Hi.. Here I am posting this longest version of my experience.

 

[Drewpy]

In addition to the vinegar/alchohol mixture..you might try Docs Pro Plugs. They keep water out, but allow equalization.
Doc's Proplugs: The Doctor's Choice for Ear Protection

 

[uncfnp]

Wonder if the sea water has come out of my mid-ears what about its salt contents - or someday one can find salt crystals !!! Hi.. Here I am posting this longest version of my experience.

No worries about saltwater in the middle ear. When you are having trouble equalizing and fluid forms in the middle ear, it is not sea water but rather fluid from the body itself that is drawn into the space behind the eardrum. The eardrum (unless it ruptures) prevents sea water from entering the middle ear. Over time, the body will reabsorb the fluid.

 

[emoreira]

Mike,
We dive in dirty water most of the time. If we don't use alcohol in our ears every day we get an outer infection within a few days. If I don't use it I have the same problem and have water deep in my ears all the time. I use alcohol every night and make sure it goes way down in my ear, it will dry up quickly and I don't have much of a problem. Some ears are prone to a quick infection and require using alcohol after every dive. Chuck

Your post makes me happy. I thought that I was the only mad beast that uses pure alcohol in my ears after each dive.

 

[uncfnp]

Your post makes me happy. I thought that I was the only mad beast that uses pure alcohol in my ears after each dive.

Just be careful not to over dry the canal. An ear canal that is too dry or excessively clean (protective coating of wax damaged) can actually increase the risk of infection. Can add a few drops baby or oiive oil occasionally to combat excessive dryness if needed.

 

[emoreira]

Just be careful not to over dry the canal. An ear canal that is too dry or excessively clean (protective coating of wax damaged) can actually increase the risk of infection. Can add a few drops baby or oiive oil occasionally to combat excessive dryness if needed.

Thanks for your comment. My whole skin is greasy enough not to need that portion of oil.

 

[ladyfishdvr]

So you get an eye dropper and put a few drops in each ear after diving?

 

[dfx]

Just be careful not to over dry the canal. An ear canal that is too dry or excessively clean (protective coating of wax damaged) can actually increase the risk of infection. Can add a few drops baby or oiive oil occasionally to combat excessive dryness if needed.

Wouldn't the alcohol prevent infection due to its disinfective properties? At least that's the rationale behind those OTC ear drops against swimmer's ear, which are just alcohol...

 

[uncfnp]

Alcohol can reduce the number of bacteria in the canal but does not eliminate all possibility of infection and is not sufficient once infection is established. For most people, it is not the bacteria in the water that is the primary issue but rather the loss of the protective barrier (as with excess exposure to water swimming or diving) that then allows bacteria to enter the skin of the canal and thrive, creating the infection. That's why even swimming in relatively clean water can cause "swimmer's ear." And one of the reasons we tell people not to " put anything smaller then their elbow" in their ears. Even q-tips can damage the canal and increase the risk of infection. I prefer to mix 50/50 alcohol to white vinegar and add a few drops after a day of diving. The alcohol also serves to aid the water still in the canal to evaporate and the vinegar reduces acidity that helps inhibit bacterial growth.

---------- Post added April 4th, 2013 at 05:39 PM ----------

So you get an eye dropper and put a few drops in each ear after diving?

Yes. Basically just fill the canal. I usually do this in the shower after I'm through diving for the day.