Painful ear after diving

[Sas]

Hi,

I am a new diver and have so far usually had a bit of trouble with my right ear when equalising. It seems to be hard to do and usually at the start of dives I find it painful in that ear even when descending slowly. Anyway, after a few minutes I can usually equalise and the pain goes away. I've been told that it will improve the more I dive and so far it has slightly.

Anyway, I did a couple of dives yesterday and on the second dive I had a bit of trouble with my ears even after reaching the bottom (we dived between 3-7m). Any time I went up or down a bit I had to re-equalise my ears, which is not usual.

Now after my dive, my right ear is quite painful as well as my right sinuses and has a feeling of being full of water. I am a bit worried as a few times I equalised maybe too forcefully and again when I was driving home I tried a few more times holding my nose and equalising that way cos I thought perhaps I had a bit of water in them. This ear now squeaks when I wiggly my jaw or blow my nose... I haven't had any dizziness and the pain is not that bad. But I was wondering what it could be? I read over the forum for other people who have similar complaints but a lot of that seems to be about dizziness, deafness and nausea, which I have not had.

I might be overreacting as I am new at this tho!

Thanks, Sarah

 

[DandyDon]

Please see one hour video on Equalizing....
[c]
Doc's Diving Medicine Home Page
[/c]

 

[DivingPrincessE]

you might want to check out these threads.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/diving-medicine/217364-water-ears.html

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/basic-scuba-discussions/194045-my-ears-hissing-what-going.html

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/217915-new-diver-ear-problem.html

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/new-divers-those-considering-diving/8789-equalizing-ears.html

 

[Sas]

Ok thanks. I have read all about equalising (and watched the video, tks Don) but as I am new sometimes I forget to do it frequently enough and I am sure that is what is causing the after effects in my ears. Getting better at this now though. I was more posting as a 'ok I screwed up equalising, now what' kind of a post!

My ear is feeling much better tonight so I am guessing it is nothing serious. I actually have come down with a bit of a cold today so it could have been a mix of the diving and the imminent cold.

Thanks, Sarah

 

[DocVikingo]

Hi Sarah,

Barring a ruptured eardrum or damaged oval or round window, which the diver likely would be aware of, the typical "ok I screwed up equalising, now what?" type of trauma to the middle ear tends to resolve without treatment or lasting sequelae. The use of systemic decongestants and NSAID pain relievers may provide some relief as the condition remits. The most important thing to watch for is infection, which can be signaled by middle ear pain, reduction in hearing acuity, tinnitus, dizziness, balance problems and fever.

If the soreness and sensation of congestion do not continue to improve, or get worse, an ENT visit would be prudent.

To help prevent middle ear issues, the diver should equalize early (e.g., before jumping the water), often and gently, and not dive when the nose, sinuses or ears are congested.


Helpful?

DocVikingo

This is educational only and does not constitute or imply a doctor-patient relationship. It is not medical advice to you or any other individual, and should not be construed as such.

 

[DandyDon]

...as I am new sometimes I forget to do it frequently enough and I am sure that is what is causing the after effects in my ears.

This must be the most common problem to :newbie:s and obstacle to to diverwanabes, source of many ear injuries and even painful infections :11: - my home town dive bud who certified when I did had problems getting past 20 ft for years until he watched the video. It could be done better and shorter perhaps, but it's the best I've seen. I don't understand why more Instructors don't require it; mine just said he teaches his students - and maybe he does; he's not the one we did OW with.

Princess gave you some excellent links, and DocV excellent info as always.

 

[Sas]

Well I got taught a lot about equalisation in my OW, including problems with it such as when you wear a hood but I guess on the weekend I felt a bit 'task overloaded' on the entry from the boat due to various things, so wasn't paying enough attention to my ears. It is one thing to know something in your head but another to put into practice when you are a n00b. :11:

Got a few shore dives next week so I will really focus on equalising properly this time as I will be at shallower depths and I have more issues there than at depth.

Thanks for everybody's help