sensitive ears- dont dive often

[grislymatt123]

Hey,

I've been scuba diving before once in my life and when I went, after i got around 8-10 feet below the surface, my ears started hurting and i couldn't equalize to the water pressure.

I'm going on vacation again and there's this excursion where they put these helmets covering your entire head so that your face and your hair stays dry, while the rest of your body is submerged in water. The max. depth on this dive is 20 ft.

My question is, will I still have problems with the pressure of the water on my ears even with a helmet on? I assume since my ears wont be physically touching the water, i wouldnt have any issues. The first time i went diving, it was legit with the tank on the back and only goggles on my face to cover my eyes and nose. My ears were in contact with the water though.

Thanks for the help

 

[fire_diver]

Yes, you will still have the same pressures, even inside the helmet. I have to equalize early and often when diving. Start on the surface, do it again a couple feet down, then again a couple feet deeper. This should allow to stay "ahead of the game" and not get blocked.

 

[grislymatt123]

thanks for the reply.

It seemed that even when i tried to equalize every few feet on my first time diving, my ears just wouldn't equalize. I don't know why.

Anyways, how would I equalize with a helmet on?

Thanks

 

[Arkman]

It could have just been the day you went too. I've never had a problem except one day last year I just couldn't do it. No matter what I did. I just called the dive and the next weekend I didn't have an issue. Just don't push it. You can really hurt yourself that way.

Sent from my LG-P509 using Tapatalk

 

[g1138]

fire_diver's right, you'll still need to equalize.

Try yawning right now and see if your ears pop. If they do then you can clear your ears, which means your not doing it early and often enough when you're diving. When we say early and often in scuba we MEAN IT. Ideally you'll want to equalize and not hear a pop and not feel any pressure on your ears all the way from 0ft to however deep you go. That's ideal, most divers will hear a small pop.

Other than yawning you can also try different methods such as: (search google for instructions)
Valsalva maneuver (most popular but easy to over do it an injure yourself)
wiggle your jaw side to side
Frenzel Method (slightly more adv than valsalva, but near impossible to over do it)
Voluntary Tubal Opening (adv. technique)

All of these methods can be done on land, and you should hear a pop in your ears.
If you've ridden on a plane you'll know what this pop feels like. Your hearing will be muffled until you yawn or chew gum
then you'll hear a pop and everything comes back to.

The idea is to open your Eustachian tubes behind your tonsils in the back of your throat. These tubes lead to your middle ear and allow air to equalize the pressure difference.
If you don't have tonsils then you can actually see these openings at work (go to a mirror ).

You might already guess that if you equalize on the way down, you'll also need to equalize on the way up. Generally this is easier as the air will rush out of your tubes if open them slightly; no need to push air in. Since you've stated you've had a problem equalizing, I would advise to try yawning on ascent so you Eustachian tubes are open wide.

Hope this helps

 

[fire_diver]

Some people just have more trouble equalizing than others. I would recommend finding the easiest method for you to equalize on land and practice it a couple of times a day. You can train your ears to equalize easier with practice.

 

[g1138]

Another point I forgot to mention. If you're congested in your sinuses or your nose you'll shouldn't dive, on scuba or with the bubble helmet. Congestion will make it near impossible to equalize your ears and your sinuses. If you manage to do it on descent then you'll just have to do it again on ascent, which is where problems and barotrama come into play.

I hope you're able to work this problem out. You're going to have a lot of fun on this trip I can bet.

 

[grislymatt123]

Thanks for the replies!

I've been yawning for the past 5 minutes since you just told me to and every time i yawn i feel my ears pop a little bit.

as for the Valsalva maneuver...I've tried this before, and am not sure if it works for me. but in a helmet i wont be able to hold my nose shut so this wouldnt work.

Frenzel Method.. not really sure how to do this one

also-- i dont know if this helps, but when i ride on a plane, i do get some ear pain sometimes, however when i chew gum or yawn it usually does the trick and i dont have problems again.

Thanks a lot

 

[grislymatt123]

g1138: thanks for the advice.

I do have a slightly deviated septum. but my nose isnt completely clogged all the time.

Thanks

 

[diveprof]

Ok a simple method to clear that you can try on the surface. Put your tongue to the roof of your mouth (closed mouth). Pinch nose, look up, swallow. Did you feel your ears "pop". IF so, you can clear. Remember, clear early and often.