OP
DazedAndConfuzed
Contributor
Based on what you've written in this thread, my impression is that your quick descents to depths greater than 30 fsw (ostensibly performed to avoid ear pain) are actually leading to some middle ear barotrauma. This only has to occur once and, from that point on (while on vacation), you will experience ear pain upon descent and "ear squishiness"/muffled hearing while topside.
Some people just require more time to equalize their ears during descent. Descend slowly and under control. If it takes 30 seconds to descend 1 foot, then that's the preferred descent rate for you. Discuss all of this with your buddy ahead of time so that he/she knows what to expect once you're in the water.
FWIW, muffled hearing is one common symptom that's associated with middle ear barotrauma.
Differential diagnosis of middle ear barotrauma vs. otitis externa (outer ear infection) is not always so straightforward. When in doubt, schedule an appointment with a health care professional. A simple ear exam with an otoscope would probably reveal whether any damage has been done to your eardrum. Depending on the diagnosis, the physician should be able to give you treatment options. For mild cases of middle ear barotrauma featuring "squishiness" in the ear, decongestants can be helpful.
In both trips that I had the issue, it occured on one of the dives and usually kept on happening on the rest of the dives, so maybe it is what you described.
I assume there are multiple chambers in the ear/head to equalize given that I was blowing all I can blow to equalize to the point of my ear popping the other way and it still had no effect on that pain.
My muffled hearing only occured 4 days after I returned, along with the flu like symptom.
I am hesitant to go to the doctor bcuz the last time I went for vertigo, they went all out on the testing, found nothing and couldn't do anything for me besides load me up with meclazine, then tried to keep me coming back as some sort of permanent patient for almost a year until the assistant forgot to try to get me a followup appt. When I felt a little off balance from this incidence, I just dosed up on meclazine 2x day.
Be careful. 5 dives a day on vacation can really take a toll on more than just your ears. Slow down those descents and ascents, stay hydrated, get sleep, eat as healthily as possible or as one can on vacation and try to stay more shallow. That's a lot of (literally) pressure on your body and it will take a toll. I'm not saying you were bent but I doubt it was a viral infection. I like to dive dive dive on vacation too so I understand.
Dive, hydrate, rest and eat during SI plus sleep..that seemed to have been the whole trip cuz was so narc'd up even with nitrox. My ascend rate was slow, don't have the computer with depth compensated ascend rate graph. Only time I might have ascended in a hurry was when I was really low on air in a night dive and my buddy went off with the guide to see a VW bug sized turtle, and even then it took something like a couple of minutes to go from 60ft to 25ft, then a couple minutes of swim at 25ft-20ft to the boat and a couple more minutes of safety stop.
I assume it is viral because I had flu like symptoms plus what felt like onset of vertigo, which I had a few years ago and 99% of the time it is viral thus non-diagnosable (although my cat had what is described as vertigo, but never fully recovered from it).
I've dived over 10 years, mostly vac diving 1-2x a year putting 10-20 dives per trip. It was only in the last couple of trips that I experience this. SI were usually around 1.5 hr to 2hr between dives. mostly square profile and 70min BT. dived nitrox to say in NDL.Are you new to diving? Or do yo dive once in awhile? Or you dive a few days or so every once in awhile. These dive profiles can have an affect. Your system needs to relax more on those dives where the pain starts. This usually occurs within the 10m/33ft 2ATA range. As pressure is high in this range. As you ascend past this depth it gets better.
Change the dive profile to have a greater SI between dives and descend slow, equalize, etc. If you get too sensitive abort the dive. As the swelling can ruin your diving day. Avoid medication unless prescribed by a diving physician.Rest a day to dive another day
Have fun and enjoy.
You mention ascend past this range. My pain usually disappears as I descend past the 10m/33ft range. Do you mean go shallower than 10m/33ft?