Probably a dumb question, but here it goes. Going on a live-a-board in a couple weeks. It always seems that after about 3 or 4 days of extensive diving my ears start getting harder to clear and it feels like there is always water in my ear. Is there anyway to prevent this and/or prevent water from getting in my ear. BTW: I hate wearing a hoodie. Thanx
Water in the ears?
- Thread starter zaboAA
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What's a hoodie? Use a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and rubbing alcohol before and after each dive. Chew gum or eat something crunchy before your dives - apples, celery or carrots are excellent. Don't wait until you start having trouble.
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Never heard it called a Hoodie before - that term more common for the hooded jackets girls wear these days, but never use the hood.
The 50-50 is what I use. DrV suggests 33-33-33 using pure alcohol and distilled water, so I use 50-50 with 70% alcohol. Wonderful at preventing ear infections.
Also see this thread http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/di...r-under-pressure-update-re-helpful-video.html for a wonderful video on clearing..
The 50-50 is what I use. DrV suggests 33-33-33 using pure alcohol and distilled water, so I use 50-50 with 70% alcohol. Wonderful at preventing ear infections.
Also see this thread http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/di...r-under-pressure-update-re-helpful-video.html for a wonderful video on clearing..
The advice for preventing external ear infections is excellent.
However, I'm pretty convinced that the vast majority of people who think they have water in their ears are actually perceiving the fluid that's accumulate in their middle ear as a result of barotrauma. When you descend and the pressure in the fluid part of your body goes up, and you don't equalize quickly enough, that pressure pushes fluid out of the blood vessels and into the air space in the middle ear. This gives you a sensation of fullness, and sometimes crackling or bubbling sounds can be heard.
Many divers don't equalize enough -- They wait until they feel discomfort in the ears before they do it. That may be long enough to cause a little damage, and as the days goes on and this accumulates, they become more and more symptomatic.
Try equalizing earlier and more often, and see if that makes a difference in your experience.
However, I'm pretty convinced that the vast majority of people who think they have water in their ears are actually perceiving the fluid that's accumulate in their middle ear as a result of barotrauma. When you descend and the pressure in the fluid part of your body goes up, and you don't equalize quickly enough, that pressure pushes fluid out of the blood vessels and into the air space in the middle ear. This gives you a sensation of fullness, and sometimes crackling or bubbling sounds can be heard.
Many divers don't equalize enough -- They wait until they feel discomfort in the ears before they do it. That may be long enough to cause a little damage, and as the days goes on and this accumulates, they become more and more symptomatic.
Try equalizing earlier and more often, and see if that makes a difference in your experience.
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That's really interesting. Last time I was out I noticed on the third dive that I was hearing a clicking/popping sound from somewhere in or around my head (no pain, however). I tend to equalize as soon as I feel something, but not before, so your explanation makes sense.
I also noticed that my ears felt like they were filled with a really warm fluid - having an excessively active and hyper-ghoulish imagination I considered that my ears might be filled with blood. When I surfaced, there was no blood in the outer ear so I concluded that my hood was just doing it's job. Maybe my first guess was right after all... :11:
I'll start trying the gum, crunchy food, and early early often equalizing.
I have had problems with trapping water in my ears since I was very young. It is extremely annoying - every time I move my head after it gets in there I can hear it moving about.
I didn't take the water in the ear problem very seriously until not getting it out one time caused an ear infection, which ultimately ended up rupturing my ear drum when I was 12. (I would have been ok - but we discovered halfway through treating it that I was allergic to penicillin and had to start over again with a different drug - but that's another story...)
Anyway, I have no way to prevent getting water in my ear whenever my head goes under water. Some things are worse than others - the constant in and out of the water through a 90+ degree rotation of my head when I swim using the crawl stroke is worse than diving which is generally only two straight passes through the water line.
I have found that I can rotate my upper body and head down about the waist toward the side with the water in the ear. When it works, I can hear the water leaving and can usually also feel the little warm trickle of water going out. It looks pretty weird, I'm sure, since it really does require a whole upper body rotation - and I have waist length hair that generally takes a nice flight as I'm rotating. I then add to the spectacle by bending forward forcefully from the waist (that's the best check to see if I can still hear the water moving about). As I get older I also find that I need to make sure I am holding onto something to keep my balance. Good news, as dorky as I look, I haven't gotten an ear infection since I leaned this trick.
For folks who only get a small amount, the mix described above might work - I suspect there wouldn't be enough alcohol to dry out the quantity of water I can manage to trap.
gert7to3
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I hate sounding like an advertisement, but try Docs Pro Plugs or a Pro Ear Mask.
The plugs are made of resilient silicone and they are perforated. This limits the amount of water entering your ear, but still permits equalization. Below 20 ft. some water will enter the space behind the earplug, but it is greatly limited by them.
The Pro Ear Mask has ear cups which cover your ears. Tubes from the front of the mask connect the ear cups, which lets you equalize your ears with air instead of water. I have used the mask for 40 or so dives and am very pleased with it.
Neither of these products will completely protect your ears from water entry, since either can be dislodged, but they sure help.
The ear plugs are about $20 and the mask is around $50. Cheap by dive equipment standards.
The plugs are made of resilient silicone and they are perforated. This limits the amount of water entering your ear, but still permits equalization. Below 20 ft. some water will enter the space behind the earplug, but it is greatly limited by them.
The Pro Ear Mask has ear cups which cover your ears. Tubes from the front of the mask connect the ear cups, which lets you equalize your ears with air instead of water. I have used the mask for 40 or so dives and am very pleased with it.
Neither of these products will completely protect your ears from water entry, since either can be dislodged, but they sure help.
The ear plugs are about $20 and the mask is around $50. Cheap by dive equipment standards.
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