Why do you do if your ears feel plugged? Great question, I'm going to share the answers
in today's video! Hello! Welcome to my channel. If you're new, my name is Emily. I created
Definite Hearing as a way to support the deaf and hard of hearing and guess what? I am hard
of hearing myself! I wear hearing aids in both ears and my hearing loss is rated as moderate to
severe. I am very passionate about making hearing aids a less taboo topic. A lot of people think
it's (hearing aids are) like a signal of aging or getting old, but really, hearing (devices) improve
relationships and life all across the board. I am such a big hearing aid advocate. Please
take a moment to like this video and subscribe to my channel. I look forward to making more great
videos and I want you to know when they come out. I hope you stick around to the end of this video,
because if you do, I am going to share the story of my first recollection of using the Valsalva
maneuver. What is that maneuver? Well I’ll tell you in this video. Here we go! So your ears are
feeling plugged, well number one: I'll ask if you're hard of hearing. Did you get new ear
molds? New ear molds are always an adjustment because of the way that they just feel new.
They fit differently around your ear and the pressure between your eardrum on your ear mold
side of your ear and your eustachian tube might be a little off. This is normal. You will get
used to it. So I mentioned the eustachian tube and pressure changes the number two reason that
your ears might feel plugged is because there is a pressure imbalance between the air on one side of
your eardrum and the air in the eustachian tube. So you have your eardrum, it is in your inner ear,
probably like right here and you have a eustachian tube that makes sure that the air is equal
on each side of the eardrum so you have your ear side and the eustachian tube and it's important
to make sure that the air is balanced. If not, something feels a little off and you feel that,
you can feel it so to even this air (imbalance) the great way to do this is to use the Valsalva
maneuver. I mentioned this earlier. What this is, is you plug your mouth, and you plug your
nose and you blow out. This will cause air to go up your eustachian tubes and out. It will feel
like it goes out but it hits your eardrum and it ensures that the pressure is balanced on either
side of your eardrum. I will demonstrate this. I'm going to plug my mouth and nose, did you see that?
I plugged my mouth, I plugged my nose and I blew out and I could feel my eardrums like popping out
a little bit and it evens the pressure. If the Valsalva maneuver doesn't work, the number three
reason that you could be having pressure issues with your ears or your ears feeling plugged is
ear wax or cerumen. It is so tempting to take a q-tip and stick it in your ear and
wipe it around and everything, and honestly it feels kind of good. That sounds weird but keep
the q-tips out of your ears, especially if you do not wear ear molds. I just say in general, don't
put q-tips in your ears but what this does, is when you put a q-tip in, it acts like a plunger on
a canon. So you know when they would fire cannon so they put the cannonball in and then they'd
stuff the gunpowder down? So this little plunger in a cannon works like a q-tip in your ear. If
you stick the q-tip in, you take all the cerumen (wax) and wipe it down the sides and against your
eardrum and that's just not good to have all that build up, that wax build up. If you would like to
remove wax yourself, you can use wax softener or a water device to flush your ear. Now, I will say,
the best and safest way to get earwax or cerumen out of your ear is to visit a doctor. This could
be an otolaryngologist, an ENT doctor (Ear Nose Throat) or an Audiologist. They can look into
your ear, assess it, and remove wax safely without puncturing or damaging your ear or eardrum. You
know that phrase, “You only live once?” Well, you only get two ears so take care of them. If you
think that wax removal is something you need to do, if you have the opportunity to go to a doctor,
have them take care of it. The next reason your ears might be feeling plugged is due to
ear inflammation or a reaction. This is an issue and should definitely be diagnosed by
a doctor so if you've tried the Valsalva maneuver and you're sure it's not wax,
make sure you get your ears checked to see if there's an ear infection or inflammation going
on. Your doctor will recommend the best procedures to take care of that. The fifth reason that your
ears could feel plugged is because you are having hearing differences or imbalances. Now,
any sudden loss of hearing needs to be addressed immediately just like any medical condition the
sooner an issue is diagnosed and addressed properly, the sooner it can be taken care
of. This is critical because if you experience any sudden either single-sided or double-sided
deafness or decreases in hearing this is really important because if you experience any sudden
decreases in hearing it could be an indicator of a really severe medical problem. For example,
you could have a tumor in your inner ear or on your brain and it needs to be assessed
immediately. It is important to differentiate between “Do my ears feel plugged?” or
“Am I having hearing issues regardless if you try the Valsalva maneuver?” And if that doesn't work,
and you go to get your ears checked and there's no wax or cerumen in the way, definitely talk to
your doctor. Talk to your (licensed) Audiologist so that you can be aware and proactive in taking
care of your health. I hope that helps. I hope that this video has helped you understand why
your ears may be plugged and how you can help them! Don't forget the Valsalva maneuver!
It is a great way to balance the pressure on both sides of your ears. Thanks for sticking
around to the end of this video. I want to share the first time that I remember using the Valsalva
maneuver. My family was on a plane we were actually headed to Disneyland in California!
I was crying because the plane had just taken off and my head hurt and my ears hurt
so bad. Well my dad, he knew about the Valsalva maneuver and he said “Emily, just plug your mouth,
plug your nose and blow out.” I did and all of the sudden, I just felt a million times better.
My ears didn't hurt and ache because of the climbing altitude that the plane was reaching,
so yes, that was my first recollection. We had so much fun in Disneyland; we totally enjoyed it! I
am grateful that the Valsalva maneuver quickly solved my earache problem. There you have it!
I hope you enjoyed this video. Please like this video and subscribe to my channel. I
look forward to making more excellent content for you. I hope you have a great day! Bye!