Hi everybody. I'm Mark, a scuba diving instructor, and welcome to Scuba Diver magazine. So, this
video continues the scuba basic series, and today we're taking a look at your ears and
how they can affect your dive. If you enjoy this video, then don't forget to hit that
like button, and subscribe to this Scuba Diving magazine channel to see the very latest news
and tips in the scuba diving world. So, one of the hardest parts about being a scuba diving
professional is explaining how a student can best equalize their ears, because unlike other
skills where we can literally see what you're doing and if you're doing anything wrong,
we can't actually see what you're actually doing to equalize. Now, some divers are lucky
enough to never have an issue with equalizing and they barely have any discomfort in their
ears at all, but some divers can suffer from difficulty whilst equalizing their ears. And
in today's video, we're going to give those divers some tips and tricks on how to stop
your ears from ruining your dive. The first thing that we need to do is lay
the foundations on why we need to equalize our ears, because this may help you understand
exactly what's happening and how to prevent it. So, as we descend and go deeper under
water, the pressure around us is increasing because of the weight of the water on top
of us bearing down. Because air is compressible, meaning that you can squish it down into a
smaller space with enough force and pressure, any airspaces inside our body will start to
shrink down the deeper we go. In a lot of these air spaces it isn't much of an issue
because our body is made so that these airspaces will equalize themselves, or the change in
volume just stretches some membranes that are pretty stretchy anyway. The problem comes
when some tissues and membranes are too sensitive and delicate to be stretched and they don't
automatically equalize that air chamber. The main problem airspace is in the middle
ear, on the inside of your head. So, the middle ear is a very delicate place because it deals
with tiny little bones and structures that turn vibrations into what you hear. The middle
ear isn't completely sealed though. There's a small tube that links to your throat called
the eustachian tube. So, this tube acts as a bit of a valve between the nasopharynx and
the middle ear, and to equalize the middle ear we need to open this tube up so a tiny
amount of gas can get into your middle ear to alleviate that vacuum created inside. You
don't need to equalize on the way back up normally, because as you go up, the gas inside
starts to expand and it pushes its way through the eustachian tube. And you can often hear
this when it's happening. It's that squealing sound that you can hear on the way out.
One way to help yourself equalize happens before you even see the ocean. Before a dive
in the morning and even on the way to the dive site, I practice equalizing my ears early.
By equalizing your ears on the dry land, you're stretching the muscles, moving tissues in
your throat and just loosening things up. I mean, before a race or a competition athletes
stretch their muscles to get them ready, and the same goes for us divers. So, in my car
and setting up my gear, I'll be yawning a lot, not because I'm tired, but because it's
just stretching the muscles and everything, so that they work properly when they need
to. Chewing gum can also help with this. Before and even between dives, the repetitive movements,
and as chewing, can get things ready and keep the salt out of your mouth as well between
dives. Another thing that you can do before a dive
is a list of things not to do, I'm afraid. If you struggle with equalizing your ears,
then no smoking and no alcohol before a dive. Now that's not just me being a buzzkill, but
tobacco and alcohol can actually cause some of the tissues in your ear, nose and throat
to swell up slightly. Not enough to notice day to day, but when you need to equalize
a small airspace through tiny openings, that small amount of swelling can actually cause
those openings to seal and become closenings. That's a technical term. Salt water can also
cause tissues in your nose and throat to swell up too, so it's best to keep salt water out
of your nose, especially when you're right at the beginning in shallow waters. Also don't
drink and dive at all. Not just so that you can equalize, but alcohol and scuba diving
don't really go together very well. I mean, we don't fully understand alcohol's
effects on our bodies when we're under pressure and how it can affect our decompression. We
don't know. So, just no alcohol well before a dive. On a dive trip, I keep my personal
alcohol consumption to a minimum and give my body plenty of time to get rid of it, well
before the next dive. When you're descending you need to be equalizing early and very often.
If you feel the slightest discomfort in your ears then it could already be too late to
be able to equalize. When you descend to the point of discomfort, in a lot of cases the
increased pressure can actually seal those openings, so no matter how well you equalize,
the pressure is literally keeping those openings closed. That's why we teach you to ascend
a little bit, and try to equalize again at a shallower depth, to alleviate that pressure
a little so that your eustachian tube can actually open at all.
The biggest change in pressure occurs in the first 10 meters or 30 feet. That's where the
change in pressure is the greatest, so if you don't equalize in very shallow water,
you may not be able to deeper. So, the moment your head goes under the water, start equalizing
and keep equalizing until you reach your maximum depth. When you're equalizing properly, you
cannot over equalize or equalize too much. That being said, don't try to force it. Equalizing
is a gentle, passive action and doesn't require any force. No more force than literally clicking
a mouse button when your mouse and computers working properly. It's a gentle push and if
you feel like you have to push or equalize hard, then you may be too deep already.
The most common method that new scuba divers are taught is the Valsalva method, pinch your
nose and blow. Named for the 17th century physician Antonio Maria Valsalva, blowing
against a blocked nose can open the eustachian tubes and equalize your ears. This method
works well for most divers, but doesn't work for everybody. If your tubes are locked because
of depth, Valsalva just won't work. And if you blow too hard and too long, you can actually
end up hurting yourself. So, if a gentle blow doesn't work, then just try and move on to
a different method. Swallowing, wiggling your jaw and yawning can be effective methods to
open up your eustachian tubes, and there are a few popular methods that even have names,
but they're hard for me to show you, so I'm going to do my best to describe them to you.
The first of which is the method that I use personally, which has the lovely name of voluntary
tubal opening or VTO. And this is basically the yawn part. If you tense the muscles in
your throat and tongue downwards and inwards, a bit like a yawn. And basically the benefit
of this maneuver is that it's hands-free, you can basically do it with enough practice,
you can basically hold your tubes opening all the way down. The Toynbee maneuver is
where you pinch your nose and swallow. Swallowing pulls your eustachian tubes open, whilst your
tongue basically pushes air up towards the middle ear. Frenzel has you pinch your nose
again, whilst closing your throat as if you're tensing to pick something heavy up, and then
you make a K sound in your mouth, which lifts the back of your tongue like a swallow, which
combined with the closed throat and pinched nose pushes air back up into your tubes.
And then you get combinations like the Lowry, which combines the Valsalva and the Toynbee.
So, pinch your nose, blow and swallow. You get the Edmonds as well, where you tense the
soft palate and your throat, push your lower jaw outwards and pinch your nose and blow.
Basically it's all a lot to move the tissues around in your jaw and then allow or push
air up towards the eustachian tubes in the back of your throat. Equalizing your ears
isn't the only way that your ears can give you grief from a dive though. Some divers
suffer from ear infections in their outer ears and is often called swimmer's ear. Swimmers
ear isn't caused by diving in dirty water. It's caused by water sitting in your outer
ear. The water causes the cell linings of your ear canal to swell up a little bit, just
like how your skin naturally swells after a long bath, only it can cause teeny tiny
gaps in that skin where the bacteria that normally live in your ear canal, they can
now sneak in and do what bacteria do best, multiply.
It will start to itch a little bit, and if left untreated, it will swell and cause you
all sorts of grief. The best treatment is prevention. After a dive, dry out your ears
properly but don't poke anything in them if you can avoid it. There are some great eardrops
that you can find for scuba divers or even just swimmers, that you put in your ears after
a dive, which dry out your ear canals and kill some of the nasties. But be sure to use
them correctly. I've also heard of divers using olive oil or almond oil to coat the
ears before a dive. This can help lessen water retention. I've never tried it myself, but
some divers have said some good things. If you do suffer with ear problems then do
your best to get your ears ready and prepared before the dive so they're ready when you
need them. And equalize as soon as your head goes under the water. Try to avoid tobacco
and alcohol and do your best to stop salt water from going up your nose or in your mouth.
If you feel any discomfort whilst ascending, then go up a little bit and try a different
method. After your dive, get all of the water out of your ears that you can, so that it
doesn't cause an infection. And those are really the main points. So, let us know if
you struggle with your ears on a dive and maybe we can help you get through it. And
let us know what method you prefer to equalize your ears and prevent ear infections. Put
your tips down in the comments below, and don't forget to hit that like button and subscribe
to the Scuba Diver magazine channel. I've been Mark, thank you for watching. And of
course, safe diving.