In normal situations, both the ears have equally balanced air pressure but there may be some situations when there is a change in an air pressure, especially when you are in a plane or diving in a sea, you may have a feeling that your ears are like filled up and needs to be “pop”.
This uncomfortable situation is known as ‘ear barotrauma’. This Ear barotrauma happens when the air pressure of your eardrums is not balanced. To make this balance again the Eustachian tubes(which has a link from your middle ear and to the back of your throat), needs to be open up.
Now the question may arise that IS IT SAFE TO POP YOUR EARS?
The answer is, Yes, it is safe to pop your ears safely. You need to be gentle and it requires more than moving your muscles of your mouth.
Tips and Remedies to pop your ear
We take help from the leading ENT Doctors in Dubai and help you with tips and remedies to pop your ear. So, the next time you travel on a flight and face low pressure, remember the following tips.
YAWNING
You generally need to take a large yawn to open your ears. If you can not yawn like real one then you can fake yawn. You can do this several times if the first one is not working.
You will not only feel a pop but also you will start hearing more clearly than you did when your ears are filled up.
SWALLOWING
This use to be a very easy technique to pop your ears. When you are swallowing then your mouth muscles automatically starts working to open Eustachian tubes, so that the pressure which has been build up needs to equalize and becomes normal.
You can also follow these steps too:
- You can close your mouth and needs to hold your nose.
- Turn your head to the right, so that your chin should touch your shoulder.
- Swallow hard so that your left ear pops.
- Now turn your head to the left side, so that your chin should touch your shoulder.
- Swallow hard so that your right ear pops.
CHEW A GUM
By chewing a piece of gum your mouth starts to be in a motion and that motion will help to equalize the pressure difference between two ears. You can use this to stop your ears to be stuffed up, which means, you can start chewing a piece of gum before having a seat on a plane. If you don’t have anything then you can start acting like you are chewing something. This will make you feel like laughing at yourself only, but it will work.
DRINK A GLASS OF WATER
Have a glass full of water sit in a relax motion and tilt your head towards the position of your Eustachian tubes and take large sips so that the drinking motion will help you in “pop”.
Valsalva Maneuver
It may be sounds you tough but it’s a very easy way of pop. It just takes a few seconds, what you have to do is have a grip to your nose close your mouth and start to inhale and exhale gently. You don’t have to breathe so hard that it will damage your eardrums.
TOYNBEE MANEUVER
It is a technique in which you have to drink a glass of water with closing your nose. This technique is more effective than Valsalva Maneuver. The survey differs from person to person.
VENTILATION TUBES
This is used to drain out the excess of fluid and is prescribed by the doctor. This technique generally happens in front of the doctor. Ventilation tubes fall out of their own and it takes around 10-12 mins.
You can try these special types of devices to pop your ears. These are for especially those persons who are not able to do the above techniques.
- SPECIAL EARPLUGS: It helps to control the air pressure balanced in your ears with the outside environment. It does not give any security that it will surely work or gives 100% best result but it’s risk-free and does not have many costs.
- Otovent: This device and similar to this devices resemble the motion which happens in Valsalva maneuver. You can use it in a simple way, insert the nozzle into one nostril and grip the open nostril to close and blow the balloon from the first nostril.
- EarPopper: This device helps to open the Eustachian tubes. Insert the device into one nostril and close the other nostril and now push the button. This is mostly used for small children and adults who have a problem in using a Valsalva maneuver.
WHEN TO SEE FROM DOCTOR?
If it is creating more problem like you can’t pop your ears for a longer time, then you should go straight to the doctor and have a proper check-up. If you will not take it seriously that can come through a serious sinus problem.
The stuffed eardrum may lead to the bursting point. This occurs because of rapid changes in air pressure. This usually disappears within 2-3 weeks, some require surgery too.
RESEARCH ON EAR POP
In this research David Eisenman, an ear specialist in Washington, D.C., says that it totally depends on the middle ear which is an air-filled space behind the eardrum. Whenever the outside environment changes its air pressure than the inside of the eardrum has to adjust itself to the outside environment.
In research, it is also found that ear is a very sensitive part of the body, and the middle part of the ear is more sensitive than any other part of the body parts. In-ear there is an eardrum which stimulates the air pressure of the body, when the ear pressure is too high then it can damage the eardrum and if it is low then the eardrum can collapse.
The ear tries to maintain the balance of the air pressure with the environment. Normally maintaining the air pressure is not a problem. On the ground the air pressure is normal but as you go up sitting on a plane than the pressure changes with the time and the middle of the ear has to maintain the eardrum to vibrates normally.
As Eisenman explains that, this is not very dangerous, but a change in pressure can damage your ears. You can take an example of the scuba divers who dive carefully the reason is water pressure is more powerful than air pressure and it can affect more. And inside in a plane, there is an artificial air pressure which takes the changes in pressure too less.