One of the most common issues for Divers is equalizing your ears.

There can be many reasons for this such as congestion due to a cold, swimmer’s ear, narrow Eustachian tubes, or other pre-existing issues and damage from barotrauma.

I have always had sensitive ears, and after suffering a barotrauma I worried that this would stop me diving, but after doing some research and trials at the deep end of the pool, I found an equalizing method that works for me.  I’ve compiled a list of tricks and tips, the first 4 are pre-dive and the rest apply to the dive itself.

Hopefully there’s one or a combination of tips that work for you, and remember don’t push it – there’s always next time.

Here are a few other tips, these are things to thing about before going diving:

• Avoid milk and other dairy products that may increase your mucus production.
• Avoid tobacco and alcohol: like dairy they can increase your mucus levels.
• Start clearing your ears early – even hours before you dive.
• Chew gum before diving, this keeps you swallowing which is opening your Eustachian tubes.

 Once you’re in the water think about these pointers:

• Equalise at the Surface – this can help you get down the first metre and can also inflate your Eustachian – remember, be gentle!
• Descend feet first – it can be much harder to clear with you head down.
• Look up as you descend. This stretches the tubes, I often stretch my neck from left to right as well to help extend the stretch.
• Use a descent line – this will help you control the speed of your descent.
• MOST IMPORTANTLY – STOP IF IT HURTS! Your Eustachian tubes have been blocked by the pressure differential. Ascend a metre or two and try equalising again gently.

Clearing Methods

The most common method is the Valsalva Manoeuvre – this is the most common method, you pinch you nose then blow gently. Be aware of how hard you are blowing as too much pressure could rupture an ear drum. Never blow for more than 5 seconds before taking a break. The problem with this method as it doesn’t open the Eustachian tubes, instead air is forced up into them but this won’t work if the tubes are already locked due to a pressure differential.

Another common one is the Toynbee Manoeuvre – you start with pinching your nose, and while holding it – swallow. The motion of swallowing opens the tubes while the movement of your tongue forces compressed air against them.

The Lowrey Manoeuver combines the Valsalva and Toynbee and this is one that works well for me. While holding your nose – blow gently and swallow at the same time.

The Frenzel Manoeuvre requires you pinching your nose and closing the back of your throat (as you would do when straining to lift something). Then try making the sound of the letter ‘K’, closing you throat is opening the Eustachian tubes and making the ‘K’ sound forces air against the opening.

The Edmonds Technique involves tensing the soft palate – this is the soft tissue at the back of the roof of your mouth – and your throat muscles, while pushing the jaw forward and down, do a Valsalva manoeuver.

This next one requires a bit more practice – Voluntary Tube Opening. Again start by tensing the muscles of the soft palate and throat while pushing your jaw forward and down as if you starting to yawn and this will pull the Eustachian tubes open. With a lot of practice some dives can learn to control these muscles and hold the tubes open for continuous equalization.

Do you struggle with equalizing? What methods work best for you? Share in the comments below!

Recently I decided I would take up Free Diving and I thought my best place to start would be with the Fins.  I already had a good brand in mind so went to Beuchat’s website to see what information I could find out from there. I narrowed it down to two pairs of fins; an entry level pair, the sport and the model above, the competition.

Beuchat Mundial Sport Fins.

Mundial Competition Fins

In the pictures you can see that both the Beuchat Mundial Sport Fins and the Beuchat Copmetition Fins, are a lot longer that your usual snorkeling or scuba diving fin with a blade length of 61cm

When comparing fins I learnt that the Sport Fin is designed for use up to 15m and has a more flexible blade than the Competition Fin which still provides excellent performance. It has all the same features as the Competition Fin but will create less stress on your ankle joints and muscles. They both have a soft closed foot pocket that is reinforced to transfer power from your muscles to the working area of the blade. The extra length in the blade of the Competition Fin creates a resistance in the water providing a superior whipping effect while the channels in the blade create a surface for the water to run off. These Fins can be used to depth of 20m. They both have interchangeable blades in case you were to damage one or wanted to upgrade to a better blade. Both Fins sounded like they would do the job perfectly well. The Sport Fin is better suited to someone under 85kg so this would suit me well. The price difference between the two Fins was only $30. The Sport Fin was $235 and the Competition Fin was $265. I figured since I was only an entry level Free Diver that I would go for the Beuchat Sport Fin as this will put less stress on my body, give me a chance to get used to being in the water, while not going too deep and when I get better I can upgrade to new blades.

Dive HQ Christchurch can pretty much source any fin you want, and have in stock a range of dive fins for spearfishing and free diving.  The staff at Dive HQ, helped me with the sizes and give you a dive boot to try them on with so you make sure you get the right fit.  They also have the separate blades, so I will be able to get them easily when I’m ready to upgrade.  Now it’s time to start learning to Free Dive!

If you are looking to get into free diving too, make sure you drop in and talk to the staff at Dive HQ Christchurch, as there is a lot of equipment from wetsuits, to fins, to certain types of weight belts, that have all been designed with free diving in mind, so it’s helpful to set yourself up with the right gear.

Blog by Mel Alps – Dive Instructor at Dive HQ Christchurch