Last night Hubby Tony and I flew home from our latest trip to California.
(More on that adventure in another post 😁.)
During my past few flights I've had a terrible problem with the Eustachian tubes in
my ears stopping up, an issue commonly known as airplane ear. I know what to do to prevent the issue (stay awake, chew gum, and
yawn during the descent) but I never remember to actually do them. After de-planing I had a hard time hearing what Tony was saying, and back at
home I would have told you the radio in the family room wasn't on. It was, and at its normal
volume.
I tried the Valsalva Maneuver, where you close your mouth, pinch your nostrils together,
and blow softly. That sometimes leads to a satisfying ear pop, but last
night all I felt was a tiny pressure release. I went to sleep with both of my
ears stopped up and ringing. It wasn't uncomfortable, just annoying.
This morning the ringing had stopped, but I still felt clogged up. There are
many ways
to take care of the situation. None of them are difficult, but some are time
consuming. I had a lot to do, and preferred not to add my wonky ears to the list.
Fortunately, after a nice steamy shower I tried
the maneuver again. The issue resolved itself with the satisfying ear pop I was looking for. Thank goodness.
Five years ago: I Never Thought About It That Way
That sounds so uncomfortable. I've never had that happen but have only flown a handful of times in my life.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about this. Glad it was resolved.
ReplyDeleteI'm right there with you on having ear problems on airplanes. Not all the time, but when it happens it's a pain.
ReplyDeleteA pain both literally and figuratively, right?
DeleteSooooo, do the preventative steps while on the plane. Or, you could have tubes put in your eardrums, like people with chronic ear infections. The little grommet making the hole prevents problems in airplanes. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteEvery time I forget to take the simple steps to make sure the problem doesn't occur I get really annoyed with myself.
DeleteThank God you're well again.
ReplyDeleteThe first time I flew I was told about the chewing gum trick. When we landed I had a job trying to get the gum out of my ears!
God bless.
When we flew with our preschooler many years ago he did not know how to "pop" his ears and was upset by his airplane ears. The flight attendant brought me a cup of steaming hot water to hold over his tilted head so that the steam could rise into his ear. The steam fixed his hearing problem within minutes. He was happy to hear again but said he felt real silly putting a cup to his ear.
DeleteI wonder if you'd get the same good service from a flight attendant now?
DeleteLast week as drove home from our holidays coming down the mountains my ears kept popiping.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness I don't have much of a problem with that.
DeleteLiving here and going up and down the mountain roads means our ears are aways popping!
ReplyDeleteYikes!
DeleteMy ears also did this when we went to Colorado. Glad it was temporary and your issue is resolved. Warmin California?
ReplyDeleteThe weather was perfect. Light jacket in the morning/evening and nothing during the day.
DeleteI love that I just learned about airplane ear! I'm sorry though that you had it and glad to read the shower helped. Woohoo! Here's to a kick butt new week!
ReplyDeleteKick butt weeks are the BEST!
DeleteThey are! That was my plan this week. Wake up. Take over the world. Hahaha. Massive honkin' headache made other plans for me.
Delete