Frenzel ear clearing maneuver

[BobbyV]

Hi all,

I did some extensive searching in the forum and watched a few videos, read a few articles o this topic. I have been practicing the Frenzel maneuver (out of water) and I was just wondering if I am doing it right.

When I move my adams apple up with my nose closed I get the sensation that my ears are "stuffed" and everything sounds muffled, then when I move my lower jaw forward they clear. Is this the right sensation I should be feeling for this technique?

 

[pacchill]

Can you not Valsalva?

 

[BobbyV]

I find it doesn't work well for me, so I thought about trying something different.

 

[fdog]

That's about it, although I don't do the jaw movement. If you get your tongue into it you shouldn't have to hold your nose (at least I don't).

Be careful - you can easily pop your eardrums with this technique if you overdo it!


All the best, James

 

[TSandM]

It sounds pretty much like what I do, although unlike fdog, I still have to hold my nose.

Frenzel is better than Valsalva, because you don't have to use your whole diaphragm and abdominal muscles to do it, so it doesn't tend to affect your finning or your buoyancy.

 

[BobbyV]

O.k., yeah, the only reason I have to move my jaw is because my ears feel "plugged" and muffled after doing it (out of water). I understand that I won't be doing the jaw movement when on a dive, I guess I was just wondering if you all had the same result when trying it out of water.

 

[TSandM]

Unfortunately, I can't play with it right now to tell you, since pressurizing my nose is one of the things I'm currently forbidden to do. Maybe James will chime in.

 

[ljdiver]

Sounds like you got it. This is the technique I prefer to use and when performed above water you should get the stuffy feeling you described that I think is from over-pressurizing your ears (don't overdo it!). I do it before descent and get that stuffy feeling but it goes away as you descend. Don't forget to clear early and often. Also when I was practicing it on land I would just swallow to normalize the pressure but a little jaw wiggle works too.

 

[BobbyV]

By clear often you mean performing the Frenzel repeatedly while descending, right?

 

[fdog]

I can see where the jaw movement allows the release of pressure more easily, after playing with it a bit. <shrugs> It's not something I need to do, but everyone's built a bit differently.

So I wouldn't worry about it - it sounds like you're pressurizing the middle ear, which is the objective.

All the best, James