How are your ears affected affected after doing a shallow dive.

[Z Gear]

I noticed that when I do shallow dives, close to large structures, rocks and such and my depth changes are around 10 to 15 feet. My ears become harder to equalize. I was wondering why this does not happen when I am free diving. It seems only when I fluctuate my depth.
When looking for lobsters or hunting while on scuba near jetties and such this is when I have experienced this. I try to stay at one depth the majority of the time, but the hunt sometimes draws me up or down. For some reason this doesn't really bother me when I am free diving.

First question has anyone ever encountered this problem?
Second is why do you think it could be less of an issue while free diving.

 

[kelemvor]

I've encountered it, but I'd call it more of a phenomenon than a problem. You can deal with it by being mindful and not blowing too much air into your ears when equalizing. Also equalizing more often helps, as does slowing vertical movement.

The shallower the water, the greater rate of pressure change as depth changes. When I do working dives in shallow water, I have to be more mindful of equalization than deep(er) open water dives by far.

I can't comment on freediving.

 

[Z Gear]

I've encountered it, but I'd call it more of a phenomenon than a problem. You can deal with it by being mindful and not blowing too much air into your ears when equalizing. Also equalizing more often helps, as does slowing vertical movement.

The shallower the water, the greater rate of pressure change as depth changes. When I do working dives in shallow water, I have to be more mindful of equalization than deep(er) open water dives by far.

I can't comment on freediving.

I definitely have learned to pay more attention to this, because my dive buddy ended up with fluid in the middle ear.

 

[TMHeimer]

For me no difference that I can tell.

 

[hedgehog47]

I occasionally get annoying headaches hours after 10-15 foot diving. not on deeper dives, though

 

[g1138]

Greater pressure change difference happens in the range of 0-20ft. This is why many uncontrolled ascents happen during the safety stop for new divers.

If you're not intuitive or natural to equalizing as a 2nd nature then you will have problems when bouncing around in this range.
Equalizing with Freediving and Scuba are different generally. With scuba diving you're breathing constantly, with Freediving, your air source is coming only from your lungs.

As such generally speaking; and I'm speaking very general. Generally speaking you have more back pressure with Freedive equalizing because you're a sealed system. And say you go to 10ft and equalize freediving. As you go up and down minutely you won't lose as much air from your middle ears because you're closing your Epiglottis, squeezing your soft palate to your throat, and sealing your Eustachian tubes. So your ears stay overpressured longer as you're making shallow depth bounces.

With scuba you're constantly breathing so your ears equalize to a lower pressure more readily as you ascend and you'll have to equalize more readily with your next descent.
Essentially breathing in and out creates a small pressure difference that can Venturi air from your ears.

 

[Z Gear]

Greater pressure change difference happens in the range of 0-20ft. This is why many uncontrolled ascents happen during the safety stop for new divers.

If you're not intuitive or natural to equalizing as a 2nd nature then you will have problems when bouncing around in this range.
Equalizing with Freediving and Scuba are different generally. With scuba diving you're breathing constantly, with Freediving, your air source is coming only from your lungs.

As such generally speaking; and I'm speaking very general. Generally speaking you have more back pressure with Freedive equalizing because you're a sealed system. And say you go to 10ft and equalize freediving. As you go up and down minutely you won't lose as much air from your middle ears because you're closing your Epiglottis, squeezing your soft palate to your throat, and sealing your Eustachian tubes. So your ears stay overpressured longer as you're making shallow depth bounces.

With scuba you're constantly breathing so your ears equalize to a lower pressure more readily as you ascend and you'll have to equalize more readily with your next descent.
Essentially breathing in and out creates a small pressure difference that can Venturi air from your ears.

Thanks for pointing out the difference between free diving and scuba, when equalizing. This really clears things up for me and makes total sense.