Am I never going to be a good free diver thanks to my ears?

[grouchyturtle]

My ears suck! Since my first time underwater they have always been a problem. On a good day, I'm able to clear them ok, but I still need to revert to holding my nose and blowing my brains out. I've never been able to get any of the other clearing methods to work for me. On a bad day...I actually had a buddy blow past me on the line on the USS Bass and flip me the finger, because he was sick of waiting for me. Most dive vacations wind up being one less day of diving than planned, because after a few days, my ears just need a rest. They get to the point where I just can't clear them anymore.

Yesterday I was snorkeling a local spot, right off the beach. I was diving down to about 20-25', which is the deepest I've ever done on a breath hold. But I couldn't stay down for long. The limiting fact wasn't not being able to hold my breath. It was not being able to clear my ears. I went back to the same spot today and dove it. Being able to go slow with a big supply of air on my back I was able to get down no problem.

So, as someone who still has ear problems even after diving for years, is there some advice or trick out there that I actually haven't heard yet? Or am I doomed to never be good at free diving?

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Why could you not stay long at 20-25 ft? - because it hurt your ears to stay there? If so, you are REALLY screwing up.

You should NOT be feeling any pain or discomfort from not equalizing, once you feel discomfort, turn around and go up. It should be painless and comfortable. You should try to over-pressurize your ears on the surface. A lot of freedivers do that.. right before the descent, puff a tiny bit of air in there and then do the duck dive and the arm pull and then begin equalizing right away on the way down..

 

[grouchyturtle]

That's exactly what I mean...and I know it's a very bad thing.

On scuba, descending horizontally, I can easily use my wing or just my breathing to come up a few feet as soon as I feel discomfort, and to just descend as slowly as possibly in to begin with.

Diving headfirst and kicking to the bottom as you do in free diving is much different and harder to control the rate of descent...at least it is for a newbie like me.

I tried the pre-pressurizing on the surface thing (I've been doing that for years even on scuba), but it didn't help.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

That's exactly what I mean...and I know it's a very bad thing.

On scuba, descending horizontally, I can easily use my wing or just my breathing to come up a few feet as soon as I feel discomfort, and to just descend as slowly as possibly in to begin with.

Diving headfirst and kicking to the bottom as you do in free diving is much different and harder to control the rate of descent...at least it is for a newbie like me.

I tried the pre-pressurizing on the surface thing (I've been doing that for years even on scuba), but it didn't help.

I'm not sure I have a good answer...but don't push it, your ears will get worse, not better...

 

[fdog]

There are lots of tricks, I'm sure you have heard of all these, but I'll list them just to help someone else with the same problem:

• Start equalizing early! ...Like from the moment you leave the surface.
• Mucinex Blue box (not the Red or Green box!)
• NeilMed Sinus Rinse morning and night. Don't be shy, really squirt it in there.
• Ibuprofen. See your doc for a "therapeutic dose" recommendation.

My experience with freediving is once someone has mastered the art of emptying their mind, the first big wall is the "Lying Bastard" of 60'. The next big wall is dictated by the mask (how low volume is it?). The last big wall is getting in enough dives without problems from ears/sinuses.

For me, as soon as I have issues with my sinuses being plugged, my freediving session is done. I've learned to stop as soon as there's even a hint, because it will be worse later. <shrugs> That's just the way it is.

We just went on a live-aboard trip of a lifetime, two weeks straight on board (not the usual single week) as we explored undived sites. Because it was so rare of a trip, I went to my family physician and got a Kenalog shot. This was truly the magic bullet - I was able to spend an entire morning freediving, without a sinus twinge at all. Wonderful!

Hope this helps.


All the best, James

 

[Bob DBF]

I free-dive for abalone off the north coast of CA and have been since I got here in the mid '70's. I have problems equalizing, and free diving is more difficult because of it. I can burn 10 or more dives trying to get my ears to "loosen up" and clear easily and either they do and I can go deeper or they don't and I dive shallow the rest of the day. The OTC meds, for me, exchange one problem for another, if they do work.

The good news is I manage to equalize a reasonable amount of the time and can do 35' or so. I'm not a trained deep free-diver so that is my limit in the viz we get here, may be a bit more if I saw a really big Ab.

Protect your ears, you might want to hear your wife when she's talking to you.




Bob
---------------------
I may be old, but I'm not dead yet.

 

[Ouvea]

Hi grouchyturtle:

Are you trying to equalize with the Frenzel method? Don't be too hard on yourself. Equalization is the tallest obstacle that freedivers must overcome. It took me nearly six months to learn the Frenzel method and only after a Skype session with Ted Harty of Immersion Freediving (that was the moment of epiphany) and additional tips from the Deeper Blue forum members. I read Eric Fattah's manual on Frenzel equalization but I couldn't get anywhere with it (meaning no disrespect to E.F. as I'm certain many people have mastered Frenzel with the help of his instructions). I practice Frenzel nearly every day, while I'm at work, watching TV, typing on the computer, ETC. The constant practice really helped with establishing the muscle memory of the maneuver.

Also, I stopped worrying about equalization. Either it works and I continue diving or it doesn't and I head home. When I usually worry about it, I get tense and it never works. I also find that it shortens my bottom time as I do not completely relax. I do head down to the ocean to practice this. I don't aim for depth but consistent and easy equalization to about 20 feet. It has helped a great deal. Depth will naturally come as the maneuver becomes second nature. Yes, while I SCUBA dive, I do use Frenzel. It allows me to practice, absent the limitations of apnea.

If you still have problems, I would contact Ted Harty of Immersion Freediving. No, I do not work for him nor do I have any affiliations with Immersion Freediving. I'm just one of his happy customers that can finally descend, thanks to him.

One last thing, do remember the dangers of Shallow Water Black Out.

 

[grouchyturtle]

No Ouvea, I've never been able to get Frenzel or any other technique to work for me. I always wind up reverting to Valsalva, which seems to be the only one that ever works. My ears or so bad that on a bad day that doesn't even work for me.

 

[PAFreediver]

If you are having issues clearing you will want to work on the Frenzel[FONT=arial, sans-serif] maneuver. This will allow you to increase the force you add while lessening effort. You use the rear of your tongue as a piston to force air into your sinuses. While gently blowing air towards the nose while holding in shut you want to thrust the tongue To thrust the tongue try making a deep throat sound that some call a whale call. In addition make sure you are pre equalizing at the surface before you start your dive. [/FONT]