Eardrum pain from water slap?

[Javik]

I am practicing learning to swim at a local community pool. I don't have any SCUBA training yet, though I may see if I can do a Discover Diving in a pool to try it.

I'm slowly moving up to more advanced things. Just this last week I started practicing ways to jump in at the deep end face-first wearing various masks and goggles, a full wetsuit, and fins, learning about holding the mask jumping it, adjusting tightness for goggles and diving, etc.

On Monday I probably dived in face first about 20 times. I'm not sure you would even call it diving. I am basically tipping forward face-first standing at the edge of the pool in the deep area. It's the first time I ever did that, lots of water up the nose.


Due to me wearing big split-fins, I can't use the ladder, have to quickly pull myself up at the edge of the pool in the deep end, get a knee wedged on deck, pull myself on deck fully, and stand up. Bit of a challenge and very hard on my shin bones due to the raised tiled pool edge. Ow. Buying some shin guards to wear in pool the next time I try that.

Also my ears sorta felt uncomfortable jumping in face first, but I figure I'm just not used to this and will need some time to deal with these new forces and pressures.

My shin bones hurt a lot after that, so I stopped going swimming for a few days..


On Thursday I decide to try again. Except this time I figure out if I go up the pool steps backwards with the fins, I can dive in, swim to the steps in the shallow area, walk out backwards up the stairs, and repeat. So I dived in about 30 more times various ways. Again the surge of ear discomfort diving in, but it mostly goes away when I surface.

On Saturday I do this some more, maybe 20 more times. This time my ears are starting to get painful when I dive in, though it seems like nothing major at the time. Though after the swimming I notice that my ears do feel sore out of the water.


On Sunday, well, lets try it some more. I go to the pool, and immediately try diving in face first as before. This time, OW, my eardrums hurt after doing that! And they still hurt after surfacing.

And it seems my both eardrums are now so tender and sensitive, that in fact the rest of my time in the pool just doing surface swimming and exercise, my ears now hit me with pain any time the water comes up over my head and slaps my ears. Merely trying to practice a front crawl or just bobbing hurts like hell anytime the water touches my ears.

I stayed in the water for 2 hours anyway afterward trying to exercise, etc...... but I spent most of my time trying to keep my head OUT of the water. My wetsuit helps me float higher, but to avoid pain the only way I can get water over my ears is to very slowly and gently submerge them.

So. Apparently I overdid it the first time? Or this is the point where I need to start exploring vented diving ear plugs?


I do recognize that in the past just merely practicing floating and bobbing in the deep end, it has been irritating to repeatedly float and submerge from the water slapping at my ears. After a while my ears start to ache and I have to stop with that. Maybe it is actually harmful to my ears to subject them to all this repeated water slapping.

Do the professional swimming pool high divers have these problems? Do they have to limit the number of times they jump in the water to prevent ear pain? Do they wear ear plugs? I don't know.

For an open water snorkeler and diver, it seems like eardrum stress could be a problem from just the repeated concussive slap of the water at the surface, even without diving deep.

And if not ear plugs, perhaps just a hood will help reduce the slap pain?

 

[Coop42]

Hi Javik,

First things first, can you swim? It sounds like a stupid question, but it's not. You're talking about 'practicing and learning to swim' and buying and using equipment (fins, mask, wetsuit, shinguards, earplugs...) to solve swimming issues.

You really should have some basic swimming capability first, so you can feel comfortable in the water. You shouldn't 'need' fins (or any equipment) in the water to swim.

I'd strongly recommend that first. If I've misunderstood, I'm sorry.


Now about your ear pain.

Are you diving face-first into the water with your mask on? If your mask is on (over your nose and eyes) when you hit the water with your face, the mask will flatten against your face (ouch). When it does that, some of the air that was in the mask will be forced out, some it it will be forced back into your nose.

Your nose/sinuses are connected to your inner ear via your Eustachian tube. If you're forcing the air back like that, you're probably hitting the eardrum with compressed air _from inside_, and that's going to hurt, and hurt for a while.

The standard methods of jumping in with a mask on are rolling off a boat backwards and doing a giant stride (big step) off a boat holding your mask on your face. Neither of them involve diving in face-fist with the mask on.

I hope this helps.

 

[uncfnp]

Hi Javik,

There are a lot of things that need to be addressed in your post and ways to do things better including a class and not trying to learn this on your own but about the ears...

Stop going to the pool. Do go to your provider or even an Urgent Care. Let them take a look. Sounds like either a nasty case of swimmers ear or even a middle ear infection. Both need treatment.

 

[dmaziuk]

And it seems my both eardrums are now so tender and sensitive, that in fact the rest of my time in the pool just doing surface swimming and exercise, my ears now hit me with pain any time the water comes up over my head and slaps my ears. Merely trying to practice a front crawl or just bobbing hurts like hell anytime the water touches my ears.

You do know the "doctor it hurts when I do this" joke? Seriously, go see a doctor and stop going to the pool until your ears heal.

1. When I just drop over the edge into the diving well, I can easily go 10 feet deep. That's more than enough for barotrauma. You may not go as deep but still cause barotrauma.
   
2. Swimmer's ear is bacteria breeding in there because it's warm and wet.

You can have either or both. You need eardrops that in the US are prescription only, at least for #2. (I've not bought ones for #1in the US so I'm not 100% sure about those.) It is going to get worse if you don't treat it.

 

[uncfnp]

You do know the "doctor it hurts when I do this" joke? Seriously, go see a doctor and stop going to the pool until your ears heal.

1. When I just drop over the edge into the diving well, I can easily go 10 feet deep. That's more than enough for barotrauma. You may not go as deep but still cause barotrauma.
   
2. Swimmer's ear is bacteria breeding in there because it's warm and wet.

You can have either or both. You need eardrops that in the US are prescription only, at least for #2. (I've not bought ones for #1in the US so I'm not 100% sure about those.) It is going to get worse if you don't treat it.

Both need prescription medications in the US. Mild to moderate otitis externa (swimmers ear) typicaly just need drops. If bad I will often do drops and an oral antibiotic. If otitis media (middle ear) drops can't get to the infection and oral antiobics are needed. If barotrauma, a combination of oral medications, prescription and over the counter may be needed.

There is also a small chance that he may have ruptured the eardrum with one of those entries but the description doesn't sound quite right for that.

My money is on swimmers ear but the only way to know is have someone take a look.

To the op, if it is swimmers ear and once cleared to swim again, there are several great threads about prevention. I will link some if I get time.

 

[Jax]

Do you clear your ears before you dive in?

Valsalva maneuver - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[TMHeimer]

Yes, of course see a doctor. My opinion on your situation means nothing, but I may suggest trying Doc's Pro Plugs --in case you do have some form of Swimmer's Ear. As well, maybe figure out how to close off your (in this case nose) airway passages for the nose water--this is very basic to scuba in general.

 

[Littlerayray]

Stop flopping into the water face first and what are you trying to accomplish. without proper instruction you could cause serious damage

 

[boulderjohn]

As others have said, there is good advice that will absolutely eliminate the problems you are having flopping face first into the water: Don't do it! That procedure you describe is not used in either scuba or snorkeling, and there is a good reason for it.

Next, there is a much easier way to get out of the pool whilst wearing fins. Hang onto the edge of the pool and spread your legs wide, with your body at about a 30° angle. Give a good hard kick and keep kicking while you pull yourself up. You will essentially swim out of the pool, and you should be able to plop your derriere easily on the edge of the pool.

Pretty much everything everyone else has said is fine, too--get to see a doctor and then get into a class with good instruction. There is no point practicing, practicing, and practicing something that you will never do again.

 

[chillyinCanada]

OK I'll play.

Why did you buy split fins?

And what everyone else has said, plus, you don't need to walk in your fins nor climb the ladder in them either. Once you take snorkeling/diving lessons you'll understand why not.

Like John said, stop repeating things that you'll never do again.