First, you should rule out that there is some medically-relevant cause to your equalizing problem. You need that a MD with experience in diving medicine visits you and establish that everything is OK. If you do not know such a doctor, call DAN and follow their advice.
After ruling out any medical problem, then it comes to equalizing technique.
Unfortunately, in most training agencies Valsalva is yet the equalizing method routinely taught to students. Albeit it more or less works for many subjects, Valsalva is absolutely the worst method for a number of reasons, including the over-pressure exerted by your lungs, the effort required, the fact that it requires you stop breathing, and the fact that is not always effective opening Eustachian tubes.
Search on the Internet for the various alternative equalizing methods:
- Toynbee
- Frenzel
- Frenzel-Fattah
- Marcante-Odaglia
- béance tubaire volontaire (BTV)
I use the last one, the only one which does not require to close your nostrils with fingers.
With proper exercise (and perhaps some guidance by a good instructor) everyone can learn ALL the methods outlined above.
People with problems equalizing (tiny Eustachian tubes) often get the best results with Frenzel, which is a very powerful technique, mostly used by free divers, as it requires to have your mouth closed (so while scuba diving you need to remove the reg from your mouth). This is the method usually taught in free diving courses.
Marcante-Odaglia is basically the same as Frenzel, but you can keep the reg in your mouth, hence is possibly more practical for scuba divers.
BTV is a method developed in France, which requires you get voluntary control on some small muscles inside your head, which cause the Eustachian tubes to open. It needs to be practised dozens of times per day, so these muscles grow strong. I learned it when young, and got the habit of opening my tubes with it every a few minutes, everyday, even in periods when I am not going to dive at all.
At that point equalizing becomes a not-issue, as while you are descending you simply keep your tubes open, and the medium-ear pressure remains equalized continuously.
Only small problem is that when the tubes are open noise enters the medium ear through them, and the noise made by the regulator can be very loud.
After ruling out any medical problem, then it comes to equalizing technique.
Unfortunately, in most training agencies Valsalva is yet the equalizing method routinely taught to students. Albeit it more or less works for many subjects, Valsalva is absolutely the worst method for a number of reasons, including the over-pressure exerted by your lungs, the effort required, the fact that it requires you stop breathing, and the fact that is not always effective opening Eustachian tubes.
Search on the Internet for the various alternative equalizing methods:
- Toynbee
- Frenzel
- Frenzel-Fattah
- Marcante-Odaglia
- béance tubaire volontaire (BTV)
I use the last one, the only one which does not require to close your nostrils with fingers.
With proper exercise (and perhaps some guidance by a good instructor) everyone can learn ALL the methods outlined above.
People with problems equalizing (tiny Eustachian tubes) often get the best results with Frenzel, which is a very powerful technique, mostly used by free divers, as it requires to have your mouth closed (so while scuba diving you need to remove the reg from your mouth). This is the method usually taught in free diving courses.
Marcante-Odaglia is basically the same as Frenzel, but you can keep the reg in your mouth, hence is possibly more practical for scuba divers.
BTV is a method developed in France, which requires you get voluntary control on some small muscles inside your head, which cause the Eustachian tubes to open. It needs to be practised dozens of times per day, so these muscles grow strong. I learned it when young, and got the habit of opening my tubes with it every a few minutes, everyday, even in periods when I am not going to dive at all.
At that point equalizing becomes a not-issue, as while you are descending you simply keep your tubes open, and the medium-ear pressure remains equalized continuously.
Only small problem is that when the tubes are open noise enters the medium ear through them, and the noise made by the regulator can be very loud.
