Why do my eardrums hurt when descending from an airplane?

Question

This has only happened to me twice in about 10 airplane trips. The last one happened just last week and it hurt like heck. I looked around the plane and nobody else seemed to be hurting. Is something wrong with my eardrums? What can I do to prevent it? Why does it happen only sometimes?

Answer 1

It's from the pressure change. I recommend taking a Advil (or similar) cold/sinus over the counter pill about an hour and a half before decent. This always helps me, along with the yawning/chewing gum. It's usually more likely to happen when you have a cold or sinus infection (stuffy nose/achy head).

Answer 2

Air pressure goes down as you go higher in altitude. If you were outside the airplane when it is flying at 30,000 feet, you'd hardly be able to breathe because the air pressure is so low. You can breathe easily in a plane because the cabin is pressurized_the air in it is kept at near-normal pressure.

The plane's air pressure is actually slightly less than normal. You feel this slight change as the plane takes off and lands.

    The snack bag probably looked a lot puffier once the plane was in the air. The pretzels were packed with normal air pressure, so air presses on the inside and outside of the bag equally. During flight, as the cabin pressure drops, the pressure inside the bag pushes the bag outward. As the plane lands, the air pressure outside the bag increases and pushes on the bag, so it may seem to deflate.

    Your eardrums behave like the snack bag. On the ground, your ears are filled with normal air pressure, so air presses on both sides of the eardrum equally. As the air pressure inside the plane drops, the pressure inside your ears pushes the eardrums outward.

Want to know how to prevent the pain next time you fly? Then read more

    * If you have a flight planned and you're suffering from allergies or a cold, you may benefit from taking a decongestant nasal spray. This will help to dry up mucus from your nose and sinuses.

    * Oral decongestants that contain pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed, can be helpful but they may cause complications if you have heart disease or high blood pressure. So consult your doctor first.

    * Take your medication 30 to 60 minutes before your flight.

    * Chewing gum or sucking on a throat drop will encourage swallowing, which helps to activate the muscles that open your eustachian tube.

    * Since airplane ear happens more often at the end of flights, avoid sleeping as your plane is descending back to the ground, so you can be sure you're swallowing often.

Answer 3

It's from pressure.  It happens to me to.  Try chewing gum.

Answer 4

all info given by Italian guy is correct. I do a lot of yawning and swallowing during decent, it really helps.

Answer 5

Your ears pop in air planes because the air high above the surface of Earth is less dense than air near the surface. As you ascend in an airplane and the air pressure decreases, the air trapped in your inner ear will cause your eardrums to push outward. This expansion causes not only the discomfort you feel before your ears "pop," but also a decrease in hearing ability, because the pressure on your ears drums makes the sound harder to transmit. Your body can equalize the pressure between your inner ear and the atmosphere by allowing some air from your inner ear to escape through the Eustachian tubes, two small channels that connect the inner ears to the throat, one on each side. When they open, you feel the pressure release and you hear the change because it’s happening in your ear. This equalization of pressure is the "pop."

On the way down from an air plane flight, the air pressure increases, while your inner ear is still at the lower pressure it has adjusted to. Now, the extra pressure pushes the eardrums inward. Eventually, the pressure will equalize again, but many people don’t like to wait, they want to "pop" their ears

For take-offs and landings (the WHOLE way up, and starting from the BEGINNING, or TOP of descent)the best ways to alleviate pressure are to:

*Chew gum

*Drink something

*Suck on a hard candy or mints

*Yawn

*Pinch the nostrils shut, take a deep breath in through the mouth, then force the air into the back of the nose as if trying to blow your nose

*Place hot damp towels (usually like the ones distributed to first and business class before take-off and landing to freshen up with - just ask a flight attendant for them) or paper towels that have been soaked in hot water and wrung out at the bottom of two paper or styrofoam cups, then hold the cups over the ears.

*Another trick that used mainly on babies and small children, but can be used on anyone, is to gently but with some pressure, rub your neck repeatedly from the chin to the base of the neck. This will cause a swallowing motion that will relieve pressure build-up in the ears.

If I can be of any more help or assistance, please feel free to contact me.