How to Equalize the Pressure in Your Ears for Diving

As you dive underwater, the deeper you go, the greater the pressure. In order to dive comfortably and avoid injury, it is essential to equalize the pressure in your ears. If you fail to do this, you can rupture your eardrum causing dizziness underwater. This can lead to drowning in extreme cases, or infections and hearing loss in less serious instances.

Before you ever leave the surface, it is essential to start equalizing the pressure in your ears. Divers also refer to this as "clearing your ears." This can be done several ways, either by yawning or wiggling your jaws from side to side. You will probably find the most effective technique is to pinch your nostrils shut, keeping your throat sealed with your tongue, and gently exhaling without actually letting any air escape. When you do this, you should hear your ears gently pop.

You can't equalize effectively if you have a cold or allergies that cause your head to be "plugged" with mucous. If you have these problems, you must not dive below the surface or you risk rupturing your eardrum. Some days you may find that you can't equalize, and if that is the case, you must not dive.

Start clearing your ears while you are on the surface, before you dive, and continue to clear them every few feet all the way to the bottom. Never wait until you feel pain or pressure on your eardrum to equalize the pressure in your ears. Pain is an indication that you have gone too far without equalizing. Repeated dives where you experience pain, but don't necessarily rupture your eardrum, will lead to some hearing loss over time.

As the pressure increases when you dive, it is also important to equalize the pressure in your mask. If you fail to equalize your mask, you will know the pressure is increasing because you will feel as if the mask is beginning to push into your face or form suction. Continuing to descend with a mask that has not been equalized can cause the blood vessels in your eyes to rupture. Pleasant thought right?

Most people equalize the pressure inside their masks without thinking about it, or do it accidentally when they equalize their ears. To ensure that you do no have a problem with your mask, blow a tiny bit of air into the mask as you descend until you just feel the mask move a fraction of an inch away from your face. You will need to repeat this action every few feet as you swim deeper underwater. Then the problem will be solved.