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How to Equalize

The Valsalva Maneuver.

In what is probably the most commonly taught means of equalizing pressure during diving, divers close their mouths, pinches their noses and blow gently. Avoid blowing too hard and over-inflating the middle ear space. This can occur if divers are overly excited or having a difficult time equalizing during descent – and especially if they have waited too long before attempting to equalize. The result could be injury to the middle or inner ear.

The Frenzel Maneuver.

This method is similar to the Valsalva maneuver, except that instead of blowing air into the sinuses, the diver closes the nose and mouth, and drives the tongue backwards on the roof of the mouth. The muscle contraction opens the nasal cavities and eustachian tubes, which allows air into the middle ear.

The Yawn & Swallow.

Some divers can simply swallow, yawn or thrust their lower jaw forward and open their mouths while using their lips to maintain a seal with the regulator mouthpiece. This opens the eustachian tube to the middle ear, which equalizes pressure. As long as the sinuses also equalize easily, this maneuver is acceptable.

For many divers, a combination of these methods – even switching back and forth during a single descent – works best.

Pinch your nose and keep your mouth closed as you try to blow air out your mouth. Of course this is hearsay as I do not deep sea dive.

If they start to block, hold your nose and try blow through it. You do this as you’re going down but there are points where you need to stop and let your body get use to the pressure. This should stop your eardrums rupturing, but you should be diving with an experienced diver if you aren’t yourself.

Plug your nose and clear your ears regularly while descending and ascending.