Have you ever damaged your ears while skydiving?

[nanobyte 0]

I've never skydived before and am a little worried about damaging my ears.

How often does damage to the eardrum occur? Can it only happen if you have a cold?

Can you practice "clearing your ears" (eleminating the pressure difference) on the ground before your first dive? Maybe while swimming?

Is it a matter of practice at all or are you either a person with no problems at all or a person who will be plagued after every jump?

[Peej 0]

Hey NB,

I've only really heard of people damaging their ears by jumping while they have a cold, flu or some other sort of illness that blocks sinsuses, etc. Jumping normally shouldn't make a difference but of your ears are feeling a little blocked on the way to altitude it is possibe to "equalise" (eleminating the pressure difference) in the plane, ust like diving.

Take care

Advertisio Rodriguez / Sky

[mangledspoon 0]

If you have sensitive ears or have trouble clearing your ears like me (ie. history of ear infections, pain on commercial flights even without a cold), you may find taking sudafed before a jump can help... most people don't seem to have any problems though and can just clear their ears easily.
As for jumping with a cold, it's a risk I wouldn't advise taking, ever.

[yardhippie 0]

Ive jumped with colds before and once (it only takes once) I blew out my sinuses. Not the ears.
Typically thats the damage that occurs, as the sinus cavities are larger than the station tubes leading to the inner ear and the inner ear.
It hurts, and its bloody.

If you have a head cold or are congested, do not jump.

Goddam dirty hippies piss me off! ~GFD
"What do I get for closing your rig?" ~ me
"Anything you want." ~ female skydiver
Mohoso Rodriguez #865

[FFlyer 0]

Hey,

I ruptured both eardrums while skydiving after having a cold. I felt fine and didn't feel I was sick at all since the wednesday, then saturday I jumped and ruptured both eardrums on the first jump.

I then went to an ENT specialist who gave me a few tips:

-Never jump with a cold or anything that is affecting iether your ears, nose or throat.
-If you've had a cold, wait a few days after you're well before jumping again. (and when you do jump again for the first time, a nose spray might be a good idea).
-if you cant clear your ears on the way up in the plane, then dont jump. just land with the plane.

He said these are just precautions and even though people jump with colds all the time with no problem, the chance of something happening is greatly increased and its just not worth the risk.

But more to the point, ive never really heard of anything happening to people except when they have colds or have had previous serious damage to their ears.

cheers

[porterhouse 0]

I damaged my right ear drum and I did NOT have a cold. It was because I had a camera helmet on too tight.

I was wearing a hemlet with a chin cup on plastic locking straps (vs. my usual helmet with the standard fabric strap that goes under my jaw, by my neck). I tightened the chin cup too tightly, and when I got under canopy I couldn't yawn to clear my ears. The pain was very intense. When I got to the ground, I ripped the helmet off to try and equalize my ears. I had trouble equalizing my ears on the way up to altitude for the rest of the season. I was concerned that I had permenately damaged my ear drum, but it seemed to heal after taking the winter off from jumping. I didn't have any problems with it this season.

[nanobyte 0]

Sounds horrible

Is yawning the only pratical way to clear your ears?

Couldn't you have swallowed or held your nose and breathed against it?

[chrismgtis 0]

Quote

How often does damage to the eardrum occur? Can it only happen if you have a cold?

I highly recommend having a doctor check your ear canals, ear drums and sinuses (before a first ever jump). That might sound crazy, but it can't hurt when you consider the damage that could occur if you go up and jump with a problem. You will have absolutely no clue if there is a partial blockage in your ear canal. If the doctor says your canal is clean and your ear drums look healthy, go for it and jump as long as you don't have a cold the day of the jump.

Other than that, have fun and you should be 100% fine.

I know about the ear canal blockage from personal experience. I had a huge peice of earwax in my left ear canal that I had no clue was there. My hearing was not effected, but my jump was. I had some pain in my left ear during the freefall (couldn't seem to get the pressure equalized - I just heard a weird squish sound sort of when I would try in that ear). I only felt a little discomfort for about 30 minutes or so I guess after we landed. Then I was fine. Still I had a nurse check my ear and she couldn't see my ear drum because of an obstruction. So I went to a doctor to get checked on cause I wanted to be safe since I was going to jump again and came to find out I had a retracted ear drum (after the doctor removed a huge peice of ear wax from my ear). I waited about 2 weeks to jump and went back up and was fine from there on out. I've not had any problems at all in the last 5 jumps since my tandem.

I was told the more you jump the better your body gets at equalizing the pressure. That seems very true because I never even have to do anything to equalize pressure anymore. It just happens naturally now which is pretty cool.

Rodriguez Brother #1614, Muff Brother #4033
Jumped: Twin Otter, Cessna 182, CASA, Helicopter, Caravan

[voltage 0]

I had some trouble with my ears in the past (had only 20% capability on left ear and that was fixed in hospital at an early age).

My experience in skydiving was that on my first or second (don't rembember) jump I had trouble "cleaning my ears" on the ride to altitude and after the jump (already under canopy) I had some pain in my ears, but no blood and no lasting problems. One hour later it was gone.

Since then I never had anything like this anymore and I feel the pressure equalisation in the plane happens easier and more naturally.

[porterhouse 0]

Can you all speak up!!??? My ears are damaged and I can't hear you. (really bad joke huh?)

By the way, I also take psuedophed (I'm sure I spelled that wrong) if I think there is any possibility of blockage due to allergies. Or if I recoved from a cold a few days earlier. If I have a cold, or I think I still have a cold, I don't jump.

I saw a friends face explode with blood because he tried to jump when he was stuffed up. Not a pretty sight (the blood part was pretty cool, but seeing my friend in pain sucked!).

I guess the lesson is the same as it is with everything concerning safe jumping: If you're not sure, stay on the ground so you can jump another day.

[chrismgtis 0]

Quote

I saw a friends face explode with blood because he tried to jump when he was stuffed up. Not a pretty sight (the blood part was pretty cool, but seeing my friend in pain sucked!).

...holy...that sounds pretty sick. I hope that was highly exagerated heh. That is freaky.

Rodriguez Brother #1614, Muff Brother #4033
Jumped: Twin Otter, Cessna 182, CASA, Helicopter, Caravan

[porterhouse 0]

...holy...that sounds pretty sick. I hope that was highly exagerated heh. That is freaky.