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broken eardrums during records

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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and boom goes the dynamite... agreed
 
well one suggestion is that they are now so scarred they don't break so easily....

but I didn't say I don't do anything differently I said

"I don't exactly like breaking my eardrums and of course I looked into ways of solving it"

sorry guys but I am actually freediving this weekend rather than just talking about it so I don't have time to go "boom!" any louder than that right now - off to the lake

: )
 
Reactions: Erik and ADR
....my guess is that Herberts EXEQ only will be ok in the sled-category NL and VW.

Nothing else....

/Bill
 
samdive said:
but I didn't say I don't do anything differently I said

"I don't exactly like breaking my eardrums and of course I looked into ways of solving it"
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PLUS
samdive said:
- and I seemed to have done that -
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Implying as Eric said that you've done something 'different' and since you don't deny it, it means that the following is obviously wrong (by your words)
samdive said:
All I wanted to say is that it is not something you do deliberately, or because you are diving "wrong" - sometimes it just happens and there is not much you can do to prevent it
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Meaning broken eardrums can be avoided (big surprise there).
 
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Plus
samdive said:
Anyhow... I have now adapted my equalisation technique to equalise earlier and more often, dive a bit slower on the first part of the descent and.. touch wood.. I haven't had a problem for about a year...
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is taken from [ame="http://forums.deeperblue.net/showthread.php?p=473057#post473801"]Very new freediver burst eardrum[/ame]
 
Reactions: cebaztian and Golfinho
Most (but not all injures can be avoided), hopefully we can learn from others mistakes..... Deeperblue is like an encyclopedia for not only newbies but experienced freedivers.

I think if newcomers are taught to develop their awareness before they start pushing into the deep blue to notch up numbers, many accidents/incidents can be avoided. The more freedivers there are every year the more chances there are of potential accidents, so let's set the right example, share our experiences on how to avoid injuries.

Oh and not looking for any snappy retaliations... :ko
 
Reactions: AltSaint
Not trying to enter the fray, as I think some of the points here have been cleared enough...

Speaking on descends only for this moment, 2 examples of patterns on how one might equalize are:
1) Go down. Wait untill you feel certain pressure in your ear. Equalize. Reapeat.
2) Go down. Equalize immediately before feeling any pressure in your ear (even during the duckdive!), lets say continuously as Tyler suggested, or at a really high rate such as 2-3 times per SECOND (even when gliding at 0.5m/s).

Do you still think that the UNLUCKY equalizers, who have faulty eardrums, still had bursted one?

I think this discussion has been circuled around this point. Some people are less lucky than others, their euqalizing technique was bad because it was inadequet for THEIR needs.
 
hi,
last year i had a middle ear squeeze during a max dive attempt. at around 35 mt on hte descent i felt this sudden pain and turned around. i clearly remember i didn't have any warning of that. this is also what i told my buddies later (alun might remember that because we were diving togheter that day). well, i've been thinking a lot about that, and i got to the conclusion that i must have had a warning, but i was not aware of that. i was going for a max depth, and i was focused on my target, and probably i was a bit stressed out because i didn't feel like doing a deep dive that day, and i just failed to notice what was coming.
sometimes i dive with people who claim they don't have contractions during their dives, but i can clearly see their diaphragm spasming. how's possible? that's lack of awarness.(i went through the same at the beginning of my deep diving career!)
or people kicking their fins togheter, and say that's impossible. or people losing air from their mask during descents, and saying they are sure they don't.
i might be wrong, but i'm rather sure that majority of divers don't break their eardrums on an easy 20 mt recreational dive, when they are relaxed and aware of themselves, but rather on a deep and demanding one, when they are stressed and unaware.
as for reverse block, so far i've never seen anybody getting a sudden serious reverse block without warning, but it's rather a feeling building up one dive after the other. so a sensible thing to do would be stopping the diving for that day and avoiding it to get worse.
(hey, i don't want to lecture anybody here, i'm just offering an explanation)

cheers,
linda
 
Reactions: Golfinho
Lol, I second that Erik.

Let's take a vote, who's for the dead horse smiley?

~James
 
C'mon guys, where is the community spirit in deterring others from sharing their experiences?

What else is this thread about that is so much more provocative?

I think the big thing people are overlooking that has subtley been proven here, is related to, What we have seen is that experienced freedivers will, and tend to, assume they have knowledge of all the solutions to problems, whereas there is new information popping up and being devised as the sport grows. Many will stop searching for solutions to problems as soon as they have found all the solutions known, whether it is all that is known, or just seems to be due to popular knowledge.

Equalization has been touched in many courses on SCUBA and freediving so it seems unlikely that there is anything new to learn about it, that practically speaking will have an effect on our diving. This is where we are incorrect and we also have to realize that SCUBA has different requirements therefore some things are not explored that will be in freediving. Such as holding ones breath while performing a maneuver. Out of these small differences can arrise unexpected new possibilities.

So, explore. Explore what is known for the unknown. Promote exploring. Avoid presenting that everything is known and complete. It is the beginner today who will find the solution of tomorrow if we do not present the activity as completely known and explored. Assume it never will be.

Sorry to offend if that seems obvious and riding a dead horse to some you.
 
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I'm excusing about my amateric question but how dangerous can get broken eardrums? There are no consequences on ears for later equalization?
 
Lidija said:
I'm excusing about my amateric question but how dangerous can get broken eardrums? There are no consequences on ears for later equalization?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure how dangerous a broken ear drum is, but it doesn't sound too healthy to me.... I believe you can get vertigo when your ear drums bust and that is potentially very dangerous.

If you need more info on equalising, try clicking on search and typing in equalisation or frentzel.

Hope this helps
 
Linda

A reverse block is when expansion in the middle ear ( on ascent ) is not possible due to a blockage in the eustachian tube. I don't know how you can counteract that one, but perhaps someone else does.

As for contractions, not everyone gets them. I don't in static, and I'm very aware of what my body is doing. ( Unless they are so minute, I just can't tell. )
 
To counter reverse block you need to reverse equalize. This is best accomplish by a simultaneous BTV with reverse valsalva.
 
hi,

i guess the point linda is trying to make is that a lack of awareness, or focus on something else, can lead to a "totally surprising" incident, ie unexpected eardrum ruptures. i'm not saying that this might not be possible, but i do see lack of awareness as a possible explanation for such incidents.

i also don't think this is a dead horse at all. awareness is rarely mentioned in these forums and, at least in my experience in diving with others, is most commonly the reason for shortcomings in technique etc.

any comments?

cheers,

roland
 
altsaint,

i know what a reverse block is. what i've seen happening around a lot is that it just doesn't happen suddenly on an ascent when the dives before have been completely ok. unlike in scuba diving, during a freedive session (during which you go up and down several times), at some point you might feel discomfort on the ascent, and this is usually worsening during the next dives, until the point when, if you continue diving, you can get a proper block. as i said already, this is what i've seen happening in several people i've been diving with, which doesn't mean that must be like that for everybody.

as for contractions, i've never said that everybody have contractions. what i said is that i've seen people contracting, when they say they don't. it was an example that shows perfectly how sometimes people are unaware of what's really going on.
 
Reactions: immerlustig
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