BTV (hands free) dry tips and techniques please

[naiad]

wow Lucia, please tell us how you managed. did you set about to learn or were you just "gurning" as I seem to do in the hope that something cool happens...

I taught myself by the following stages:

- Try to yawn (easier if tired or bored!) to open the e-tubes. There should be a crackle as they open and then a roaring sound of the breath.

- When that becomes easy and both can be opened, try the same but holding your breath. If necessary still open your mouth wide. To know if you are actually equalizing, hold your nose and swallow, which creates negative pressure in the ears, then let go of your nose and equalize.

- When that becomes easy, try the same but with minimal opening of the mouth. The adams apple should move down.

- Now try both standing/sitting and lying down. It may be much easier in some positions than others.

- When it works well dry, try in water, about 1m depth in an upright position.

- Increase the depth if it is working.

- Try in an inverted position.

It can be very difficult to get from one stage to the next. I can do BTV reliably dry if I have been practising, but I can only occasionally do it in water, and have never managed in an inverted position. The progress I have made is promising though, so maybe it will be possible to learn. For now I use Frenzel if I need to equalize.

 

[azapa]

I taught myself by the following stages:

- Try to yawn (easier if tired or bored!) to open the e-tubes. There should be a crackle as they open and then a roaring sound of the breath.

Thanks Lucia,

Does this happen to all who do Dry BTV? I assume here you are basically hearing your own breathing from INSIDE your ear, hence roaring, as you connect the inner ear to your mouth space.

On swallowing I can 100% of the time get the crackle, but never the roar (starting to sound weird I think a start would be to crackle, and try to hold something until the roar occurs and can be maintained.

Can you tell there are storms in the ocean here and that I have a cold. Nothing better to do hence my persistence to learn BTV?:blackeye

 

[Fondueset]

The best clue I can give is to work with the sensation at the start of a yawn. I practiced this when I was a kid - never using force - just always that feeling and sound when you hear the breath from the inside. I taught myself to do each ear independently (long winters). I don't normally need to use my hands to equalize - at least not down to 60 feet or so. Anyway, learn to isolate the sensation when you feel the ears open at the start of a yawn - then work with it.

 

[m2b]

Okay, here is a new/old one for you guys. Out diving Tuesday afternoon, everything seemed fine. Wednesday I noticed something I have noticed a few times in the past. Without attempting any kind of equalizing, I'm automatically equalizing. I can be standing in my yard and I'll hear myself breathing and it feels like I have equalized my ear. Normally in the past it has seems like it typically has been one ear not both ears that are equalized when this condition appears. I can be sitting in front of the computer, driving my car, doing yard work, anything...and my ears will equalize themselves.

The situation lasts for a day max, in the case of Wednesday it lasted about half a day. I didn't notice it any Tuesday evening but I did notice it into early Wednesday afternoon.

I'm not sure what causes the situation. It has seemed generally like some point during the dive session like it has felt that I have gotten water in my ears. Then afterwards I notice the same sensation, later in the evening. The next day is when I always end up noticing the auto equalizing effect.

If I intentionally equalize both ears and then swallow, quite often everything will return to normal for a few minutes before all of a sudden, out of nowhere I'm hearing myself breathing again.

Now if I could do this on demand this would be nice, well maybe at least it would.

Ryan

 

[azapa]

Thanks Fondue, good points. I am sure that by putting together just the correct sequence of tips in this thread, with maybe a video or two (scary to the non follower) that we could have a simple learning technique on our hands.

I am now working on the swallow, that gives me 100% ear crackles both sides, trying to break down the movement, it certainly seems the first part is the key. Also, I find that in my desire to learn, all muscle movements are way over forced. I'll bet that those of you who can do it use almost no effort to crackle?

Ryan. If I am not wrong, you mention what is sometimes treated as a medical condition in which people are driven mad by their own breathing sound, probably due to stuck open Eustachian tubes. I'm sure its not that in your case. Work on isolating, and give feedback here.

 

[Fondueset]

Correct - almost no effort - normally I easily equalize without putting air into my mask - to equalize the mask takes more effort. Pete probably gave the best description - work with the start of a yawn - then try yawning with your mouth closed. - etc. etc.

 

[OceanObsessed]

Great thread. I have been working on this too but with limited success.

So from what I gather by reading this is to open your eustacian tubes so that you hear "regulator breathing" through the tubes. I can do this... its kinda loud. I feel my tubes open more and the breathing sound gets louder when I press my chin against my chest. Then just hold your tubes in this position and your ears should kinda auto equalize (maybe with the help of a forward jaw thrust at times) as you descend?

Perhaps this is what I have been missing. That is positioning my tubes open on the surface before descending.

 

[azapa]

sounds like you have it! how did you get to that point. as well as opening at the surface, what connor and fondue mention is to "blow" a little into your mask to create a pressure, the etubes being open, will allow this pressure into the inner ear.

let us know if it works in the water..

 

[OceanObsessed]

sounds like you have it! how did you get to that point.

There is a document floating around somewhere that I had printed out a while back. I have it at my office. It has some excecises that build awareness of these muscles. I think it may have been written by someone here on deeperblue if I am not mistaken. The document makes reference to the "regulator breathing". I've played with BTV before on a line descending very slowly. It took me about 30-40 seconds to get to 10m. I was mainly clicking my ears and doing the forward jaw thrust. I can also sometimes do it while doing dynamics in the pool when there is a very gradual change in depth. There are times when I can't do it at all though and quite frequently I can equalize my left ear but not my right. I am nowhere near the point where I could use it while recreational diving because I have to descend too slowly and concentrate to hard on what I am doing.

This thread is very helpful and you have asked all the right questions Simon. Its nice to hear different people describe it in different ways. After reading this it seems that one of the mistakes that I am making is beginning to open my tubes at depth when I feel the need instead of starting on the surface. Also, I have not tried using the backpressure on my mask as you reminded me.

Looking forward to trying it out in the water. Lets hear back on the progress of everyone else learning the technuique too

 

[laminar]

It's funnny but when I swallow, I get only an occasional crackle which is fundamentally different from a willful opening of the Eustachian tubes. They don't seem to be the same muscles at all (for me).

Just wondering if the swallowing exercise is really working for people to isolate the e-tube opening muscles?

Grudge match: yawning vs. swallowing?

 

[Fondueset]

Yawning wins - no question. Swallowing is a harder way to get to it. You can also yawn without hitting them - but it takes effort. Its also pretty close to ujjayi.

 

[cdavis]

It varies hugely with the individual, so many ways to come at BTV. My ears crack every time I swallow, but not every time I yawn.

Connor

 

[naiad]

Perhaps this is what I have been missing. That is positioning my tubes open on the surface before descending.

What I have found with BTV is that it only works if I start equalizing from a very shallow depth. If I start at less than 1m, I can make it work to the bottom of the pool at 4m. If I leave it for 2m, it is impossible to equalize that way. As things are now, I still find it very difficult, and so I usually use Frenzel instead. The discovery of Frenzel has been a major breakthrough for me. If I had not learnt it, I would probably have been unable to do my open water scuba course and would still be struggling even with freediving at the bottom of a 4-5m pool. If I can also learn BTV reliably, that would be great.

 

[Fondueset]

I'd suggest, when working on this - start with whatever works and try to get subtler and more minimal. When I was working on this - at age 15 or so - I basically practiced equalizing on a daily basis - just walking around, reading, when I was supposed to be paying attention at school, climbing trees, riding in cars, blowing stuff up, lurking, standing on the roof, escaping, plotting elaborate schemes for revenge, watching plays, swimming, shooting cockroaches with pellet guns, eating pop-tarts.. I believe Equalization is compatible with all known human activities.

 

[m2b]

Simple question...do you just keep on swallowing/yawning constantly or is there a way of increasing the pressure. I can get my ears to pressurize right now by either yawning or swallowing but the amount tells me I would have to do it constantly, like every half second or forget about being able to equalize very far down. Yeah, I'm only trying this in front of the computer right now, and not in the water.

Ryan

 

[azapa]

ryan, you should be standing on a roof, "in front of the computer" was not on Fondues recommended list.

I think to answer you, in my non doer way, you keep them open rather than periodic cracking. Right now, your ears are not pressurising unless you are pinching your nose and blowing or suchlike. The crackling is just the tubes opening.

i'm off to the roof now, "crackle crackle"

 

[Fondueset]

try while your making toast.

Can you equalize in a tree?
Can you equalize with a flea?
Will you try it on a boat?
Would you try it with a goat?

I normally equalize pretty frequently on the way down - every meter or so probably - it's sort of a flow - as in all things I strive always to emulate pure analog.

 

[m2b]

Right now, your ears are not pressurising unless you are pinching your nose and blowing or suchlike. The crackling is just the tubes opening.

Actually quite the opposite. My ears will pressurize when I hold my nose and swallow, or yawn. They don't pressurize very much. If I blow out my nose then they will pressurize further or in the case, below, both will pressurize.

Besides my previous question here's another one that I notice even when using valsalva(s?)...how do you overcome the uneven pressure build up in both ears. I always seem to have one ear that will pressurize almost immediately and the other one wants to take its good ole time building up pressure. The same ear isn't always dominant. It all depends on the day/dive in question as to which ear is going to be the first to equalize properly.

For example, experimenting around while typing out this message. At the beginning my right ear was equalizing quickly and the left ear was lagging behind. Now the opposite is going on only 5-10 minutes later.

Ryan

 

[azapa]

The 'ole right ear left ear thing, happens to everyone. My left is easier dry, but often lags the right in the water! It sometimes help to "think" more air into the lagging side, try it, it works.

RESUMED Results of this thread so far:
- what do you hear or feel?
Most people here a crackle (as per any equalization) with an accute awareness of the breathing sound within ones inner ear, it's loud. The sound sequence would be:
a. crackle the ears
b. the "hearing own breathing" remains as long as the tubes are held open. Longer the better for EQing

- look at yourself in the mirror, do you see anything change, adams apple, thoat, jaw?
Very little can be seen. The ulva (dangly thing) can be seen to tilt forward and go up. The effort to open should be really minimal. If you are straining and, muscles are popping out, your going the wrong way. Aim to have no visible signs

- what was the "turning point" for you learning this, or could you always simply do it?
I would say 75% learned as a kid, or could always do it. Those who learned as a freediving adult, 25%, seem to find it harder or less reliable than those who have always done it.
Turning point seems to be LOTS of idle time practicing, breaking down the yawn (majority) or the swallow actions to the steps that produces the crackle

- in the water, is if sufficient to simply hold this muscle postion and let the mouth equalize the inner ear via the open tubes, or are you doing some movement to make that happen?
After a certain depth pressurizing against the mask creates a mores effective pressurization.

- what if any are the depths or conditions that BTV starts to fail?
Most talk of three steps:
a. Only BTV (to 10, 20M)
b. BTV with gentle pressurization (after 20M)
c. switching to frenzel totally (after 40M)

More info welcome.

I managed to do some "BTV walking" this weekend along the shore, EQuing every second pace, and sometimes in between, using very light swallows.

 

[sciencemike]

I found that when learning this technique i slowly breathe out while doing it. It seems to me much harder to do without any air flowing out. I would pop my ears then slightly breathe out to reset my uvula and palate then pop again then reset. Then I can now do it wile not having any pressure upward into my nasal passage and with my soft palate completely relaxed with no air flow at all.

Although i have never heard my "Loud" breathing I can crackle the drums in very rapid succession, when totally isolated from my palate it often triggers my ear wiggling muscles slightly. If i retract my lower Jaw inwards as far as possible the uvula seems to become detached from the response completely, while the further out I jut my lower jaw the uvula becomes more involved.

As for the roaring noise after the crackle, do you open them slighly for the slow and longer smaller cracks that i can get to last up to 5 seconds? Or is it a relaxing after the crack or a maintaing the fully open formation? Or pushing the crackle as far as it can go, whereby my ulvula gets retracted greatly?

I would like to gain control over this better, I can also do just my right ear, but never just my left.