I Will Be Going on a Flight Soon. Advice?

[DudeMannDude]

I will be taking a flight to Spain to meet my girlfriend who is studying abroad. The whole trip will take about thirteen hours and I will have two lay-overs. The first part of my flight will only be an hour to get to a larger airport. The second leg of the trip will be an eight hour flight from the U.S. to Europe and then the last part will just be an hour long flight from that small airport in Europe to Spain.

I was planning on bringing earplugs as well as ear muffs. I was planning on using the ear muffs over top of my ear buds if I wanted to listen to music or podcasts. They are the Peltor by 3M with 29 decibel reduction if that matters.

But I also was a little concerned over barotrauma, is there things I can do to help my ears acclimate to the changing altitudes? I have seen these ear plug things at CVS called "Ear-Planes". They claim to help equalize the pressure in your ears, are those were worth looking into? I know about the whole chew gum and pop your ears bit as well.

Any help is appreciated!

 

[Alue]

I have flown a lot since getting tinnitus. Earmuffs are the best, don't wear earplugs during takeoff and landing because they can interfere with your ears equalizing. You can wear earmuffs still, but crack them open occasionally to equalize pressure during takeoff / landing. Opening your mouth wide is a good way to open up your Eustachian tubes. When you are at altitude you can put in earplugs.

Ear-planes are worth looking into if they give you a good seal. They work for a lot of people, just make sure to follow the directions. For the 1 hour flight you would leave the ear-planes in the entire flight, for an 8 hour flight you can take them out while at altitude.

You'll be fine.

 

[DudeMannDude]

I have flown a lot since getting tinnitus. Earmuffs are the best, don't wear earplugs during takeoff and landing because they can interfere with your ears equalizing. You can wear earmuffs still, but crack them open occasionally to equalize pressure during takeoff / landing. Opening your mouth wide is a good way to open up your Eustachian tubes. When you are at altitude you can put in earplugs.

Ear-planes are worth looking into if they give you a good seal. They work for a lot of people, just make sure to follow the directions. For the 1 hour flight you would leave the ear-planes in the entire flight, for an 8 hour flight you can take them out while at altitude.

You'll be fine.

Thanks! I had just read up about barotrauma and wanted to be careful.