POP! goes the ear drum... again.

Well, I ruptured another ear drum when I popped too early on a tantrum. Did a retarded layed out back drive and managed to tear up my trailing ear... not quite sure how. Anyway, im about to head to the ENT to have him take a look. Anybody have any suggestion on something to wear to keep this from happening again? I know ill look like a tool wearing a headband, but it might be worth it at least when im working on tricks that aren't in the bag yet.

Huh? What did you say?

I can still read out of my left ear...

Doc's pro plugs worked well for me.

I've ruptured 2 ear drums (minor thank god) and have used Doc's vented pro plugs since then. I believe there is a vented version and a non-vented version, although the vented version is pretty standard I think. They allow you to hear a bit better than the non-vented, but still completely prevent that pressurization effect of the water cupping against the ear and causing the POP you are referring to.

EDIT: Should have mentioned that I've slammed my ears many, many times with the plugs - slams that I'm pretty sure would have ruptured something, and I'm convinced the plugs saved me. It's like my ears have a magnetic attraction to the water...

Danny

(Message edited by wakerider42 on August 05, 2008)

what happens to the plugs when you stack pretty hard? Do they float? are they difficult to find?

Tony,

There is a little cord connecting the two. More than likely, only 1, not both, will come out at a time. This means that the loose one will be connected to the cord which is connected to the plug that is still planted in your ear and prevent the whole assembly from flying off.

If both do happen to come out somehow, having them connected with the cord gives you a better chance of finding them. They do float, but are very hard to find.

I've had a couple pairs. On the first set, my friend tore the plug to where the cord separated. When that one popped out, it was long gone. Very hard to find on its own.

So, moral of the story, you rely on the cord and the fact that generally only one pops out and the odds of losing them are very slim.

That's my experience, hope it makes sense.

Danny

I cut the cord that connects them right away. I took a lot of hard falls and they didn't come out of my ears. There are a lot of different sizes and the place I got them from made me get fitted before they would let me buy them. After about a year and a half, they didn't fit as well and fell out on a good fall. I had clear ones so they were hard to find, but they come in different colors so maybe others might be easier to spot?? They are a good buy, get a couple pairs.

Cool. Just orderd the sizing kit, and a pair of large adult ones. Its a ten dollar gamble that they might actually fit and they might get here in time for the weekend. I dont really know about using one of those headbands, but i was also considering riding wearing a beanie like snowboarding. I have a helmet but it dosnt have ear pads and it trys to take my head off when I crash. I guess Ill give everything a try and see what works best.

Thanks guys.

Do the plugs still allow you to hear music coming from the tower speakers?? I am going to be purchasing a pair of these since i am going into a flying career this October and with my ears water logged no equalization, hence no flying.

Joseph who you gonna fly for? the industry flat out sucks right now. I work for comair and it's been a tough year

Im actually in the Air Force, currently as a crew chief on C-130s and just got picked up to be a Flight Engineer. Hopefully I will get 130s just for familiarity sake. I do have my PPL right now and wanted to start working on my INST/COMM but guess that will have to go on hold a while since FE school is a little over a year of training before I become fully qualified. What do you do for Comair? Pilot? If so what do you fly?

If you got $75 to spare, go get a custom pair from an Audiologist. They come in any color, multiple colors too. They float. They fit good. If you do go custom route, you can also get them made so they adapt to earbuds for use with your ipod or liquid tunes if you are interested in that?

I busted mine last season so ever since then I've used a water proof ipod player and it has saved my ears lots of times

Docs have saved me from repeating blown drums,
the last one was with a helmet with ear flaps

Been four days since the incident and i feel it healing up nicely. Im still leaking some clear / yellowish fluid at night but no more blood. Im using the antibiotic drops morning and night. The ear has another 2 days to heal before I try and head out on the water again. Doc said to just keep it dry, so I went on an earplug buying binge. I doubt my docs will arrive in time, but im gonna try the normal water plugs from the pharmacy and maybe try the beanie or a dew rag to keep everything held in place.

Thanks for the posts guys. At least Im not alone!