I agree with the ear plugs I think they are brilliant, you don't need to buy expensive ones cheap ones does the trick, I swear by them won't fly without them!

i suffered with terrible ear and sinus pain until an air stewardess recomended i take sudafed for a couple of days before flight and use a nasal spray before and during flight this as really worked for me.sue

iam worried i suffered a perfirated ear drum a couple of months ago and due to fly in july so i was wondering if anybody is had same problem and got any tips.

Yes. Head straight to a drug store and buy "EAR PLANES". They are a small, foam type, insert earplug that has a ceramic filter in it that helps to balance the pressure in your ears. I got them for my friend who was having that problem and she has been pain free ever since. You can also get them online at Magellans.com and even ebay. They're about $6.00 or so and last longer than they say on the box.



I had this problem for years and it got to the point that I didn't want to fly any more. I read in Prevention magazine that taking a decongestant before you fly works wonders and it does. If I am flying to Europe which is a long flight, I take a long acting decongestant like Contac.No more pain.... please read the contraindications on the box... I believe if you have high blood pressure you shouldn't take it. Hope this helps. Please get back to the board and fill us in on how your flight went. Have a wonderful trip!!

Someone else already recommended EAR PLANES, but I'd going to second the motion. I often had severe pain on flights. Once I discovered EAR PLANES, soon after they came out, I rarely have pain. A number of years ago, my daughter had pain, I bought her these (They have smaller ones for kids.), and she has been fine. Ditto for my niece! They are a must! Enjoy!

Copied this of a site dont know if you can get them in England worth a try

Post edited due to copyright infringement. Please do not reproduce content from other websites or forums.
Many thanks
David HT Mod

My daughter has to take SUDAFED Decongestant Elixir, it clears here ears before we fly. Take for about 2 weeks running up to the flight......works a treat.

thanks for advice just got them from boots 4.99

Hi JCarey, could you let me know how you get on...my 7 yr old son suffered a perforated eardrum a few weeks ago which the ENT doc says is healing ok. We are due to fly in Aug and when I asked the doc if he'd benefit from using earplugs I didn't really get a straight answer. So please let me know how you get on with them. Thanks, Nic.

Hi

I have suffered twice from perfurated ear drums and once the eardrum is perforated it cannot allow pressure to build up as there is a small hole in the ear drum, so I really wouldn't worry as I've never had problems with mine, been better than most people
You can put the earplane plugs in as a precautionary measure but I'm sure he'll be fine

Jo

I'm sure that all my son's ear problems stemmed from his first flight abroad when he was 14 months old (in my opinion). He screamed from the time we took off until the time we landed and it was obvious that there was something wrong. My 4 yr old was having no such problems. He was quite crotchety for the first couple of days of our hol, where I kept dosing him with calpol. He has since suffered with middle ear infection and had to have grommets inserted twice. The doctor diagnosed a slight perforation once and when asked whether this would cause more problems when flying I was told no. That since the ear was already perforated it would help with the problem of bad ears whilst flying. He's 22 now and although he's had many ear infections, he's never had serious probs with his ears whilst flying since that first flight.
When I feel my ears starting to go I suck a sweet and swallow loads, this always stops the pain from developing.

I know that some people are suggesting taking Sudafed or something similar for up to two weeks before flying - PLEASE speak with your pharmacist or doctor before doing this! It is really not recommended! You can buy these products over the counter at Pharmacists but if you do not say that you intend to take them for more than a few days, and for a specific reason, then you might be putting yourself at risk. Do, please, check.

I really really really suffer with pain in my ears, every time we land, i have chewed gum and sucked boild sweets, i use earplanes, and a nose spray and decongestion tablets, but still none of his works, i actually cry with the pain, has anybody got anything else please, i have ran out of ideas, i have been to the doctors they just tell me to pop my ears this does not work, has anybody got anything that i have not mentioned? Please. Now i am pregnant so i am limited with what i can use.

If you don't have any perforations try havin hopi ear candles done a few weeks before flying as this clears ears and balances pressures.

Jo

Hi,
I'm posting once again about my son's ear problems. He picked up an outer ear infection (swimmer's ear) whilst in Turkey last week and has been prescribed anti biotics and eardrops by the GP. He's been given a week's supply and hopes this will do the trick. The problem is it's really, really painful at the moment, so much so that he has a job to make the pain killers last the required 4 hours. I'm worried because he's flying again on Friday (day after his course of antibiotics end) and am wondering whether this will make his pain worse (doesn't normally get bad ears from flying). He's already been to the doctor twice this week but didn't think to ask whether flying would cause him problems. Does anyone have any advice, bearing in mind it's an outer ear infection he has, rather than a middle ear infection. Thanks

You should be fine with an outer ear infection as it is the middle ear that gets affected with flying. Best thing to do would be give in parectemol before flying and iboprufen inbetween, as iboprufen is an anti inflammatry it may be better than paractemol. But I'd give him both anyway as when parecetomol is starting to wear off you can get extra pain relief from the iboprufen.

Jo

Before taking any additional unprescribed medications, perhaps it may be best to seek some advice from your surgery, or from NHS 24 on 08454 24 24 24.

David

My sisters 1 1/2 year old daughter landed in the aisle when we to turkey, we though it must have been the pain in her ears so the stewardess went to give her a lolly and she just threw it back in her face. She still called her a little princess when we left the plane! Thats turkish hospitality for you!

We will never find out wether it was her ears or just a temper tantrum she managed to kick up

My ears are currently blocked due to wax and congestion as I have a cold, and I thought I wouldn't be able to fly on Saturday (3 days!), but visited my GP today, and she's told me to take Ibrupofen 30mins before takeoff, and use Earplanes, which I bought from Boots today, so fingers crossed.

fatgit wrote:

My ears are currently blocked due to wax and congestion as I have a cold, and I thought I wouldn't be able to fly on Saturday (3 days!), but visited my GP today, and she's told me to take Ibrupofen 30mins before takeoff, and use Earplanes, which I bought from Boots today, so fingers crossed.

I flew to Tenerife at Easter on the tail-end of a very bad prolonged cold which had turned into a secondary bacterial infection with tonsillitis, sinusitis, conjunctivitis, earache and a chest infection (the perils of working in a primary school...)
The doctor gave me a week's antibiotics for the infection about 10 days before we went away and the chemist recommended a combination of 400mg ibuprofen 3x daily, and Sudafed (the pseudoephedrine one that you can only buy from the chemist - not the phenylephrine ones you can pick up in the supermarket, it's not strong enough for sinusitis.) My chemist also told me it was OK to take paracetamol up to 4x daily in between the ibuprofen doses, but you may want to check this out with your own chemist personally I don't like to mix medicines. The Sudafed lifted the congestion very quickly but made me feel a bit light-headed and "high", so I didn't take them much, but I know other people who are fine with them.
I have also used Earplanes several times in the past and they work very well, but you must put them in your ears before they close the doors before take-off, keep them in until you reach cruising altitude (usually when they turn the seat-belt signs off) and then put them back in at least 30 minutes before you are due to land, when the plane begins its descent, and keep them in until the doors are opened again This method works well for me, but you have to put them in properly.
Good luck and don't be shy about having a chat with your local chemist, their advice is free, you don't need an appointment and they are well-qualified to recommend the best medication for you.