The fastest way to pop your ears is to pinch your nose closed, shut your mouth, and gently blow until you feel a soft pop. This is called the Valsalva maneuver, and it works by pushing air up through narrow tubes that connect your throat to your middle ear. But it’s not the only option, and it’s not always the best one. Several techniques exist depending on your situation, whether you’re on a plane, dealing with a cold, or just feeling that annoying fullness that won’t go away.
Why Your Ears Feel Blocked
Your middle ear is a small air-filled space behind your eardrum. It connects to the back of your throat through a tube called the Eustachian tube. This tube stays closed most of the time, opening briefly when you swallow or yawn to let small amounts of air in or out. That airflow keeps the pressure on both sides of your eardrum equal, which is what allows it to vibrate normally and transmit sound.
When outside pressure changes quickly, like during a plane’s descent or while driving through mountains, the air pressure in your middle ear falls out of balance with the pressure around you. Your eardrum gets pushed inward or outward, creating that familiar plugged, muffled feeling. The same thing happens when congestion from a cold or allergies swells the Eustachian tube shut, trapping stale air inside. “Popping” your ears means forcing that tube open long enough to equalize the pressure.
The muscle responsible for opening the Eustachian tube shares nerve connections with your jaw muscles. That’s why chewing, yawning, and swallowing all help: they mechanically pull the tube open as a side effect of jaw movement.
The Valsalva Maneuver
This is the technique most people try first. Pinch your nostrils shut, close your mouth, and gently push air out as if you’re straining. Hold for about 15 to 20 seconds, then release and breathe normally. You should feel a pop or click as air enters the middle ear.
The key word is “gently.” Blowing too hard won’t make it work faster. It can actually force mucus or bacteria up into the middle ear, and in extreme cases, excessive pressure can injure the eardrum. If you don’t feel a pop after a moderate effort, stop and try a different method.
The Toynbee Maneuver
This one works in the opposite direction. Pinch your nose closed and swallow. Swallowing pulls the Eustachian tubes open, while the movement of your tongue with a closed nose compresses air against them. Many people find this gentler and more effective than the Valsalva, especially if blowing against a closed nose feels uncomfortable. You can repeat it several times in a row. Drinking water while pinching your nose makes the swallowing easier to trigger.
Simple Techniques That Don’t Require Pinching
Not every situation calls for a specific maneuver. Several everyday actions open the Eustachian tubes naturally:
- Yawning: A big, exaggerated yawn stretches the muscles around the Eustachian tube more than almost any other movement. If you can’t yawn on command, mimicking the wide-open jaw position often triggers a real one.
- Chewing gum or eating something chewy: The repetitive jaw motion keeps the tubes cycling open and closed, which is why flight attendants have historically offered gum during descent.
- Swallowing frequently: Sipping water works. The more often you swallow, the more chances the tubes have to open.
- Moving your jaw side to side: Because the Eustachian tube muscles are neurologically linked to jaw muscles, simply shifting your lower jaw forward and sideways can coax the tube open.
When Congestion Is the Problem
If your ears won’t pop because you have a cold, sinus infection, or allergies, the issue is swelling inside the Eustachian tube itself. No amount of jaw movement will force open a tube that’s inflamed shut. In these cases, reducing the swelling is the first step.
Oral decongestants containing pseudoephedrine reduce swelling in the nasal passages and Eustachian tube, allowing better airflow and drainage. Nasal decongestant sprays containing oxymetazoline or phenylephrine work by shrinking blood vessels in the nasal lining. Both offer temporary relief, though their benefit for ear congestion specifically tends to be limited. Nasal sprays shouldn’t be used for more than three consecutive days, as they can cause rebound congestion that makes the problem worse.
A warm compress held over the affected ear can also help. The heat encourages blood flow and may reduce some of the swelling around the tube opening. Steam from a hot shower or a bowl of hot water with a towel draped over your head can loosen mucus in the area.
Popping Ears During Flights
Airplane ear is most common during descent, when cabin pressure rises faster than your middle ear can adjust. Start swallowing or chewing gum before the plane begins its descent, not after your ears already feel blocked. Once the pressure difference becomes large, it’s much harder to force the tube open.
Staying awake during takeoff and landing matters. You don’t swallow as often during sleep, so pressure builds without being equalized. Drinking water throughout the flight keeps you swallowing regularly and helps prevent dehydration, which can thicken mucus and make the tubes stickier.
If you’re flying with a cold, taking a decongestant about 30 minutes before descent can make a real difference in keeping the tubes functional.
Helping Babies and Young Children
Babies can’t perform any of these maneuvers on command, but you can trigger the same muscle movements. Nursing or bottle-feeding during takeoff and landing encourages swallowing. A pacifier works too. For children over three, chewing gum or sucking on hard candy is effective. Keep your child awake during altitude changes so their natural swallowing reflex stays active. If your child regularly experiences ear pain during flights, a dose of children’s acetaminophen or ibuprofen about 30 minutes before takeoff or landing can help manage the discomfort.
The Frenzel Technique for Divers
Divers face much greater pressure changes than air travelers, and the Valsalva maneuver has limitations underwater because it relies on lung pressure that becomes harder to generate at depth. The Frenzel technique uses the tongue as a piston instead. You fill your mouth with air, close off the back of your throat, then push the air upward using only your tongue. This forces air through the Eustachian tubes without involving your lungs or diaphragm at all.
It takes practice. You need to learn to independently control your soft palate and the flap at the back of your throat, which most people have never consciously moved. Practicing in front of a mirror, with empty lungs so you know you’re not cheating with lung pressure, is how most divers start. The technique is worth learning if you dive regularly, as it’s gentler and works at depths where other methods fail.
When Ear Fullness Won’t Resolve
If your ears stay blocked for more than two weeks despite trying these techniques, or if you experience significant pain, hearing loss, or dizziness, the problem may be Eustachian tube dysfunction. A healthcare provider can check your eardrums, nasal passages, and the back of your throat, and may run a tympanometry test to measure how well your middle ear is functioning, along with a hearing test if needed.
For persistent cases in children, particularly those with fluid buildup lasting three months or more, a device called the EarPopper delivers a controlled stream of air into the nasal cavity while the child swallows, mechanically opening the Eustachian tube. In a clinical trial of children with chronic middle ear fluid, those using the device saw an average hearing improvement of about 11 decibels over seven weeks, compared to less than 4 decibels in the control group. The device also reduced the need for ear tube surgery: 53% of children in the treatment group eventually needed tubes compared to 79% in the control group. The only reported side effect was brief ear discomfort immediately after use.