Scubapro Pro Ear 2000 - Ear Protection Dive Mask

During my childhood I
was often affected by ear infections. When I started to free dive and later scuba
dive, my ears were a weak point. When I went on dive trip to Palau in 2014, my
ears were subjected to the water pressure during 3 – 4 dives a day. During the
last dive I had difficulty to equalize the pressure in my ears and heard
strange sounds. I felt no pain so I also continued diving in the Philippines
the following week. The first dive was on a wreck that lay in 30 meters of
water. I had no problems during the actual dive but during the ascension and at
the 5 meter safety stop, I had a strange feeling in my right ear. My dive mate
swam to me and pointed to it. Air was bubbling out. I felt no discomfort but
when the dive guide saw the bubbles he immediately interrupted the dive. At the
surface he said that my mucous membrane was broken. It did not hurt but he was
determined that there would be no more dives for me.
As soon as I got home
I contacted an ear specialist who confirmed that I had burst the mucous
membrane. I waited for three months and then took a test dive in a swimming
pool to see if my ears were ok. I immediately knew something was wrong as I
could not pressure equalize. I contacted the ear specialist again and he
prescribed medication and nasal spray.
This medication worked well for me until this autumn when I dived at the Azores. Before leaving I took a second opinion from another ear specialist who said that the spray could be dangerous and that I should only use oil. I followed his advice. During the last dive of the trip I began to feel uncomfortable as I developed a hearing impairment in my right ear again.
When I returned home I
contacted my regular ear specialist and this time he told me that there was an
infection in both ears and a small hole in the right ear drum. We also
discussed the choice of spray. Apparently spraying oil in the ears is no use at
all, on the contrary, the oil traps water in the ear canal and if the ear canal
is constantly moist it often leads to an infection.
The last time I had ear problems it took 3 months before I could start diving again and now I only
had 2 months to go before I planned to dive in the Philippines again. I visited
the ear specialist every week, and changed medication but would there be enough
time for my ears to recover?
The healing process
went in the right direction even though it took time. I stopped doing all
workouts in order not to risk anything. Two weeks before traveling I received
good news in that my infection had gone and the hole in my right ear drum had
healed. I was really pleased to hear this news.
In my luggage this
time I carried a
Scuba Pro Ear 2000 Mask. (A face mask with caps, to protect
the ears from water). Would it be a solution for my ear problems? I tested the
mask at different depths. During the first dive, the dive computer showed 22
meters and during the descent I had not pressurized once, which was something I
always had to do with my old mask. There was also no water in my ear canals to
push against the ear drums.
Using Pro Ear 2000 Mask has been a game changer for me!
Text & Photo Credit: Tomas Jansson