Forums >Health and Nutrition>Eustachian tubes "sticking" open after hard workout
Amy
Resident pinniped
Nope, she's not, because she doesn't stir up trouble, as I qualified.
One day at a time
You can quit any time now. Really. It's getting old. I get the message. I don't care, but I get the message.
So glad to hear it!
OK digging this up from waaay in the past as it is one of the few reference I found from Google.
I have the exact same symptoms as the OP noteye. After hard exercise, my tubes are sticking open for 20-30 minutes, and progressively close (they will close for a few seconds, then open, then close maybe 20 seconds, etc) until it returns to normal.
As a freediver I'm acutely aware of the condition of my tubes. I'm able to use the "Frenzel maneuver" to open my tubes by squeezing the back of my tongue, at any time unless I have a sinus issue.
The symptoms don't appear to be getting worse (although it never happened until my early/mid-30s), and don't appear serious. It is just annoying
Anyways I'm just posting to confirm the conditions the OP is seeing and thanking for the technical discussion and medical references. I may try pre-hydrating a bit and see if it makes a difference.
Matt
accidental dp.
not bad for mile 25
I get that Eustachian tube disorder after a hard race on a hot day. It's annoying, but goes away after ten or twenty minutes.
Thanks for the thread bump. The first couple of pages are pretty amusing. Not sure I'm up to reading the whole thread. Tell me if it's worth it.
As a freediver I'm acutely aware of the condition of my tubes.
DUDE.
Hello. I too have this transient exercise induced Patulus Eustachian Tube. I thought I should add what I can since this is just about the only place I have found discussion on this. Full disclosure, my first experience started about 4 years ago after an extra rowdy night of partying where I snorted some MDMA. I remember it burning quite terribly. My right ET was dysfunctional for over a month afterward. Since then, whenever I do any high intensity workout my ET's (left and right) very annoyingly open up and I can hear my breathing. Exercises such as running stadium stairs are pretty much guaranteed to cause it. Like others it only lasts about 30-60 minutes after exercise. I am not sure what causes this issue, but I have some suspicions it is in someway related to other medical abnormalities in my health, all of which seemed to start in my early 20's. I have arthritis in my sterno-clavicular joints which puts a lot of tension and pain on my neck which I believe to be part of the cause of my primary stabbing headaches (maybe also inducing some muscle fatigue in my ear area?). I have also been diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) (an autoimmine arthritis condition) in which a physical trauma to my SC joint set-off an avalanche of long-term inflammation. Maybe the irratation from the MDMA set-off some similar response in my ear. I have also been diagnosed with chillblains/raynaud's (autoimmune circulation/skin issue). Maybe the low blood pressure and circulation issues have created a lack of fluid pressure around the tube. I have suffered from chronic head pressure, headaches, brain fog, and low thyroid hormones in this time as well. I pretty much have an over inflammatory and unregulated immune system. I have never read anywhere that PET is related to autoimmunity, but the timing of the onset of the symptoms eludes to a possible connection. I did go to an ENT. At that time i was eating a very strange diet that was giving me GERD, and he said the issue was due to the nighttime inflammation in my ear from the acid exposure. The ET opening worsened during this time, however since I have gotten over the GERD, is still have the exercise induced dysfunction. I also found that when consuming a large amount of radishes (which have a decongestant effect), the symptoms worsen. Just today after reading this thread I found video on youtube of a man who seems to have cured his chronic PET using an inner ear muscle rehabilitation technique, Patulus Eustachian Tube Possible Fix. A knowledgeable comment on the videos page describes the technique this way, "In short, what you are doing with your facial gesture is inducing stapedial spasm (the fain thunder)". Presumably this is a way to get more blood flow and muscle tone either the stapedial, or more likely the tensoor tympani muscle, to help put some pressure back into that overly opened tube. I am going to try this technique for the suggested 2 months and see if it helps. Since the AS has prevented me from running, I am a swimmer now, and absolutely have to wear earplugs to prevent water from getting into my ears too easily. Hopefully in a few months, I wont have to wear ear plugs. That would be a good diagnostic to show that this has really had an effect.
After a very hard workout (HIIT on the elliptical or heavy weight lifting days) my eustachian tubes stay "stuck" open for up to a 1/2 hour or so. It's very aggravating, feeling the negative pressure everytime I breathe in and hearing my own voice echo loudly in my ears. I can't get them to close for anything, no matter how much yawning and jaw stretching I do. Anyone else experience this or have any idea what might be the cause or cure?
This happens to me too, any solutions?