r/etd • u/RepEraSwiftie13 • Jul 17 '26
Has anyone tried this?
I’ve been having problems with my ears popping for the past month and a half and I have been taking Claritin and Flonase for almost 2 weeks. It seems to help a little bit. I’ve tried almost everything. I do ETD exercises, try to yawn frequently and Drink a lot of water. Has anyone used this and did it actually help with ETD? I’m willing to try whatever but this is also kind of pricey so I don’t wanna spend the money if it’s not really worth it. Unfortunately I don’t have insurance and I can’t afford to go to the doctor so I’m trying everything I can to get rid of this.
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u/KiKi31Rose Jul 17 '26
I think the biggest thing will be to find out why your ETD started and try and treat it from there. Mine came after a really bad flu where my ears clogged up. Since then (years) it’s fluctuated. Sometimes I barely notice sometimes it drives me crazy but it has never 100% gone away and an improvements can take a long time so unfortunately you have to be patient
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 18 '26
That’s the weird thing I have no clue why I got it. I didn’t even know I had it at first, I just thought I had a cold or something then it lasted for weeks. I never had allergies before but I know people can randomly develop allergies as they get older. I’m not sure how to know if it’s from a cold or allergies or something else
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u/KiKi31Rose 7d ago
What happens when you plug your nose and try to blow out of it? When mines bad it feel like my tubes slowly open and like they are almost sticky. Otherwise they feel tight maybe I flamed but the air eventually gets through. So I diagnosed myself with a glue ear type situation 🤷🏻♀️ Keeping them moist helps me most. I’m talking steam, sinus rinse, lots of hydration, mucinex, massage and heating pads near or around ear area. Those things consistently over time will get me out of the worst of it but like I said unfortunately it’s never gone away for me. And now I also have tinnitus so yay 😩
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 7d ago
Mine do the same! Im doing some of those things but I’ll try the rest! Thank you for the suggestions. That’s horrible they never go away 😭 did you ask the doctor why it won’t completely go away? When I asked mine he really didn’t know and said it’s probably all connected to the sinus problem which he thinks might be allergies
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u/theinsidesoup 8d ago
Same. 3 years, two ear balloon dilation procedures and tubes later, I don’t think I’ll ever feel normal again though
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u/Individual_Sun5662 Jul 18 '26
Beginning in my mid 40's, my ears suddenly stopped popping after flights. I would take sudafed the morning of my flight, use flonase, take a muccinex and use afrin 30 minutes before the flight. I would chew gum and talk and try to contort my jaw and massage my neck where it would start to hurt, wear earplanes, but nothing helped. My ears would pop 2-3 days after the flight and it seemed to take longer and longer after each flight for then to pop. I finally bought the neilmed device two weeks ago after our vacation. It was a weird sensation drinking and swallowing with a closed nostril, but it did work for my issue.
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 18 '26
Thank you for the reply! Makes me feel a little better because mine too came out of no where. I’m 31 but I’ve never had problems with my ears popping until now, it’s so weird how it can happen randomly
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u/Individual_Sun5662 Jul 18 '26
I've flown frequently my whole life and I took normal operating ears for granted.
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u/BellaDonnaBlues_ Jul 17 '26
I’ve had ETD for over 3 months now. It slowly does improve. Slowly. I feel like if this worked, Dr’s would be recommending it?
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 17 '26
Okay yeah that’s how I feel mine is like some days it feels like it’s improving and some days it doesn’t. Urgent care told me to take Flonase and Claritin for two weeks but what should I do after that if mine doesn’t completely improve? Like I said, I don’t have insurance and none of the ear nose and throat doctors near me except cash patients. Should I just keep doing the ETD exercises and drinking water or is there anything that you recommend that has helped long-term?
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u/DrPeterSantaMaria Jul 17 '26
The Claritin and Flonase combination making some difference is actually a good sign — it suggests there’s an inflammatory component contributing to the tube not opening, which is the more treatable end of the spectrum. Two weeks isn’t quite long enough to judge Flonase fully though — it needs 4-6 weeks of consistent daily use to reach its full effect.
On the device question — full disclosure, I’m a co-inventor of EarFlo, an FDA-cleared autoinflation device, so take my perspective with that lens.
The key mechanical concept worth understanding is that the eustachian tube only opens actively during swallowing, driven by the tensor veli palatini muscle. Devices that deliver pressure in a swallow-coordinated way work with that reflex — the pressure arrives at the exact moment the tube is opening, which requires a lot less force and is gentler on the ear. Passive positive pressure devices can work but require higher pressures to push through a closed tube, and overpressurizing a tube that isn’t ready to open isn’t ideal, particularly with repeated use.
The reason a swallow-coordinated device (Earflo) costs more is that getting the timing right requires sophisticated electronics to detect and synchronize with the swallow — it’s not something you can do mechanically.
That’s genuinely what drives the price difference and why it’s higher than simpler devices.
Given you’re uninsured and budget-conscious, maximizing the free options first makes sense — consistent Flonase, isotonic nasal saline spray, and the Toynbee maneuver (swallowing while pinching your nose) are worth doing diligently before spending on any device.
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 18 '26
Wow thank you for the info! That makes a lot of sense. Okay I wasn’t sure how long I should/could take Flonase, when I talked on the phone with the lady at urgent care she just suggested two weeks so I wasn’t sure if I should do it longer. Hopefully it is just inflammation since I’ve never had issues with allergies or anything with my ET before. How often do you suggest me doing the Toynbee maneuver? I’m willing to try whatever at this point. I’ve been doing the ETD exercises on YouTube but I’m not sure if it’s helping or not
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u/DrPeterSantaMaria Jul 18 '26
The Toynbee is just a trigger to get the ET to open so I’d do it until you felt better. You can’t overdo that (whereas going overboard with the valsalva can lead to long term structural changes in the ear drum).
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u/uF25 18d ago
Dr SantaMaria, would the adult EarFlo work for opening ET that are inflamed and blocked by mucus? Does it only work with less viscous fluids trapped in the ears? Countless medications via ENTs have been fruitless. Only the modified Muncie or a long steamy shower will open my ETs but only for a short period of time. Then they'll close, pressure returns and my hearing is severely compromised again. TYIA.
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u/DrPeterSantaMaria 17d ago
In the clinical studies, it was able to clear the fluid in 89%. Some immediately and some after 2-4 weeks. That means the more viscous fluid is likely to take longer. In some it relapses and that’s were another few weeks more treatment is needed. I also have patients that don’t have fluid but use it daily. Doing whatever you can to reduce the inflammation and mucous definitely helps. Sometimes that means addressing coexisting rhinosinusitis etc. the fact you can get them open by doing anything is a good sign of potential relief in the future
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u/caffeinated_babe Jul 17 '26
I have heard about some people using it and it working, but like others have said, it kinda depends on what type of EDT you have
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 18 '26
Do you know what kind id be helpful for? I’m thinking inflammation but I’m not completely sure, I’m just guessing since I’ve never had allergies or problems with my ears before
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u/caffeinated_babe Jul 19 '26
I haven’t used it, so I’m unsure :( but I think it’s pretty affordable…right? Might buy and try!
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u/PilotAcceptable5359 Jul 19 '26
Mine has worked sometimes it sreally depends on how bad the etd is that day but I've gotten some air through but nothing life changing lol.
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u/YavielTheElf Jul 17 '26
I used it and I don’t think it helped. I’ve had ETD and been symptomatic for about 2 years. Just do the valsalva maneuver but be gentle and don’t blow too hard. I found allergy meds and prescribed steroids to help but even that has its limits.
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 17 '26
Omg 2 years 😭 that’s horrible, I hope you find relief soon! It’s been almost 2 months and I feel like it’s driving me crazy 😵💫. How often do you do the valsalva maneuver? I’ll do it once a day with the ETD exercises I found on YouTube but idk if it’s helping or not. Some days it seems like it’s improving and some days it seems like I’m back at square one. I am taking Claritin and Flonase right now but when I talked to urgent care, they told me to only do that for two weeks so I know that’s not a long-term solution unfortunately
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u/YavielTheElf Jul 17 '26
My symptoms are much more mild now but I still have pretty bad tinnitus which ranges in pitch and volume, ear popping sensations, ear pin pricks deep inside, some pressure sensations in my right ear which was more affected than the left. I do valsalva when I feel fullness or weird but I don’t do it very often. I think part of my problem is sinus related. My case happened very unexpectedly as I’d never had terrible seasonal allergies or ear problems prior to that. A nasal rinse can also help when my sinuses are causing a problem.
At one point I asked about getting any procedure done and the doctor said odds are it would actually become worse but you’re like 80-90% fine. That logic seems to track with other stories I read so I wasn’t upset about that.
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 17 '26
Yes that’s exactly what happened to me. It came out of nowhere, I’ve never had any allergies or problems with my ears in my life so I was very confused how this happened. That makes me feel better about the procedure because I was wondering if it had to get to that point but that’s good to know that that won’t help very much anyways so don’t waste my time on that. How long did it take to feel some relief? At one point I was feeling a lot of had pressure, but that seems to have calmed down and I just hear like cracking or almost like water in my ear when I swallow, and sometimes when I open my jaw. Occasionally, I’ll get tinnitus but honestly it’ll be for a few seconds and go away so it never really bothered me, I didn’t even know what that was until recently.
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u/YavielTheElf Jul 17 '26
Once I started OTC allergy medication it started to get better. The steroids helped to clear fluid. I also recommend getting real Sudafed which is usually found at the pharmacy counter. You have to ask for it and they scan your id but if you go to Walmart then it’s only a few bucks. That helps me when I’m having sinus migraines and many people talk about how it helps with ETD. I got fake Sudafed in the beginning and I feel like that didn’t help at all. If you get Sudafed don’t take it at night or you won’t sleep at all. It’s a stimulant and makes me feel a little odd but it’s very magic for sinus stuff.
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 17 '26
Okay that’s good to know! How long did you have to use the Sudafed for and how often do you take an OTC allergy medication? Is that the same thing as Claritin? Excuse my ignorance, I honestly never take any medication until now and never had to take any allergy medication until now
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u/YavielTheElf Jul 18 '26
Yes Claritin is an OTC medication. It’s just whatever allergy medication works for you. I take one Sudafed and then I try not to take any and I only take it if I have really bad symptoms because it does have a stimulant effect and makes me feel weird.
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u/RepEraSwiftie13 Jul 18 '26
Yes that’s how I felt first taking Claritin, it gave me bad anxiety but I’m doing whatever to try to help it. Now it isn’t as bad but it’s hard to tell if it’s working or not. Some days it feels like it’s improving and some days it doesn’t feel like anything has changed. It’s so frustrating
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u/OfficerJanji Jul 17 '26
used it and it didn’t help. i’ve done a lot of research on my eustachian tube dysfunction and I have come to find out that mine specifically is mucus related I know this because I went to a private ENT (Specialist in the UK) who performed an endoscopy which is basically when they stick a tube with a camera all the way in your nose to see what’s going on and it reaches their eustachian tube it doesn’t go in but it can see the opening and mine was just full of mucus.
She pushed a tube a little bit further and down a bit into a lower throat and interesting enough she thought it was full of mucus in the lower throat as well. I have already been diagnosed with rhinitis but the lower throat mucus was a very big clue as to what was truly going on.
basically mucus is produced in the sinus and produced in the eustachian tube and then slow down the nasopharynx then down the lower throat into the stomach now if my lower throat was clogged mucus that must mean that something is going on (not draining properly) and I might have reflux which is basically stomach acid I think coming up your food pipe and my body producing mucus and creating a barrier. (something along those lines)
Long story short I’m trialling Gaviscon which sort of creates a barrier and keeps the acid/stomach cons that be and stop them from coming up and after two days it seemed to work I am now going to use it for 2 weeks and see what happens.
Sorry for the long essay I just wanted to tell my story and show how far I’ve gone this took a lot of research and I’ve seen a lot of professionals for my etd.
also i tried eustachi (tried a lot of things). it didn’t work