How to Make Your Ear Pop

Whenever the pressure in your inner ear is not equalized, it can become annoying and even painful.  This is because pressure will build up therein making it necessary for you to equalize it so that you do not actually injure your ears.  As you equalize this pressure you will hear a popping sound, which is why this process is oftentimes referred to as “making your ears pop.”

• Swallow some liquid, suck on a piece of candy, chew some gum or make yourself swallow or yawn.  These things will help to equalize the pressure in your ears because you will be opening the muscles within your Eustachian tubes, which connect your inner ear and nasal passages.


• Pinch the tip of your nostrils closed with your thumb and forefinger then “blow” through your nose as though you were really going to blow your nose in a tissue.  Be gentle and only use this as a second resort because if you are too forceful you can damage your eardrums.


• Take a decongestant.  This will shrink the membranes in your nasal passages.  You only want to do this for a few days though because overuse can cause you to become congested.


• Too much earwax can actually keep your ears from popping normally.  While earwax does protect your ears from becoming infected, too much is never a good thing.  You may think that it can be remedied by using a cotton swab but this may just push the earwax deeper into your ear.  Instead, you should use a solution that is made up of equal parts of rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and water.


• Have a doctor “irrigate” your ears.  This is done by washing them out with a syringe.  You should never do this by yourself though because you could accidentally rupture your eardrum.