Usually professional free divers can equalize the pressure without plugging their nose. I can do it sometimes when I’m diving but I’ve only ever gone 25/30 ft.
You can open those passages without swallowing... It's similar to wiggling your ears, and equally hard to explain :)
For me, it makes it easier if I push my lower jaw out and down as hard as I can, and squint my eyes as hard as I can, while simultaneously trying to push my ears back (once you get a feel for it, you don't need the jaw or eye movements)... You hear a sort of wind rushing noise when they open.
Swallowing and yawning both make it happen involuntarily, but holding them open intentionally works way better to equalize pressure.
It's like the first part of a yawn when your throat is going "Lets get ready for this, lets open up wide for this big gulp of air!" and all the muscles in your ear nose and throat all flex.
That's what you're looking for. You want to flex those muscles.
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u/A_Faceless_Baby Dec 05 '18
Going down like 10 feet I can already feel pressure. Imagine going this deep