Flying While Sick
 

I recently flew home over Christmas with a head cold, and the flight made my cold even worse. Since I've been home my cold seems to have gone away, but I still have pressure around my ears like there is still fluid stuck there.

Has anyone else flown while they were sick and had this happen to them? How were you able to get rid of the pressure built up around your ears?

You are doomed. The fluid will stay there forever, unless you take an ice-pick to your ear drum :D

Actually go see an ENT doctor. He will prescribe some drops for your ears. There is a Cipro antibiotic cocktail that is currently popular for this.

Cheers,

Z

Yep, you are doomed. This happened to me in 1980 - flew from Milan to SFO with a head cold - ruptured one eardrum, badly damaged the other. Had fluid, "pressure" in my ears and partial hearing loss (high tones) for SIX YEARS. I used to carry a letter from my ENT in case of head cold on flight day asking airlines to allow me to reschedule flights for medical reasons as I had suffered massive ear damage due to flying while sick previously. I still 24 years later have problems with my ears that the doc atrributes to that flight.

As to doing anything to relieve the pressure sensation short term - I never found anything that worked for more than 5 minutes (including decongestants) so let us know if you do find something that works.

I had the same problem for a few months, then I went to the doctor. He could hardly see within one of my ears and with some ear wax softener for about 10 mins, and some hot water and a high-pressure hose-like object, I could hear in 7.1 surround sound again :)

On a side note, Once in a while during acsend and desend my nasal cavity hurts like h*ll!! I asked my doctor and he said that there is nothing to do about it.

Uh oh :( that didn't make me feel better.

I might make a trip to the ER tommorow to see if I can get a few ear drops or something. The tylenol that I am taking now isn't helping very much, and my nose has stopped running so I can't get the fluid out that way (sorry to be gross).

The ear wax softener is OTC: http://www.drugs.com/PDR/Debrox_Drops.html

Thanks, I'll try that.

Boil some water, then pour the water into a bowl. Put it on a table, sit in front of it, and put a towel over your head so that it also covers the bowl. Breathe deeply, but don't get your face too close to the water, because the steam can burn you.

If you can't blow your nose because your sinuses are all stuffed up, this should clear them out. Probably won't help your ears much, though.

Hot, spicy, food (the kind that makes your eyes tear and your nose run) can help clear out the passages.

No need to go to the ER. Anything that can work quickly you can get OTC: Sudafed (decongestant), Afrin nasal spray. Antibiotics will not work quickly if at all...

I swear by Chinese hot and sour soup. After that, try some hot lemon tea and a shot of scotch. If you don't feel better in the morning, definitely call your doctor. Please rest. That is the best advice of all.

That's an idea I'll second or third, but along with that for ear problems my old Doc told me to try using, 1/3 peroxide, 1/3 alcohol, 1/3 water and let it sit in the ear for a while (keep replacing it until the bubbles stop and you'll hear the bubbles) and also take decongestants. Then a heating pad on the ear. If there's no improvement at all after a day, then to go in and see him. Don't know if that mixture is good or bad by today's standards but it works for me.

Try some Tea Tree Oil in the hot water or directly in your ears. I swear by this stuff. It saved me on a trip to LON a few years ago when I had a similar problem. I use it at the first sign of an earache or sinus problems and it really works! It works as an antiseptic and also helps to open your passages like vicks or other enhaler.

Hope you feel better!

I had a similar experience twice this year.

In July, I had been diving in the Carribean, and didn't realize I was sick at all -however, I got really congested on my 2nd flight from MIA - LGA and I seriously thought my head was going to explode during the descent. My ears didn't clear up for a week. My ENT gave me some antibiotics and advised Sudafed and Afrin for future flights. I rearranged my work schedule to stop flying for a couple weeks, but I really thought it had to do with the diving - not the flying.

Then I came down with a cold in Chicago while on business in October. In light of the prior incident, I should have been smarter, but I decided to 1) fly home early, since I had already been away from home for a couple weeks and 2) balked at the $12 cost of Sudafed at ORD. Once again, big mistake. My ears were clogged up again, and I really felt like it took about 8 weeks to totally clear up. I feel my hearing is back to normal now, and now I definitely attribute the earlier incident to the flight as well.

Since then I have religiously been taking both Sudafed and a nasal OTC before flights - my ears have been ok so far. The physican's asst recommended I wear ear plugs, although I am not sure how that will help out and have yet to try that.

I am a little nervous about future incidents. My ENT has suggested potentially considering ear tubes - has anyone had any experience with those has adults?

Hopefully by now you're feeling better! Once when I had to fly despite terrible head congestion, my doctor recommended Sudafed on the night before and every 4 hours the day of flying and then use of saline nasal spray followed by OTC neosynephrine nasal spray. Use the sprays 30 minutes before takeoff and landing (disregarding the 12-hour instructions on the box - this is to be used only on the day you have to fly, so apparently it's ok to exceed the normal recommended dosage) and every 4 hours in flight if you're on a longer trip. Make sure you're also drinking lots and lots of water, herbal teas, or juices (not sodas and coffee) if you're battling this kind of congestion, particularly in the dry air on the plane. If you take Afrin as recommended by another FT'er, please be cognizant of its slightly addictive nature - don't take longer than 3 days.

Be careful when flying while sick...I perforated an eardrum years ago (probably the worst pain I've ever experienced), and my hearing hasn't been the same on that side since.

I end up flying with colds and allergy flair ups all the time though now...since I fly for a living, I'd probably be out of a job if I stayed home every time I was congested. A good decongestant is a must - take it about an hour before you fly any time you feel mucous-y. Nasal sprays can be very helpful, too, though I personally don't like to use them often. Obviously, drink a lot of water when flying, whether you're sick or not!

If you have ear block after a flight (that feeling of pressure you describe sounds like it) and you're still unable to clear your ears, you should see your doctor or go to a walk-in clinic. The employee clinic at the airline I work for has a protocol of prescribing high-dose prednisone for ear block - I suppose it reduces the inflammation quickly and helps open the sinuses and eustacian tubes. Not sure if it'd be appropriate for the average passenger, but it's very helpful for us since we're often right back up in the air again after it happens.

Hope you're feeling better by now. :) Keep some strong decongestants in your travel bag in case it happens again!

Just a word of caution on the idea of loading up with lots of sudafed and OTC Afrin: if you have hypertension or coronary artery disease, or are older, this could be dangerous (the product labels warn about this, but we all know hardly anyone reads these). Some people's blood pressure surges 30 or more points systolic with just one or two doses of sudafed. Check with your doctor and/or monitor your blood pressure before loading up with this stuff.

Often obscure2K's recommendations above for hot and sour soup and Scotch are safer for people with borderline cardiovascular health! (I just finished my fourth bucket of hot and sour soup in 3 days, having spent Christmas in a very cold Minnesota and coming down with a nasty bug! :)

I also had an eardrum rupture in flight -- and yes, it feels like entire head wil explode. Thankfully, in "F", FA's kindly brought bottled water, but nothing stopped the pain until the darn thing burst.

I'd flown outbound following all MD instructions for use of decongestants, nasal sprays. Doc recommended Afrin for me as well -- OK if very temporary, and it worked the very first time I used it on outbound flight. THought I was fine for return three days later, with same strategy, but Afrin failed (didn't ever work quite as effectively as first-ever dose), and eardrum ruptured on ascent from DTW-LGA. After stopver in NYC and call to my MD, I canceled last flight segment and opted to take Amtrak home. Have not had hearing tested since, but worry about lasting damage.

Not to forget that its also very selfish. Unless you are wearing a face mask you run the risk of making everyone around you sick as well.

I've had numerous ENT issues over the years, several with similar symptoms but different diagnosis and remedies. Do yourself a favor and go to a doctor. FT is not a place for medical diagnosis. I would bet none of the above posters is an MD - a real MD would never attempt to diagnose from a two sentence web posting

When I was about 9, I took a Reno Air flight from Orlando to Hartford to see family in CT. My sister was sick that week, but I didn't know I was sick. My head felt like exploding as well. The FA had me put two cups with hot towels in them to clear it up. It worked like a charm!