Do you use Zicam?

Zinc gluconate supplements like Zicam may help with the duraction of colds - ditto for vitamin C or other antioxidant supplements, echinacea, etc - but none of these are going to do anything short term for symptoms of congestion (which could be from a cold, but could also be triggered by allergies or dry air, or many other reasons.)

I've never come across the product here in the United Kingdom.

Originally I used to use expensive Nasal Decongestants such as Afrin, but then a discovered that an el-cheapo product form the "99p store" had exactly the same effect at 1/8 the price

The active ingredient is zinc gluconate (plus glycine but that's just to mask the taste.)

Nice.

Knowing the active ingredients and then going with generics for OTC drugs can save a ton. The cheap one may be phenylephrine rather than oxymetazoline(*), but for flight use there's little or not difference.

(* or they might both be something else entirely; OTC drugs do differ a bit across the Atlantic.)

I often have problems with ear popping and stuffed ears while descending. But has anyone else then had dizziness after the flight? My left ear is the one which is chronically affected during flights, and I was only dizzy after lying down on the left side of my head. The sensation was uncomfortable and only lasted a day or so, but anyone know how to avoid it next time?

I'm 52 and I have flown many times before. The pain I experienced while descending last night brought me to tears on the plane. The. ice pick plus being punched in the mouth and pulling my teeth out. I. thought I would start bleeding from my nose and mouth. I was the last person off the plane because I was so embarrassed from crying. 'm relieved to find this thread.

I am so glad this thread was bumped up. I have had this happen to me enough that I go through periods of being afraid to fly because the pain was so unbearable. Up until now I never heard of anyone else with this problem. Nice to know I am not alone although so sorry for the pain you experienced. I did go to an ENT but the results did not explain the problem. The ear planes do seem to work. I have read all the advice offered and will try implementing some of the ideas. I wonder what it is about tonic water that worsens the effect? Anyone care to enlighten me?

I kept thinking that it was because of the aircraft type.
The only time I felt the pain (ears) was on S4's A310's.......on descent.

None of the other flights caused it though on the same journey.

I'm happy to find a place to share this problem didn't expect it to be here...

I first had this pain as a kid one time...and another time when i was 19. but it happened only twice until i was 22 so i didn't care that much.

but when i was 22 i got a chronic sinus infection and nasal polyps that made it MUCH worse..and it started happening something like every third flight...so i had to find a solution!!

from my experience until now..this is what i do and made the situation better:

1. every 6 months i get a steroid shot. this made my situation much better when it comes to the polyps and chronic sinus..so i get those shots 2-3 days before a flight...and i try to arrange my flight's so they will be just after the shots. it opens up the nasal area. and i guess it really helps when it comes to pain caused by the blockage in the sinus

2. i try to avoid small airplanes (CRJ and so on) because as i remember their cabin pressure is lower...i use to have a list of planes with their cabin pressure. i will try to find it and post it here. and i can guess the more the difference from cabin pressure to land pressure the problem gets bigger...

3. EAR PLANES! very important and helps a lot

4. VERY Spicy gum...start chewing 35 min before landing. and change the gum to a new one every 10 or so minuts

5. Have a bottle of water with you

6. i also use a steroid nasal spray. i use it a few days before departure and 30 min before landing.

7. i take Advil Sinus 60 min before landing (in the past i use to take 2 regular advil)

8. i have Afrin also on the flight. but i try to avoid it because it causes me a rebound effect

i keep everything in a AF amenity kit...enough room for everything. and i just keep it with me during landing...and i have everything there

I had this problem about 3 years ago, had a cold and during descent, the pain in my ear became unbearable. Now I take a sudafed an hour prior to flying, use afrin before descent and if I have a cold I use Ear Planes, they really do work great at equalizing the pressure.

I recently flew with a head cold and experienced the worst pain in my ear ascending and descending. It felt like a screwdriver was being jammed into my ear, deeper and deeper. I was screaming in pain. I immediately went to urgent care and was told to use Afrin nose spray before flying with a cold, and Sudafed-the real stuff you have to sign for. I was put on antibiotics and steroids being I had to fly again in two days to return home, this time with a ruptured ear drum. I purchased Ear Plane, ear plugs at the drug store. I believe these were my saving grace for the return trip. I would recommend them to anyone who experiences ear pain while flying. I put them in before the cabin doors closed and left them in during the whole trip. I also chewed gum, like a cow to help keep the pressure at a minimum. Luckily, the women sitting next to me was a nurse and was compassionate and new what I was going through. I hope this helps, I wouldn't want anyone to experience this kind of pain. I saw an ENT today, he said it should heal on its own in a few months and advised me to take Musinex 600mg 2 x day, and I will be having a hearing test done in a few weeks to see if there is any permanent damage.

"...The pain seems to appear sporadically, and I'm at a lost on how to predict or prevent it. Taking a decongestant 1-2 hours before landing seems to work -- but I can't be sure since the pain is unpredictable in the first place.

Any ideas?"

Yes! I SWEAR by using Vicks vaporub in both ear canals- I swipe a goodly amount in each, and under the nasal passages (just use enough to swab, not clog!) it works WONDERS! NO more headaches. NO more earaches. I think it has something to do with opening the stuck canals, I am not sure. A girl gave me this tip years ago and I tell you it WORKS. Another wonderful tip: works on screaming babies on flights. I think their screaming is a result of earaches. I have saved many person's sanity and peace of mind with this tip. I also get earaches from the wind- beats me but the Vicks trick works in about 4-5 minutes after application. Please try it and let us know if it works for you, I can't see why it wouldn't. I never fly without a small travel size tin of Vicks (yes they sell them, I find them in convenience stores all the time where they display those tiny OTC meds) good luck

Any sense of whether it would be total stupidity to fly (SFO-JFK) tomorrow when I had major ear problems today? I've occasionally had difficulty with ears not popping during descent, though never pain--"just" a panic attack. Today, though, a short flight from PDX-SMF was painful and I'm still not sure my left ear ever popped entirely; blowing with my nose shut seems to help, but I don't think 100%.

I'm slightly but not hugely congested--if anything the congestion actually started after the flight.

I can get Sudafed, nose spray, etc., and a new pair of Ear Planes for tomorrow's red eye. I'm just wondering if--as much because of today's effects on my ears as the congestion itself--I simply shouldn't be flying until, at the least, I know there's no residual effect from today's descent.

I have been in complete agony on one flight and the next one a few hours later is fine. I wish I could pinpoint the triggers for the pain but after years of flying I have yet to do so. You should absolutely use the ear planes for the entire flight, they really do seem to make a difference. I have had good luck with the mucinex 1200 but since you will be on a red eye there is the potential for that product to keep you from sleeping. Best of luck on you next flight!

Thanks for this, DHSGemini. I think I'm going to go for it, and will keep the Ear Planes in the whole flight. Today I'm more congested than yesterday, but my ears seem basically back to normal. It's interesting what you said about one flight being torture and the next a few hours later being fine: maybe it's a question of the airplane? Someone up-post, I think, thought that smaller planes were worse for pressurization issues. Luckily the 75E I'm on today isn't too tiny, so I'm crossing my fingers in addition to decongesting myself any way possible.