Try yawning, but don’t just do a fake yawn. Open your jaw as wide as you can, then move it side to side. This stretches the muscles around the Eustachian tube.
If you’ve ever stepped off a red-eye feeling like your head is stuffed with cotton balls, you know how annoying—and sometimes painful—this can be. But why does it happen, and more importantly, how do you make it stop? It isn't a cold (though that makes it worse). It's physics. ear plugged from flying
Pinch your nostrils shut. Keep your mouth closed. Then, gently try to breathe out through your nose. You should feel a soft "pop" as air is forced up the tube. Warning: Do this gently. If you blow too hard, you can rupture an eardrum. Try yawning, but don’t just do a fake yawn
There is no sound quite as unsettling as the one you hear 30 minutes into a flight. If you’ve ever stepped off a red-eye feeling