Why do my ears pop on planes?

The pop is plumbing. Behind your eardrum sits a pocket of air - the middle ear - connected to the back of your nose by the eustachian tube, which opens briefly each time you swallow or yawn to let air in or out. MedlinePlus explains that this is how pressure equalises on either side of the eardrum. On the ground the system runs itself; in a plane, cabin pressure changes hundreds of times faster than your tube's lazy pace. During descent especially, outside pressure rises fast, the tube has to admit air to catch up, and if it lags you feel fullness, muffled hearing, then pain - and the pop when it finally opens. A blocked tube makes it worse: flying with a cold, allergies, or a sinus infection gums up the works. The fixes are the tube-openers MedlinePlus lists: chew gum, suck on candy, yawn deliberately, swallow repeatedly, and - the strong version - inhale, then exhale gently with nostrils pinched and mouth shut (gently is the operative word; hard blowing can injure the ear). Two tactical rules: do not sleep through the descent - you stop swallowing - and feed babies or give them a pacifier during takeoff and landing, since swallowing is their only tool. Flying congested? A decongestant before the flight (if they suit you) plus a saline spray helps. Pain that stays severe after landing, hearing that stays muffled for days, dizziness, or discharge means a doctor should look - barotrauma occasionally bruises the eardrum properly. Pymander is a free AI doctor, 24/7 by text, that can help you prep for your next flight.