Emma has a blocked Eustachian tube in her ear. And if I might remind our loyal readers, I did actually mention this in a previous post after searching for several hours on the Internet – having googled such random things as: ears, ears popping, earache, etc. I concluded in that post I must avoid the Internet when attempting to diagnose my daughter’s complaints – though now, it turns out, googling random words is exactly what is called for in such circumstances.
The remedy is a bit more difficult to enforce. The remedy being she is causing the pain in her ears by grabbing hold of her nose, clamping her mouth shut and blowing forcefully out of her now firmly held nose. Other than turning her face red, I wasn’t aware that other dangers lurked from this seemingly innocent act. Trying to convey all of this to Emma is proving to be a bit more difficult than simply saying – Hey Em. Don’t do that. It’s making things much worse and besides that, you probably wouldn’t have any ear problems in the first place if you just stopped.
She looks at you saying all of this, nods her head and then promptly grabs her nose as though you’ve just given her the go-ahead. Nothing helpful comes up when I google any words remotely associated with any of this other than a few non-related ads about a new Disney Resort called Aulani in Hawaii. I am tempted to explore how this ad came up when googling autism and ear sensitivities, but really why waste the time?
I’m going out on a limb here, but as I have said before and been proven wrong more times than not, anyone reading this will take it all with a grain of salt – Emma is highly sensitive to the air pressure and it turns out, so am I. Only I wasn’t aware of this until Emma started complaining of her own ears. Throughout the day now I am aware of a slight pressure within my ears and I immediately wonder if Emma is feeling the same thing. The difference being I can at least attempt to articulate the sensation and realize it is not life threatening, it will eventually go away and is one of those things in life, like sore muscles that one just puts up with knowing it will be okay, no need to panic.
However this is not the way Emma perceives it. She is thrown into a state of panic and it is heart wrenching to witness.
I will spend some more time on the Internet, before going into work, having had my faith in Google restored.
Emma's Hope Book 
I’m a 36 yr. old male and have had unexplained health problems all my life. In the last ten years I’ve started studying these illnesses in depth because some are getting much worse. I’ve been tracing back all my illnesses to as far back, as I can remember. Like many other people no one’s been able to help me and this mystery saga only goes on. Sometimes just getting other people’s answers, end up helping both. Is it unbearable pain when you or her fly or drie when climbing altitude? Are you guys always cold? Do you have allergies or hayfever? Are you always tired, but can’t sleep. These are just a few of my symtoms. Thank you,
Keith
Hi Keith,
I’m sorry to hear about your health issues. My guess is, in Emma’s case, her ear pressure issues are in keeping with all of her other sensory issues. I think the changing air pressure causes her pain. Because she is extremely sensitive to this, she is more aware of it then most neuro-typical people. By the way, neither of us have any allergies, hayfever. Nor does she fuss when going up to higher altitudes unless the pressure changes, in which case, she is in pain. Hope you find what’s causing your problems. Wishing you the best.
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