Compulsive ear popping
Some people can voluntarily open the Eustachian tubes in their ears. This causes a clicking or popping sound. Those who can’t do this suffer from ear pressure on aeroplanes but those who can do it may suffer from something else, especially if they also have OCD and perhaps even more so if they suffered from chronic ear infections throughout childhood. Why? Because many cases of Tourette’s tics and OCD are triggered or made worse by the same Strep virus which causes upper respiratory tract infections; the ears, nose, throat, lungs.
Now some people with OCD become caught in involuntary compulsive loops to check and recheck, others to wash and rewash. My OCD had a blowout when I was about 9. I already had tics since age 2. By my OCD manifested in compulsive checking but more severely in compulsions to repeat patterns, to create exact rhythmic repetitions and balance and pairing, until things were indistinguishably ‘same’.
Now imagine this in a child with chronic ear, nose, throat, lung infections who is struggling with gunk that pressures the Eustachian tubes in the ears, blocking them, and creating persistently uneven pressure in one to the other. In me the glue ear and infections and meaning deafness drove me balmy enough but on top of that this compulsion to pop and repop and repop my ears lead to strained jaw and neck muscles, impaired breathing, lack of oxygen and ultimately extreme distress and depression.
At first it was just perplexing. What was this clicking, this popping in my ears. I could even do it to tunes. But then it took control of me, building from a novelty to a compulsion, to something I was compelled to do 20%, 30% finally sometimes 80% of my waking day. Try concentrating when you are constantly compelled to rebalance the pressure in your ears with this popping strategy. Try just getting on with it. Compulsive ear popping is an insidious tic or OCD compulsion because the environment can’t see when its happening so can’t help the person divert.
Anyway, I had such a holiday from this hellish compulsion, especially since a Haemophilus infection and 4 months of antibiotics ate much of my Strep, giving me a great holiday from co-morbids. But after all the nose and ear inflammation, the ear popping compulsion has returned to haunt me. First 20% of my day, then sometimes 80% then down again.
Some days good, some bad. Today it is giving me hassle. But I remember one of the worst things in late childhood was I couldn’t communicate it so I kept hitting myself in the ears and shaking my head. What of all the kids with this who can’t explain what they’re experiencing.
Once I could communicate in sentences with some fluency by age 11-13 one of the first things I asked was ‘my ears are clicking’. Nobody understood me, but in those days we had a tape recorder and mic so I grabbed the mic, stuck it to my ear and clicked away. My aunty was well amused and perplexed. She had me do it again this time with my mouth open. I remember she declared, ‘it really is coming from her ears’.
Still, it took me until the age of 46 to know exactly what was happening. I had the voluntary ability to open my Eustachian tubes in my ears, to pop my ears, and my OCD had taken that and played havoc with it, making something truly innocuous, even helpful, into a form of torture. Hopefully, when I lay off the bananas (they raise Dopamine which contributes to tics and OCD) and maybe take some Taurine (which is known to reduce OCD) this annoying flea will get off my back.
Donna Williams, Dip Ed, BA Hons.
Author, artist, singer-songwriter, screenwriter.
Autism consultant and public speaker.
http://www.myspace.com/nobodynowherethefilm
http://www.donnawilliams.net
http://www.aspinauts.com
Eh. Now you got me popping my ears, too.
I also have the same issue. Happens sporadically (several times per year and lasts several days). First time I have EVER heard of anyone having the same thing!!! Incredible to me!! It is a very frustrating “habit,” “compulsion,” etc.
Hi Randall, good to meet you. Yes, part of the problem is when you search for ‘ear clicking’ you find very little, but when you search ‘ear popping’ you find the info. Also, it was hard to know WHERE this was in the ears, I knew is was some kind of muscle thing, but only learned about Eustachian Tubes this year even though I dealt with ear infections throughout childhood. And I knew people had their ears ‘pop’ on planes and when they yawned but only this week saw that some people have the gene to do it voluntarily, but nobody had yet written about how it can become an involuntary compulsion, so I thought to write what happens when immune deficiency/inflammatory states, combine with OCD in someone with voluntary capacity to open their Eustachian tubes. Yes, it is annoying as hell. Mine sets in for anywhere from a day (if I’m SOOO lucky) to a week or weeks with respite in between but worst its been is 80% of my day for a whole 3 months. Mine is definitely linked to the immune problems. Grrrr. As if that stuff isn’t hard enough without this added beastie. Anyway, chewing gum seems to slow it down a bit, the compulsion can’t compete as much, and lowering dopamine/raising Taurine might help reduce the OCD levels, but if Strep is at play, OCD is like a fire being stoked. Grrr she says again. Recently my Haemophilus bug seemed to have eaten up my Strep, I was ill but so relieved of co-morbids. I hope this OCD crap doesn’t signal any return.
Thanks for the blog!! I am curently in day 5 of the “ear popping” as we say, but it does appear to be coming to an end (knock on wood). I would imagine that these issues are experienced by many more people who have simply not known how to describe it or get more info about it.
Thanks again!!!
I’m on about day 30 now. started out at around 10-20% I’m now at about 40% of my day and my jaw muscles are tense from it (grrr). good luck with yours.
i’ve been voluntarily popping my ears many times a day for years. i couldn’t even say for how long. certain sounds are also very painful to my ears, such as dishes slightly touching each other (such as when they are being put away). i wear earplugs much of the day and also to sleep.
i had chronic ear infections as a child, pneumonia, and tubes in my ears. i also was diagnosed with asperger’s at the age of 40, and think i remember reading somewhere that there’s a hypothesized connection between Eustachian tube dysfunction and autism.
if you find info on the link, do let me know.
Hi Donna,
I enjoyed your presentation last night ‘Walking in Autistic Shoes’ – Emerald.
As a way of introduction, I was the lady sitting on the front row (your right) who asked you about your feelings on acceptance.
I’m often asked by family, friends even complete strangers “Do you think your son will grow up to be normal?” My first thought is often – Good Lord, he’s only six! This question always makes me giggle, my usual response is “Define normal?” I see a raised eyebrow (or two) a puzzled look followed by an awkward smile, it’s a real conversation stopper.
I’m not sure if the world as diverse as it is, will ever find equilibrium, equality and acceptance but it’s people like you Donna, who have fun trying to bring that together.
Thank you for sharing your life and dreams with your audience.
Finally, some information on my annoying habit! I find myself doing it so often my ears start to wiggle (its kind of embarrasing for a 42 yr old guy). I’ve been thinking about asking my dr. to prescribe me muscle relaxers because after about an hour of clicking my entire head, neck and throat feel stressed. Do you know of anything other than Taurine that helps? Is this ear popping a sign of some other disorder that I may have?
Thank you,
JJ
Hi JJ, yes, the ear popping can be underpinned by something called Eustacian Tube Dysfunction which is where the Eustacian tubes in the ears have become too stretched and don’t go back into place well (symmetrically) so in someone with OCD or tics it could trigger an ear popping tic.
as for uscle relaxants, do a search here on Mellowmania and Lemon Balm tea… its a muscle relaxant.
good luck
I wish I found this blog a lot sooner, hopefully there are still readers to comment and provide some advice.
Reading this blog and it’s comments alone has taught me a lot about the habit of my voluntary ear popping.
Everyone’s blog, along with many other sites, has touched on almost everything I needed to know except for the fact that the development of my story of my ear clicking differs from everyones. At first, a year ago, nothing was wrong as far as ear clicking, pressure, pops, etc. I dealt with ear pops regularly sometimes when I yawn, swimming in pools, and flying in planes. Nothing was wrong until…
I noticed that my ears started to tic about a year ago after my ex-doctor prescribed me a nose medicine that I inhaled. The tics (I initiated) started to become more frequent, then eventually occurred a lot only after I finished work. I assumed it was because my mind needed to be kept busy along with the stress I wanted to avoid. The voluntary tics eventually started to become from 5 times a minute to 20 times a minute depending on the task I am doing I suppose. Now, approximately a year later, I click my ears throughout my whole day sometimes in “patterns”, to feel a “balance/pairing”, or to fill the urge/compulsion; with up to 20-40 instances a day.
Something that makes me want to cry inside is that sometimes, when I have to urge to click my ears until it feels okay, I lose concentration at work or distract myself in the middle of conversations. I also at times forget things because of the need to tend to my urge/compulsion. By the way I am in banking, full time employee. I also religiously incorporate exercise, but I tend to be inconsistent (same for nutrition).
I have tried many times to stop, and force myself to stop. But even with that I involuntarily click my ears when I swallow (bigger concern) and yawn (less of concern). I had pneumonia when I was 11 (I am now 21), and several ear infections from beach/pool when I was a child. Its just that the series of events that played along in the last year that led to my so called compulsion does not add up if I blame my childhood experiences. It would make sense that some minor case of “OCD took my ear popping and played havoc with it”. However, most of my worries is the feeling that my ear being able to click won’t go away. Some blogs give me hope in saying it will go away after 6 months/eventually, and sometimes not where some individuals experience this their whole life.
And let me say that this is the first “blog” I EVER did
With this I have learned that everyone’s blog is important and deserves to be read.
Thank you!
There are medications for OCD and Tourette’s, but generally on a natural side its about raising serotonin and lowering dopamine, so laying off the bananas can help, but sometimes 2000mg L-Glutamine might help (30 day trial) as it raises GABA/serotonin hence lowers anxiety… the other one for OCD is inositol. Here’s a link may help http://www.suite101.com/content/natural-remedy-for-ocd-and-anxiety-a22519 but re therapists, Cognitive Behavioural Therapists help people through OCD… my tics are often immune related, but certainly other times just set off by high anxiety.
Much appreciated. God Bless.
Thank you SO much for writing about this subject. I thought I was “the only one” with this problem!
First of all, I should say that although never diagnosed with OCD, I did play OCD-like games as a child. As I grew up, this OCD tendency seemed to go mostly underground in me…instead I dealt with more garden-variety anxiety/panic disorder, some depression issues, etc.
I never knew someone could develop a “tic” as an adult. But oh yes, one certainly can.
My ear tic madness began this past January after a bad double ear infection brought on by barotrauma led to the dreaded scenario of chronic eustachian tube dysfunction. My ETD has been very slow to heal. Somewhere along the way, I realized that I could flex the tensor veli palatini muscle in the back of my neck and click open my eustachian tubes to try, often vainly, to equalize maddening feelings of pressure in the middle ear space. I could do this without anyone noticing it. Much more discrete than attempting multiple valsalvas.
Even now that my e-tubes have healed to the point where they function somewhat on their own, I still feel compelled — at the first sign of any fullness in either ear — to start clicking away. In fact, I will do a few tentative clicks and pops as soon as I awake in the morning, just to test the water. I can get into loops where I click and click, sometimes up to, I’m guessing, 30-40 times a minute. Needless to see, I end up with sore, tense areas all along my jaw and throat from the strain. I worry that I may even be harming myself by this constant clicking of muscles that aren’t supposed to be flexed hundreds of times a day.
I read an account on one of the online forums of a young man so troubled by his voluntary clicking that he was trying to find a doctor willing to inject Botox into the muscles at the back of his throat. I am not sure what happened to the guy…his postings were from about 6 years ago. Hopefully he was able to find a resolution of his tics without having to paralyze muscles in a risky fashion, although I can certainly understand the frustration he felt.
Has anyone come out of this madness? I tell myself every day that I will stop clicking, but if anything, after 9 months of ETD, my clicking is worse than ever. I get an ever-building tension if I try to resist “one last click”…and so that one last click is never the end of it. The only thing I’ve found to give me temporary respite is a low dose of generic klonapin. It does suggest that there is an anxiety element feeding into this crazy compulsion of mine. I’m exhausted by it, just exhausted.
you could make a money box and have to pay money in for each click, see if you can set up a competing stimulus. another idea could be yoga, or hypnotherapy for relaxation.
Thanks, Donna. The money box is a good idea. With the rate of clicking/popping I am doing lately, I may be able to save for a winter vacation doing this!
I have to say, the ETD itself is feeling much relieved by the addition of a top-rated HEPA filter that runs continually in my bedroom. Apparently, I am allergic to mold and three local grasses, and ETD can have an underlying allergy basis. So the popping I am doing presently is by rote/habit rather than for physical relief of symptoms.
yes, my tics fire when I get strep infections and immune suppression can raise autoimmune reactions… allergies… so might be that boosting immunity also helps… like 2000mg vit C as a natural antihistamine, echnicea/astragalus/propolis, or just see a naturopath to see if boosting immunity may also help.
I never tought I would find anything about this on the Internet, as I didn’t even quite know what to search for. Thank you for explaining things, I was starting to think that I’m turning mad.
I’m 31 years old and the compulsive clicking started for me about 3 weeks while on an overseas holiday, could it somehow be linked to the long haul flight?
I remember having the same thing for a while at some point in my teenage years, but never tought much about it or that It could ever return, I am an adult now after all.. How wrong I was and how awfully annoying it is..