The Airplane Ear Hack TikTok Is Obsessed With

Shelby Heiskell was flying home to Kentucky from California over Thanksgiving when a rough descent gave rise to an airplane ear hack that has now been watched by millions. The Kentucky mom and TikTok creator, who posts as @babygriffin, was congested from a virus she had picked up the week before, and as the plane descended, her ear popped so hard she told Fox News Digital it felt as if her eardrum was going to explode. Chewing gum, yawning, and pinching her nose and blowing did nothing, so she buried her face in a flight pillow to keep from scaring her son.

Then a flight attendant noticed her distress, said she had just the thing, and came back with the makings of an airplane ear hack: a disposable coffee cup holding a steaming hot, damp washcloth. The attendant told Heiskell to press the cup over her ear, and that was the whole airplane ear hack. Heiskell said the relief was almost immediate. It did not fix the temporary hearing loss, she said, but it soothed the pain and took away the feeling of pressure building behind the eardrum.

Heiskell posted the story on TikTok, where the video passed six million views. The comments filled up with people who said the trick was new to them, plus flight attendants saying they use the same move for babies and toddlers by holding a cup over each ear. Heiskell tried the airplane ear hack again on her next flight, this time with napkins instead of a hot towel, and said it worked just as well. She captioned the post that she owed the attendant one, adding that a crew member on her second flight didn't know the trick, which is why she shared it.

Why the steam seems to work

Airplane ear happens when the air pressure in the middle ear and the cabin fall out of balance, which puts stress on the eardrum. According to Mayo Clinic, the mismatch stops the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane, from moving the way it usually does. A narrow passage called the eustachian tube links the middle ear to the back of the nose and throat, and it is supposed to equalize the pressure. When a plane climbs or descends fast, the tube often cannot react in time, and that is what causes the pain. The National Institutes of Health's MedlinePlus lists ear pain, a stuffed feeling, hearing loss, and dizziness as common symptoms of ear barotrauma. You can also read Mayo Clinic's full overview of airplane ear causes for the mechanics.

Why this airplane ear hack seems to work comes down to that bottleneck. Dr. Purvi Parikh, a New York allergist with the Allergy and Asthma Network, told Fox News Digital that the steam from the hot towel in the cup likely opened up the eustachian tube, relieving the pressure and pain, and added that breathing steam in through the nose would work for the same reason. Parikh said she had not heard of the specific method before, but she regularly recommends steam to patients as a way to clear congestion.

The same explanation covers why Heiskell was in so much trouble to begin with. Parikh said the pain comes from the eustachian tube being blocked by outside factors like allergies and infections, and children are more susceptible because their tubes are smaller. Flying with a cold, a sinus infection, or a stuffy nose makes the blockage worse, which is exactly what happened to her.

How to stay ahead of the pressure

The cup is a rescue move, but the better version of this airplane ear hack is prevention. Mayo Clinic recommends yawning and swallowing during takeoff and landing to open the eustachian tubes, and notes that sucking on candy or chewing gum makes swallowing easier. Another option is the Valsalva maneuver: pinching the nostrils shut, keeping the mouth closed, and gently blowing as if blowing the nose, repeated several times while the plane lands.

Staying awake during takeoffs and landings helps, since pressure equalizing only happens if you are actually doing the moves. For a stuffy nose, Mayo Clinic advises using a nasal spray from half an hour to an hour before takeoff and landing. People with allergies can take their allergy medicine about an hour before the flight, and decongestant pills taken by mouth may help if taken in the same window, though the clinic warns against them for anyone with heart disease, high blood pressure, a heart rhythm disorder, or pregnancy. Filtered earplugs sold at drugstores and airport gift shops can help even out the pressure, but the clinic says you still need to yawn and swallow with them in.

Heiskell's commenters shared their own preflight routines, and the most popular ones are really this airplane ear hack done in advance. Many said they take a decongestant a day before flying and again forty-five minutes before boarding, spray Flonase at boarding time, and fly with pressure-equalizing earplugs sold under the Ear Planes name. Several said they take another decongestant after landing to head off any lingering ear trouble.

If the fullness or muffled hearing hangs around for more than a few days, the move is to call a doctor rather than waiting it out, according to Mayo Clinic. The cup trick eases the symptom, and the rest of the routine lowers the odds of landing in trouble. Put the airplane ear hack together with a basic prevention plan and you have a solid strategy for anyone who dreads the descent. Fox News Digital's report on the viral video has the full account. For more practical routines, see the Life Hacks piece on sleep for the November clock change, and if you are planning the trip that needs the hack, Singapore's magnetic omakase bar is one more reason to keep flying.