Swallow or Yawn

• Sometimes when you drink water or other liquids, suck on candy, chew gum or even just swallow with nothing in your mouth, just the act of swallowing helps to equalize the pressure in your ears. This is because swallowing uses muscles that open the Eustachian tubes. These are the tubes that connect your inner ear to your nasal passages. Another good way to open these passages by using these muscles is to yawn.
  
  

Blow Your Nose

• If swallowing doesn't equalize the pressure in your ears, a more dramatic way to pop your ears is to pinch your nostrils closed with your thumb and forefinger and then 'blow' your nose as if you were trying to clear it of mucus by blowing into a tissue. It is best to try to blow your nose gently, and to only try this method if swallowing or yawning does not work. Blowing your nose forcefully may actually damage your eardrums.
  
  

Medication

• If repeated swallowing or blowing your nose doesn't pop your ears, then you can try to take a decongestant. Decongestants work by shrinking the membranes in the nasal passages. This includes the membrane around the opening of the Eustachian tubes. Avoid using this method for more than a few days in a row. Overusing decongestants can actually cause congestion.
  
  

Alcohol and Peroxide

• In some situations, a buildup of ear wax can prevent your ears from popping normally. Ear wax is meant to protect your ears from infection. It contains lubricating and antibacterial properties that help the inner ear resist infection. However, if you attempt to clean out ear wax with a cotton swab, you can actually push the ear wax deeper into your ear. To clean out ear wax, mix a solution of equal parts rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide from your medicine cabinet and water. Drop this into your ear, and allow it to loosen the ear wax. The ear wax should drain away with the solution when you clean your ears. If it does not, see a doctor and have him "irrigate" your ears by washing them with a syringe. Never attempt to irrigate your own ears. You could accidentally rupture your eardrum in the process.