Blocked Up Ear

tinofapples · 17-02-2003 9:33am #1

I don't know if I've chosen the right place to post my thread but couldn't find a Health section .

I've been having a problem the last 3/4 days where my left ear feels completely blocked up . This occured after i "cleaned" it out with a cotton bud , which I didn't push in too far.

It has deafened me considerably and isn't the first time for it to happen . Last summer the same thing happened , I even went to my GP with it but he said it would be fine and would clear in a few days ( Thanks Alot , here's €40 ).

Does anyone else ever get this ? And if so how the hell to ya unblock it without departing with €40.

Cheers

Meh · 17-02-2003 9:38am

Probably impacted earwax. Ask your pharmacist for ear drops to soften it up, and it if it doesn't clear in a few days, get the doctor to syringe it.

Saruman · 17-02-2003 9:56am

You can also try block your nose with your fingers or something then try and blow through your nose.. can help sometimes.

But get some drops to break up the wax.

Yavvy · 17-02-2003 9:57am

yeah i get this...I clean my ears every day with buds and from time to time the ear reacts by producing too much wax ( apperently) ...I find it clears up after about 48hrs...yours sounds a bit more serious as I never get deffened.

parasite · 17-02-2003 10:20am

umm ...it's almost definitely not wax, more like blocked/narrow eustachian tube causing negative pressure in your inner ear
it can become inflamed/blocked through a sinus infection... so yeah, blow your nose really really hard

i'd go to a good specialist if it persists
(note: i have paid 150 yoyo's for a consultation :eek:)

Saruman · 17-02-2003 10:25am

Originally posted by parasite
umm ...it's almost definitely not wax, more like blocked/narrow eustachian tube causing negative pressure in your inner ear
it can become inflamed/blocked through a sinus infection... so yeah, blow your nose really really hard

i'd go to a good specialist if it persists
(note: i have paid 150 yoyo's for a consultation :eek:)

Maybe its also a Parasite!
Anyway try this:
http://www.mckinley.uiuc.edu/health-info/dis-cond/cold/eusttube.html

Has info about what he is talking about.

Gordon · 17-02-2003 12:21pm

I get this every year and coincidentally I am getting it again right now - snap!

When I get it it is because of a wax build up. Occasionally it is sore and the rest of times it is an inconvenience as you are deaf on one side. If it is wax build up I get my ear syringed - the only way. The first time I got my ear syringed I did it myself - I WOULD NOT ADVISE ANYONE TO DO THIS. You can burst your ear drum - you can make yourself deaf permanently. It is done (by the doctor) by scooshing warm water into your ear in the correct angle to force the wax out. I tell you, the feeling I got after the wax came out was phenomenal by the way.

As for the eustacian tube thing - go to the doctor! (tm)

I heavily recommend seeing a doctor if you have ear problems.

parasite · 17-02-2003 12:32pm

i guess it could be any number of things, go to a specialist
GP's know **** !
heh

Dr. Loon · 17-02-2003 1:58pm

I have this right now myself. Get it every now and again, and I use drops from the chemist. It's a bit of a písser alright... but no big deal

tinofapples · 17-02-2003 2:06pm

I've tried blowing out through my nose and even trying to blow through my ear by holding my nostril's closed but it's not improving .

I just got the ear drops in the chemist @ lunchtime so I'll try them .

The doc or specialist is the very last option I value my few €'s a bit more than giving it them especially the GP.

What would I have to do anyway , wouldn't I have to go see my GP first , and get him to refer me to a specialist ???

Any idea does Bupa cover this ?

Carbiens · 17-02-2003 2:10pm

kinda embarrasing this, but that happened to me when i was around 14/15 i had it for about 4 months, and the doctor said it was hormonal

btw i dont have any hormonal problems, apparently its fairly common

parasite · 17-02-2003 2:11pm

in a private clinic , you don't need a referral, just the yoyo's

health > money

how can you live not knowing exactly what's wrong ?
serious ear infections can leave you paralysed (!)

whatever

Praetorian · 17-02-2003 2:11pm

I always clean my ears out after a shower...usually just with a piece of tissue paper...The one time I saw some cotton buds...big mistake!

I was practicly deaf in BOTH EARS!! The Drops do work to a certain extent...but a visit to your local nurse is the best solution. They do not use syringes anymore...they use some sort of water pump contraption....no pain at all...in fact it felt quite nice

If you have pushed the wax really far in …no amount of drops will fix it.

Meh · 17-02-2003 2:11pm

Originally posted by tinofapples
What would I have to do anyway , wouldn't I have to go see my GP first , and get him to refer me to a specialist ???

No, your GP will be able to handle the ear syringing fine, no need for a consultant. It's just a routine procedure -- takes only about a minute and doesn't hurt at all. It will cost you less than BUPA's excess though -- I paid about €30 the last time I had it done.

Make sure you use the ear drops in both ears for a few days before you go see the doctor, as the syringing does no good if the wax isn't already softened up by the eardrops.

Chaos · 17-02-2003 2:15pm

Happens to me once a year ish

i think once you get it you will always get it but what you do is goto your doc and he'll syringe your ear or goto pharmacy and get some Audex ear drops...

parasite · 17-02-2003 2:17pm

most obscure 'hot' topic ever ?

Saruman · 17-02-2003 4:56pm

A lot of advice against cotton buds here but i use them all the time and it rarely happens to me.. and if it does its only a few hours at most. I try and clean them with cotton buds every day.

The only time i had a bad case i was in the gym and it was nothing to do with wax... i started out too fast and my hearing and senses went a little, like i was about to black out... came back fine after a few moments but one of my ears was blocked.. very annoying.. combined with a runny nose it was a pain... after an hour or so it was fine.... very annoying on the treadmill though.

rachel · 17-02-2003 7:47pm

I read an article in the paper about 2 weeks ago which was all about these ear candle things.
From what i remember, they're available from health stores and unblock ears supposedly.
It does involves sticking one of these lighted candles into your ear so make sure no around has a camera if you attempt this.
I can't go as far to recommend them as I have no first hand experience but the journalist using said they found them excellent.

Gordon · 17-02-2003 10:05pm

Originally posted by rachel

It does involves sticking one of these lighted candles into your ear

rofl!

Funny also to think that a way of getting rid of wax is by sticking a load of wax in your ear!

Korg · 17-02-2003 10:20pm

My ears were blocked about a year or so ago & like tinofapples i was quite deaf in one of them. A couple of months before i bought these tiny black sony headphones that squish right into your ear, they sound great but the doctor reckoned each day i was squishing them into my ear a little more wax was shoved closer to the canal, until there was no more room!. It's only a theory of course & could be way off the mark, but it hasn't happened scince or ever before owning those headphones, so beware of tiny sony headphones

phaxx · 17-02-2003 10:47pm

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this solution yet.

After getting the thing syringed a couple of times, I thought "feck that" and did it myself with the jet of water from the shower. We have one that lets you adjust the power/number of jets, which is useful. Your eat gets a bit of a battering, but it clears up, and as gordon says, does feel great when it suddenly unblocks.

Bear in mind I'm not actually sticking anything INTO my ear, so there's no risk, the shower isn't particularly powerful and I don't run it very hot.

pickarooney · 17-02-2003 11:08pm

Anyone else reckon there's a fortune to be made with a new sub-heading in the Commercial Interaction section called "Ask Dr. Nick - All consultations a fiver" ?

spod · 18-02-2003 1:20am

Originally posted by phaxx
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this solution yet.

[snip]

I thought "feck that" and did it myself with the jet of water from the shower.

http://www2.vhihealthe.com/topic/swimmersear

Swimmers Ear is why nobody else has mentioned it.

That and some power showers could actually rupture an ear drum possibly.

Oh and swimmers ear probably explains alot of the rest of your ear aches.

Very common.

(for once my time as a lifeguard has proved useful on boards)

tinofapples · 18-02-2003 8:20am

Well , I tried the drops last night and no big change since. Hopefully they will kick in and loosen that s**** !!

The candles you are on about are called Hopi candles and as you said can be bought in health shops .
They were recommended to me by a work colleague last summer but have admit they didn't do anything for me having cost €12.
The girl that recommended them said her hubbie uses them once a year and swears by them , he claims he can hear the grass growing after using them !!
Maybe I just wasn't using them right but they did f all for me

Later

Meh · 18-02-2003 9:16am

Originally posted by tinofapples
The girl that recommended them said her hubbie uses them once a year and swears by them , he claims he can hear the grass growing after using them !!
Maybe I just wasn't using them right but they did f all for me

Not surprised they had no effect. Ear candles are a scam, according to the US Food and Drugs Administration

Why Candling Can't Work

Since wax is sticky, the negative pressure needed to pull wax from the canal would have to be so powerful that it would rupture the eardrum in the process. However, candling produces no vacuum. Researchers who measured the pressure during candling of ear models found that no negative pressure was created. The same investigators candled eight ears and found that no ear wax was removed and candle wax was actually deposited in some of them! [3]

The notion that the ear canal is connected to structures beyond the eardrum is false. A review of a good anatomy book should dispel this notion. The external ear canal, with an intact eardrum, is not connected to the brain, the sinuses targeted by the procedure (those above your eyes), or the Eustacean tubes (the passageways between the internal ear and the back of the throat). While some claim that the eardrum is porous and quickly allows impurities to pass through, this is untrue. The "impurities" that appear in the collected wax (usually on a paper plate or other collecting device) are nothing more than the ashes from the burnt wick and wax of the cone itself.

parasite · 18-02-2003 6:27pm

what's the word for peopple who believe a placebo works ...ahhh what is it ??

phaxx · 18-02-2003 8:07pm

Originally posted by spod

Swimmers Ear is why nobody else has mentioned it.

That and some power showers could actually rupture an ear drum possibly.

Oh and swimmers ear probably explains alot of the rest of your ear aches.

Very common.

I wasn't aware of that. I knew it couldn't be completely good for you, but I didn't think so it could be so bad...
It has been months since it happened last - wouldn't it be reasonably safe every three months or so?

I'm not talking about a powerful shower by the way, just warm water swirling around in there.

tinofapples · 19-02-2003 9:43am

Well , I've almost certainly given up on the drops . No improvement using them .

I am however gonna give my chemist one more try. Last summer when I got this I went to the Doc , he told me to get Ilvico tablets , which I did . I didn't think they made much difference at the time but it did eventually clear up.

Chances are if I go back to him now he'll tell me the same thing anyway so I guess I might as well give them a go .

Dr. Loon · 19-02-2003 10:59am

Originally posted by tinofapples
Well , I've almost certainly given up on the drops . No improvement using them .

As I said, I've had this for the last couple of days. I've been using drops since Sunday - Cerumol ear drops. This morning it's gone. It usually takes about 2-3 days for me. I suppose it depends on how compacted the wax is.

I'd say another day and you should get em syringed

mooman_00 · 19-02-2003 12:59pm

holding your nose and blowing isnt gonna do anything as your only changing the pressure of your ear internally you cant actually blow out your ear unless you have a burst ear drum so trying to blow out the blockage is pointless. as for cotton buds i use one everyday after my shower during which i let some hot water run into my ear(nothing forcefull) ive never had any problems

Scruff · 19-02-2003 1:55pm

i use the cotton buds but dont shove them right in. just clean the outer part of the canal so me ears dont look all dirty but generally dont really have a problem with wax. i think its more i hear everything but can be a selective listener when it suits.

My dad got a bad dose of ear wax about 2 years ago. he went to the doctor who said basically that as he was starting to push on a bit in years he was probably going slightly deaf and sent him off to get hearing aids.
After a couple of weeks my dad was getting really depressed and iritable cause the hear aids were doing fook all good and his hearing was getting worse. Mother packed him off to another doc who took a look at his inner ear canal and promptly syringed his ear. **** load of wax came out-> problem solved. dad + family delighted.

tinofapples · 19-02-2003 4:28pm

Dr.Loon ?

How many times a day are you using the drops , they're the ones I got too ?

Is twice a day enough ?

Dr. Loon · 19-02-2003 4:49pm

Originally posted by tinofapples
Dr.Loon ?

How many times a day are you using the drops , they're the ones I got too ?

Is twice a day enough ?

For the past 3 days, I've only actually used them before I go to kip because that way I can lie down on my side and really let them get into the ear.

Also , in the morning try massaging behind the ear, to help loosen the wax more. It should come out by itself, so try not to dig cotton buds or anything in there cos it'll just compact the wax down again.

If it's not working after 4 days I'd go to the doctor...

tinofapples · 20-02-2003 8:52am

I've had this for almost a week now , I got the drops on Monday and no improvement.
Today I go to see the doctor but he won't be getting any of my money !!

logic1 · 20-02-2003 9:05am

Originally posted by parasite
what's the word for peopple who believe a placebo works ...ahhh what is it ??

Morons.

.logic.

tinofapples · 20-02-2003 2:00pm

Well , problem solved after a visit to the doc.

I had the syringe done in the problematic ear . Jesus , I felt dizzy and sick after it. I thought I was gonna hurl !!

Well worth it though !! Hearing is better than ever in that ear now .

Thanks lads !!

p.s Forgot to mention I went to the company doctor , didn't cost be a cent .

Blocked Up Ear

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