a couple of nights ago, water got in my ear in the shower and being the waxy person that i am, it clogged my ear. when i got out, i tried to use a bobby pin to clean it out but i just packed it in even more, and i haven't been able to hear out of my right ear all weekend. i don't think it's infected as it doesn't hurt if i don't mess with it, but i do hear some ringing. can a ear clogged with wax be, er, harmful in anyway? do i have to worry about "pressure building up" or whatever? i plan to get it irrigated tomorrow...
I would be more worried about what that bobby pin did to your ear while it was inside more than anything. If you scratched the walls of your ear, it could very well get infected. And if it hurts when you touch it, then it probably means that you did do something to it. I would recommend getting some ear drying treatment from CVS. Its over the counter, its mostly just this saline solution that will dry the water in your ear.
That's what I was looking for. I was trying to find it in google. "However, we all know that this isn'talways so. When wax has accumulated so much that it blocks theear canal (and hearing), your physician may have to wash it out,vacuum it, or remove it with special instruments. Alternatively,your physician may prescribe ear drops what are designed to softenthe wax (such as Cerumenex). You may first wish to try an over-the-counter productsuch as Debrox or Murine Ear Drops. If your ear still feels blockedafter using these drops, you should consult your physician. Youmust know that you do not have a hole (perforation or puncture)in your eardrum. Putting ear wax softeners in your ear in thepresence of an eardrum perforation may cause an infection. Similarly,simply washing ones ear in the presence of a perforation may startan infection. If you are uncertain whether or not you have ahole in your eardrum, consult your physician. Some patients willhave a hypersensitivity to these products. If pain, tendernessor a local skin rash develops, you should discontinue the useof these drops." http://www.answers.com/topic/earwax-1
i mean, it's 100% completely blocked, so i don't think any of these systems will work. i'm just worried about any effects of the wax staying there for a period of time....it doesn't make sense that anything should happen, as it just blocks hearing. so just making sure. thanks guys.
I had the same problem 2 summers ago, went to the doctor's office, and the nice lady advised me to apply some hydrogen peroxide and baby oil(1 drop each) to the (effected) ear every night and come back a week later. I did what she asked, and got most of the hearing back 2 days later. and when i went back a week later, she used this "watergun" thingy to suck the rest of the wax out... Oh, and I tried to use some cotton swap and paper clip(lol) to get the wax out at first, and the reason the doc ask me to apply the peroixde is because she saw some redness and marks inside my ear... hope this helps
Yeah thats what happened to me too. They told me I could do what you did or if I was too lazy to make it myself, to go get the over the counter ear drying solution. I let mine go on for a while and it developed into an infection. So do it quickly because apparently I had the same marks. I just was too lazy and thought it would take care of itself and so didnt bother about it until it was too late.
My school clinic gave me a bottle of peroxide to put 4 drops twice a day in order to soften the wax. I came back a week later and two nurses had to use the water gun on my right ear. The gun was hand injected, so one nurse actually had to rest her wrist while the other one switched for her. I must've heard the question of whether I used peroxide on the ear 4 or 5 times. The whole thing took around 15 minutes with all this brown gunk coming out 2 or 3 squirts or so. There was so much crap in my ear that I couldn't justify it from being bed ridden a week earlier from injury. When the last chunk came out, I thought I had the ears of a baby or something as every sound was crisp from the sound of fabric when touching my clothes to a cell phone conversation 100 feet away. Driving home, I was chuckling at the thought of doctors and nurses spending years in medical school only to clean the earwax out of other people.
man i think the docs are in for it tomorrow. it feels like i have pounds and pounds of gunk all up in my here right now. i'm still amazing how so much crud can come out of such a tiny hole. (please refrain from perverted jokes)
I have regular wax build up in my ears. I use to have to go to the doctor at least once every two years. I know its getting bad when I take a shower and the water stays in my ears for two long and doesn't dry up. It hampers my hearing; almost sounds like your in a tunnel. The doctor gave me a large syringe and told me to mix hydrogen perioxide and water. I stick the syringe in my ear and the pressure from the water cleans out my ear. Be sure to have someone shoot the water in while you hold a bowl or something under your ear to catch everything. It feels weird and may hurt, but it works. Cleans me all up.
Yeah I know how that feels when your sense of hearing just becomes insane for a little while. Worst part about it was that I had a truck honk its horn next to me a few minutes right after so that did not feel good.
I also have a problem with ear wax buildup. It has been awhile since I have had to use hydrogen peroxide but that is what I do. Just pour some in the ear that is affected; you will feel it working right away as I can always see it bubbling. After the bubbling stops, I always lie that side that has the hydrogen peroxide on a washcloth or towel. Then I get a syringe and fill it up with water and blast the wax out. I have never had to go to the doctor for this. Personally, I think you should try this before going to the doctor - it really isn't hard to do.
Dude, don't mess around with these tpye of things. I know from first-hand exeprience. Get it removed ASAP. When I was in 5th grade, my ear would constantly be leaving bloody/waxy marks on my pillowcase almost every night. One morning, it got so bad, and I woke up and my thyroids were so swollen I couldn't move my neck. My mom rushed me to the doctor, and they told me I had a busted ear drum. The same thing happened about a week later, and we went back, where they referred me to a specialist (Dr. Raney of Tomball....GREEAT Doctor). Anyways, come to find out, I had what is called a cholesteotoma in my left ear. Basically, that's a fnacy word of a tumor caused by packed wax. I spent at least one day each week of fifth grade at Dr. Raney's office, which led me to Texas Children's downtown once a week. Finally, they scheduled a surgery for the end of Februrary and sent me to get CAT Scans. I got them, and they scheduled me for emergency surgery the next day, because it was much worse than they thought. Basically, a 2 and a half hour surgery turned into five, and they said I could have gotten brain damage or died had they waited till the original surgery time... Basically, get that puppy fixed and checked up.
good gracious you're scaring the bejeezus out of me. i mean it's only been for 2 days now...i doubt i need emergency surgery anytime soon. i plan to get it fixed within the next couple of days. you must have let it go for years and years, am i correct?
You PUT wax in your ears? Seriously, I've heard many times not to go overboard on cleaning your ears. Sticking bobby pins and paper clips and cotton swabs supposedly can cause more damage than good. I wear ear plugs daily on my commute to work so I don't know if I'm packing earwax onto my eardrum or not.
I have no idea. The problem was that I was young and had no idea what was normal or not. I just used Q-tips, but I think that they had the opposite effect of what they should have, because I probably used them wrong.
