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Ear problem help needed

the tidy gardenerthe tidy gardener Posts: 591
in The potting shed
Hi guys
This is a bit left field on this website but anyone got any tips on earache? I've had it for a few days.ringing in ears,got better after using otex but tonight the most unbearable pain.think I got water in it after a bath,got a warm hot water bottle and had ibuprofen.darent put anymore otex in.anyone got any advice?? 
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Posts

  • GrasslyGrassly Posts: 66
    Ear infection or could it be a perforated eardrum? Obviously I can't give medical advice but if it stays painful or with ringing you would need to seek advice from GP or 111,  Hope it feels better soon.
  • TopbirdTopbird Posts: 8,355
    Non-medical advice but I regularly have problem with blocked ears.

    I’ve always been advised not to use Otex which can be very harsh on the ear canal. Olive or almond oil (warmed in your hands) is gentler and therefore better.

    However, I wouldn’t put anything else in the ear until someone has had a look down there. It sounds as though you could have an infection.

    I think you should phone your GP’s surgery in the morning and follow the directions for getting an emergency appointment over the weekend. If you’re in a lot of pain or have a temperature it can’t wait in case you have something like an abscess forming in there.

    If it feels better in the morning maybe it can wait until Monday.
    Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    edited October 2020
    I'm sorry to hear you are suffering so badly.
    If it is really is 'unbearable pain', phone 111 and/or an ambulance.
  • AstroAstro Posts: 433
    I've had ear problems on a few occasions,  with ringing and struggling to hear. I found that sometimes the otex can make it feel worse before it gets better though I wouldn't say it's caused me much beyond mild pain and itching.

     Using warm olive oil is often advised  and it has no active ingredients, though if your eardrum is perforated then it's likely not to be used . Obviously pushing anything like cotton buds etc in your ear isn't  a good idea.

    Congested sinuses can also cause earache so that could be something to consider. In the past I had what I thought was earache and it was caused by my jaw rather than my ear. 

    As Grassly says seeking medical advice would be a good idea if it doesn't seem to improve. 




  • the tidy gardenerthe tidy gardener Posts: 591
    Thankyou everyone!I did call 111 as I just didnt know what to do and when pain is like that you feel scared.they were very good and eventually the pain subsided and I had a good nights sleep.its tender this morning but no swelling so I think it was getting water in it last night.i will not be getting on a helicopter for precautions tho that wasnt me!
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    I use warm olive oil, inserted with a small 1mm syringe, every month just as a precaution.  Put a tiny ball of cotton wool in to keep the oil in your ear,  then sleep on the opposite side. 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • SueAtooSueAtoo Posts: 380
    Earol (think ear'ole) has a canny little applicator that squirts neatly in your ear and it's only olive oil and water.
    East Dorset, new (to me) rather neglected garden.
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    For those who do use Otex, we bought a couple of boxes on line recently.  Each box contained the usual white 'bottle' PLUS a rubber container with a fine tube that one can squeeze to fill it with water and syringe one's own ear.
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    The best thing to do is leave your ears alone. I got a perforated eardrum from poking about. Not far enough to get to the eardrum but introduced an infection. I learnt my lesson. 
    Ears are designed to clean themselves. If you have  a wax blockage put in a little olive oil to soften it and let nature take its course.
    The main ingredients of otex are hydrogen peroxide and pee.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • GrasslyGrassly Posts: 66
    @B3 Glad you said that as it is definitely best to leave ears alone, they are self cleaning as you said.
    If majorly blocked then olive oil for a while and if that doesn't work, microsuction done by a professional (speaking form experience here).
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