Deaf for a week

DorsetDude

DorsetDude

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Keith
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Even though I wear earplugs in the water, a swim last week made me slightly deaf in one ear. Have had this before and cured as follows usually.
Ive been dripping in "Nowax" eardrops and also Otex Rapid drops. So far nothing, although occasionally the ear will "open" briefly then I go back to being deaf.
Ive been to my GP before with this and they wont do syringing, just tell me to drip olive oil in.

Any one else suffered similar and any tips?

Thanks
 
Well my "nowax" has just run out. I happened to notice the best before date of 2009 on it as I binned it. Oh dear. Otex and olive oil for now then.

As I say my GP wont do any water jet type stuff. They say its too dangerous. Maybe I need a new GP!
 
DorsetDude said:
Even though I wear earplugs in the water, a swim last week made me slightly deaf in one ear. Have had this before and cured as follows usually.
Ive been dripping in "Nowax" eardrops and also Otex Rapid drops. So far nothing, although occasionally the ear will "open" briefly then I go back to being deaf.
Ive been to my GP before with this and they wont do syringing, just tell me to drip olive oil in.

Any one else suffered similar and any tips?

Thanks
Click to expand...

I find this helps http://www.boots.com/en/Audiclean-Total-Ear-Care-System_1178952/
Cheaper at Amazon if your prepared to wait on delivery, I wear two hearing aids all day and I find my ears occasionally get clogged up with gunge cos the air circulation is not as good as a non hearing aid person. Could also be a bit stubborn wax lying against the eardrum, Audiclean might have enough pressure to clear it, it's a aerosol in the ear, pretty much like getting them syringed.
 
Cheers Frank, that looks a great idea. (y)

As a bonus I presume I could use it on my A4? ;)
 
Has the kwak actually said it's a wax problem?
If it's not, there's no point at all in syringing.
Sounds more like fluid getting into the middle ear.
Not much to be done about that except wait for it to drain naturally.
 
Although I don't work with ears, nor am I a practice nurse, I am a qualified nurse. :)
Any ENT specialist will tell you not to put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear........but we all do it. Shoving anything, even ear plugs into your ear, can shove wax further down the ear canal. Doing this on a regular basis can eventually block it, hence the deafness. Some people are more prone to wax build-up than others. I've had problems like this myself, and had my ears syringed about 3 times in my life.

Your GP practice should syringe your ears. At the end of the day, if you're deaf , you're deaf. If they're blocked, they're blocked. Using slightly warmed olive oil is the best thing to do, and usually sorts it out, as does Otex (I love that stuff!). But you've moved beyond that.
How long have you been using the olive oil for?
Make an appointment with your practice nurse, and use olive oil a couple of times a day, every day. Slightly warm it (only slightly and stick your finger in it first, to make sure you it's warm and not hot). Tilt your head, and using a pipette, drip the olive oil into your ear. Try and keep your head tilted for a little while to let it soak in. You can then dip a cotton wool ball into the oil and then gently in your ear to stop it dripping out. This is great done just before bed, and try and lay for a while with the affected ear up.

You need to do this for a week, or at least several days before seeing the practice nurse, as the wax needs to be soft enough to extract.

Getting your ears syringed isn't dangerous if the person doing it has learned the correct technique. If they force the water in through a syringe, it can damage the ear drum. The water shouldn't be forced straight in. They should use a machine like this
propulsemainimage.jpg

As you can see, the thing they stick in your ear is curved at the end, and this doesn't push the water straight forward in. It also pulses gently.

I've had this done and I loved it. (But I'm weird). It tickles slightly (which made me laugh when I had it done!), it can be a little uncomfortable, but not painful.

If your GP practice still won't do it, ask them why, because at the end of the day, your deaf, and you've tried what you can. If they won't budge, get another GP, one with practice nurses!
 
What your practice nurse will do first, is also look in your ear to see if it's wax build-up.
 
I'm like frank^^^ I wear two hearing aids all day every day. They do sometimes push wax down my ear. Doc wants me to treat with drops/olive oil for 10 days then I go and see the nurse. Nurse has a look and if a syringe is needed she does it there and then.
Can't see why your Doc won't do the same - unless it's not wax; but how does he know if he doesn't have a peek?
 
mickledore said:
I'm like frank^^^ I wear two hearing aids all day every day. They do sometimes push wax down my ear. Doc wants me to treat with drops/olive oil for 10 days then I go and see the nurse. Nurse has a look and if a syringe is needed she does it there and then.
Can't see why your Doc won't do the same - unless it's not wax; but how does he know if he doesn't have a peek?
Click to expand...

Exactly!!
 
I work as a hearing aid dispenser/audiologist and come across the old wax situation daily. Fifteen years of observation and experience have told me that a) wax rarely causes any difficulty to the individual, although I have come across significant hearing loss as a result of chronic, impacted wax. b) proprietary treatments, otex, audispray etc are almost never effective. They may loosen wax prior to irrigation but are generally a waste of time. The only agent that dissolves wax I've come across is Sodium Bicarbonate sold as ear drops in a dropper bottle.

More significant in my job is the advers effect wax has on hearing aids, most failures, and they're frequent, are due to wax so Keeping the ear canal clear is much more important if you wear aids. To the OP, it sounds more likely to be a middle ear congestion problem than wax, go and get a hearing test on the High St would be a useful diagnostic test.
 
Its definitely wax, (hope you are not eating) when I use the stuff, I roll up tissue paper into a little tube and gently insert and waggle and it comes out with brown gunk on it.

Ive just realised I could have use the pipette that came with now binned "Nowax" to apply the olive oil with. GRRRR! :mad:

I'll persevere with the drops for a while longer before trying the GP/practice again.
 
Cartus said:
To the OP, it sounds more likely to be a middle ear congestion problem than wax, go and get a hearing test on the High St would be a useful diagnostic test.
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What is the point in a hearing test of the High Street? The OP knows he's deaf, he doesn't need to pay someone to tell him that. Just needs someone to look in his ears. :)
 
BintyMcFrazzles said:
What is the point in a hearing test of the High Street? The OP knows he's deaf, he doesn't need to pay someone to tell him that. Just needs someone to look in his ears. :)
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Because as part of the test we are obliged to look in ear canals and record any referrable conditions. The hearing test is free of charge in Boots (for example).
 
I've had to have my ears syringed many times. Occasionally i get a ear blocked with wax. I have had to use drops for a few days before going to the nurse to have my ears syringed with a machine similar to the one above. It is a strangely pleasant experience, and quite a amazing when you leave how much you can hear that you couldn't before!

Recently i have been using ear drops (cant remember the brand, but they are 'fizzy') and a something that looks like a small rocket blower. You put the drops in for 5-10 minutes and then fill a sink with warmish water, fill the plastic blower with water and jet into your ears and a lot of wax comes out.

Have not had to go the the nurse since i started doing this, but that maybe pure chance.
 
Rapscallion said:
I've had to have my ears syringed many times. Occasionally i get a ear blocked with wax. I have had to use drops for a few days before going to the nurse to have my ears syringed with a machine similar to the one above. It is a strangely pleasant experience, and quite a amazing when you leave how much you can hear that you couldn't before!

Recently i have been using ear drops (cant remember the brand, but they are 'fizzy') and a something that looks like a small rocket blower. You put the drops in for 5-10 minutes and then fill a sink with warmish water, fill the plastic blower with water and jet into your ears and a lot of wax comes out.

Have not had to go the the nurse since i started doing this, but that maybe pure chance.
Click to expand...

Might it be this product?
 
that isn the exact one, but is very similar. I think the brand i have is otex or earex.
 
I only briefly read through but I saw its a wax problem, a good thing that I use (I have wax build up and wear hearing aids too) are called Hopi ear candles, it's relaxing, maybe 20 minutes for each ear, you light the end and wait for it to almost burn away and it sucks all the wax out into like a filter at the bottom.
 
jonoooo125 said:
I only briefly read through but I saw its a wax problem, a good thing that I use (I have wax build up and wear hearing aids too) are called Hopi ear candles, it's relaxing, maybe 20 minutes for each ear, you light the end and wait for it to almost burn away and it sucks all the wax out into like a filter at the bottom.
Click to expand...
I've seen the damage those candles can do.
 
I have no problem with water going in my ear. As there is nothing in the way to stop it flowing out of the other one.
 
Keith, have you been on here before, asking similar questions??
 
jonoooo125 said:
I only briefly read through but I saw its a wax problem, a good thing that I use (I have wax build up and wear hearing aids too) are called Hopi ear candles, it's relaxing, maybe 20 minutes for each ear, you light the end and wait for it to almost burn away and it sucks all the wax out into like a filter at the bottom.
Click to expand...
Ooo don't start that again, :D
there was a very contentious thread some time ago.
I went from
"They are brilliant"
to they are "Voodoo"
to they'll burn your brains out :D

Having said that I tried them in the past and they worked for me
disclaimer if you nuke your brain, trying it, don't blame me :D

 
Cobra said:
to they'll burn your brains out :D

Having said that I tried them in the past and they worked for me
disclaimer if you nuke your brain, trying it, don't blame me :D
Click to expand...

don't you need a brain to burn it :thinking:
Don't worry you'd be perfectly safe :p
 
Otex does a kit with a bulb squirter (bit like a rocket blower) that you can get in the supermarket or chemist. I get waxed up ears once a year or so (usually after I've had a job that's meant I've been wearing earplugs daily for while - or I've been given an area in a busy office to work in and I'm listening to music all afternoon on ear buds to avoid distractions) and the Otex kit is the first thing that's worked that I can do myself. It does need nearly a week of softening up first though, either with drops or olive oil.
 
as a matter of interest and after reading all the threads diagnosing without seeing the problem and as the problem started after swimming ,it might be worth trying this simple trick that divers use ..
take a deep breath ,hold your nose tightly closed then as if your going to whistle gently blow out the air for at least 30 seconds ,you should feel a pressure building up in your ear canal as you do this and eventually you should feel a pop as the blockage clears itself .repeata few times if it feels like its starting to work till it actually does .this is also useful on airplanes to equalise the pressure .might work or might not but certainly worth a try .
 
Cheers Jeff, but having scuba dived in the past I know the difference between ear pressure problems and wax. Also doing what you suggest is likely to blow your ear drum. You should only "blow" until the pressure equalises.
You cant blow air out of your ears because the ear drum seals it all in from the atmosphere and would have to rupture to let air through.
 
Get someone to suck on your ear..... Might work if not, well was good experience and you might of liked it!!!
 
If I get water in my ears, they produce a lot of wax. As a musician, the deafness this causes adds another problem. When it's bad, I can play one note and hear two different notes!

I have only ever had my ears syringed once and it was great - however, I think I got rid of most of the wax myself with olive oil before the syringing.

That time, the wax buildup was so bad, it felt like someone was repeatedly poking a sharp pencil into my ear. The other thing I remember is that after the treatment, every step on the walk home created a 'boing' noise in my ear!


Steve.
 
o.k thought it might help .in response to others i get the total opposite when i can be arsed to wear my hearing aids i don't get wax but rather they make my ears dry ,and i need otomize ear spray to stop them itching ,all different i suppose
 
DorsetDude said:
Even though I wear earplugs in the water, a swim last week made me slightly deaf in one ear. Have had this before and cured as follows usually.
Ive been dripping in "Nowax" eardrops and also Otex Rapid drops. So far nothing, although occasionally the ear will "open" briefly then I go back to being deaf.
Ive been to my GP before with this and they wont do syringing, just tell me to drip olive oil in.

Any one else suffered similar and any tips?

Thanks
Click to expand...

I had this, about 2 weeks couldn't hear a think out of my right ear. The other staff found it hilarious that I was ignoring customers all the time and it was partly very nice not putting up with inane prattling from others. Had the olive oil drops, after a while I got fed up and started digging round in there with a cotton bud after the oil had softened the wax a tad. Never seen so much come out of there!
 
Alan Clogwyn said:
I had this, about 2 weeks couldn't hear a think out of my right ear. The other staff found it hilarious that I was ignoring customers all the time and it was partly very nice not putting up with inane prattling from others. Had the olive oil drops, after a while I got fed up and started digging round in there with a cotton bud after the oil had softened the wax a tad. Never seen so much come out of there!
Click to expand...

Be careful with the cotton buds - they have made things worse for me on occasions by pushing the wax further down and compacting it.
 
Rapscallion said:
Be careful with the cotton buds - they have made things worse for me on occasions by pushing the wax further down and compacting it.
Click to expand...

TBH I think that's what caused the blockage in the first place, but once softened with the oil it came out again!
 
Still no joy here. continuing with olive oil drops. How long are you supposed to leave them in before letting it pour out/blotting up with tissue paper? And how many times a day?

Cheers.
 
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