I want to stick a vacuum in my ear [it's clogged]

MetroidZoid

Haven't had an issue with this before. Sure, occasionally get out of the pool or shower and it's got water in it, but a quick q-tip wicks that away. Not this morning. It's been 'muted' up all day. Q-tip did nothing, put in some ear cleaner, that didn't work. It's not completely deaf, just muted. If I pull at my cartilidge a bit, I can get temporary reprieve, but it always goes back to feeling clogged. If I put my hand on my ear and push and pull gently, it sounds much different on the one ear than the other; my good ear doesn't make any noise. Also, swallowing, hiccups and the like make it feel like whatever it is popped free, but it KEEPS GOING BACK.

At what point do I go see a doctor for this?

DaMoonRulz

Don't use Q-Tips for a start. The handy guide of things ok to put in your ears is anything bigger than your elbow. I've had this problem several times because I have narrow ear canals and when I used q-tips it was basically like loading a cannon until enough wax collected to partially cover my eardrum. You can flush it out with a spray bottle full of warm water and a bit of peroxide; that's what they would do for me at the family doctor when it got bad enough.

edit: Oh, and if you do try to flush the ear yourself, be gentle with the sprayer.

Pentaghost

If it's been like that all day then you might as well head over to the doctor and have it syringed. Takes 5 minutes and feels wonderful.

Frei

Tilt your ear towards the ground, stand on one foot (the same side that your ear is on) and then hop up and down. This makes you look really stupid but it always unclogs my ears.

It sounds like it is probably more severe than anything I've had, though, so I'd recommend going to the store and getting some sort of ear cleaning solution, something that dissolves ear wax, or just going to the doctor as they can take care of it fairly quickly.

Essee

I feel obligated to mention, before you try it or anybody even brings it up in the thread, that "ear candles" totally don't work. They're "all-natural" hogwash, so don't waste your money on that stuff. On the normal ear-clearing kits people are talking about here should work just fine (they're basically the same as what a doctor would do for you, but for home use). As far as I understand, they mostly contain a peroxide solution (as mentioned above) for softening the wax so it'll come out, as well as something to squirt it into your ears with. You might be able to save money by buying stuff seperately, I guess? I will warn you that the wax, once you get it out of there, is kind of gross (it's still kind of gross even when it's hidden in your ears anyway)! But otherwise it's not a big deal to get it done. I've had some of the same trouble you have, and at the time I personally took the route of going to the doctor to get things taken care of, especially since it was also getting REALLY painful after a while... but when I next get around to it I'm probably going to use one of the home kits instead. I should also note that, if it's not painful for you right now, it may unclog itself after a couple of days... but it still indicates that you need to clear things out in there. I've been kind of lazy about taking care of it sometimes, even though I KNOW I should still get my ears cleaned out again, so that's how I know it can sometimes open up again.

Oh, I've also heard that for some people, just running very warm (not hot-- don't go burning yourself, now) water into their ears can help soften the wax enough to get it out, but I'm apparently not one of those people. Either way, once you get this taken care of, the best part will be how you can suddenly hear SO MUCH BETTER than the day before you did it. It's hilarious.

TheOtherHorseman

i am not a doctor so on and so forth

so here is the deal with cleaning out ears

if you go to a doctor's office they are just going to try to water blast it out, unless you go to an ENT doc, where they have special tools, but also will grumble and roll their eyes before entering and after leaving the room

I recommend getting Debrox, an over-the-counter cerumenolytic (which is apparently a real word because I checked after I made it up). It is basically peroxide and oil, and it should come with a bulb syringe. The idea is that you put the Debrox in your ear and let it mellow, and that softens it up. Then you blast it with room temperature water from the bulb syringe to knock it out. Room temperature is important, because some people have sensitive vestibular systems that decide the room is spinning when hit by cold water, which isn't the funnest.

It may take several days to knock things out this way, depending on how impacted the wax is and how willing you are to decide the recommended frequency of Debrox usage is bullshit and play things fast and loose.

supabeast

Put a pillow on a towel and lay down on it with the wet ear up. Have someone pour a capful of hydrogen peroxide into your ear. Lay there until it stops fizzing and then roll over and let the peroxide and water drain out. It may still take a day or two to dry out entirely.

MetroidZoid

I did try an ear cleaner earlier, and nothing came out. I'm going to give it another shot in a bit. Thanks guys.

Adus

I had this exact problem a couple weeks ago. It did take a couple of tries with the ear cleaner to get everything fully out but it did work eventually. Basically exactly what TheOtherHorseman said.

Noisymunk

Same thing happened to me when my seasonal allergies flared up this season. Zyrtec every morning cleared it up. Maybe try an over the counter seasonal allergy med like zyrtec or claritin? If that doesn't work, go see a a general care doctor and they'll peer into your ear-hole to see if you've got a demon.

KalTorak

Internet Doctor says no q-tips, no ear candles, don't blast it with water.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GWtKY6O0Z0

MetroidZoid

Well after a third treatment this morning, and gently using the suction on where the block was, I finally got a chunk of wax out and I can hear again! Think theres some residual, I can treat later.

TheOtherHorseman

KalTorak wrote: »

Internet Doctor says no q-tips, no ear candles, don't blast it with water.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GWtKY6O0Z0

Dude's probably also just talking about normal production and removal of earwax, sans blockage, given that he mentioned cleaning the external ear with a washcloth as a viable method.

Jam Warrior

Give it a while before trying further treatment. The minor abuse of the various attempts to clear it have probably left the canal a bit swollen and it will further clear as that goes down.

MrTLicious

If this happens again, try putting a drop of olive oil in your ear before rinsing it. It will soften the wax and make it easier to remove.

Killgrimage

I have overactive wax glands and need to do this every three months for my entire life. Basically, what you did is good. It's better if you can get one of those big blub syringes that hospitals give babies to suck boogers out. It's even better if you can get a friend to help you because they can get at the perfect angle and zero in on the wax. As others have said, never use qtips, even for cleaning. Debrox is okay, but you can get the same effect by just using 1.5% peroxide solution (you get 3% in the store, so just cut it with some warm water) for cheap. I usually just use the H2O2 solution to squirt my ears out with.

Conroy Bumpas

THIS IS IMPORTANT!!!

what you have got is possably not in your ear like you think it is.

its possably your CATARRH getting bunged up.

its a blockage on the inside of your ear drum. so no amount of pokeing and flushing will do anything. for that you need decongestians.

you need to get to the doctor for them have a look in your ear. and tell you. maybe prescribe you some stronger decongestiants.

i have had this twice. and it feels like my ear is full of water, and when i chew or yawn... it sounds like a scraching and popping.

so probubly nothing on the out side of your ear

tech_hunter

I had this problem but it turned out to not be a blockage but a sinus congestion a few days of using decongestants fixed it right up. It seems like you found your solution but if you did not get any results I would have suggested the decongestant route.

Mmmm... Cocks...

MrTLicious wrote: »

If this happens again, try putting a drop of olive oil in your ear before rinsing it. It will soften the wax and make it easier to remove.

Doc Dude in the video says no olive/vegetable oil. But suggests some other things, like baby oil or peroxide.

Delzhand

Mmmm... Cocks... wrote: »

MrTLicious wrote: »

If this happens again, try putting a drop of olive oil in your ear before rinsing it. It will soften the wax and make it easier to remove.

Doc Dude in the video says no olive/vegetable oil. But suggests some other things, like baby oil or peroxide.

Oh, and he gives the best reason - it can sit in your ear and go rancid. Almost gagged when I thought about that.

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

ewwww

I will second the advice about decongestant. I had this happen a couple months ago and tried the whole OTC drops+gentle flushing routine pretty aggressively. Didn't really work over the course of a week, but some OTC decongestant cleared it up in short order.

Chases Street Demons

As far as the possibility of a physical blockage, some people have bad ear wax which softens and then rehardens in the shower (guess how I know this) and find that over the counter Debrox works like a champ.

QuantumTurk

Also something to consider: I once thought I had some pretty blocked up ears, and had some nice popping noises when i would tilt my head. Go to the doc, he takes one quick look and "Yup, your ears are super inflammed, bacterial infection, here are some anti-biotics" Which seemed to clear it right up!

darkmayo

I have a bulb syringe that I have used on occasion to clear a plugged ear, warm water and give your ear a blast and it will knock loose the wax, unless of course it is really impacted, then just go to a walk in clinic and they can flush your ear out with a little more force than a bulb syringe can do.

Professor Fuzzles

olive oil doesnt go rancid that quick, months if not years maybe, but when i had ear issues the NHS Ear, nose and throat specialist told me to used olive oil, lets it sit in your ear for ten mins every day if you have a blockage, after that a few drops once or twice a week to keep them clean.

bra666

Wrong wrong wrong! Ear candles work amazing! The only reason why doctors say they don't work is because ear candles are an effective home- do-it- yourself remedy of fixing ear infections, clogged ear canals, ect. Thus avoiding to have to go see the doctor... in the end taking away business their business. Ear candles work! Just don't burn yourself!