Water in my ear?

tobalt · 06-30-2001, 12:46 PM

Hello. I've been swimming lots of times, and sometimes I get water stuck in an ear. Usually, it goes away. Yesterday, I went swimming in the evening, and same thing happened. Only this time, it hasn't gone away yet. Other times, my ear feels fine after an hour or two. But it's been more than 12 hours, and I still have that blocked ear. HELP ME!!

vernon123 · 07-04-2001, 03:54 PM

You may have impacted wax in your ear. This could be caused by water entering the ear and pushing the wax further into the auditory canal. See your doctor or go to a medical clinic. The doctor will determine wether to flush out the wax with water or to use light mineral oil to loosen the wax over a few days. I know it's a real nuisance, but as soon as the wax comes out, it feels 100% better. DO NOT try and remove it with Q-Tips or other objects inserted in the ear. This will push the wax further back into the auditory canal, possibly damaging the ear drum. One mistake can lead to unimaginable pain and suffering. That's what I'm going through right now because of my impatience with removing ear wax. I have been in hell for the last six months due to a perforated ear drum, then eustachian tube dysfunction.

mlgable · 07-05-2001, 10:41 AM

Since you are prone to water in the ears after swimming why not keep a bottle of the drops that are made for this on your shelf and use it when you are done swimming? I can't think of a brand off hand but you should be able to find them in your ear/eye drop section of your local store.

DonnaS · 08-30-2001, 03:42 PM

I know I'm late in replying to this post, but you can buy wax ear plugs at your local pharmacy. They are softened wax and you can put them into your ears and shape them to fit. I knew nothing about these until my daughter had tubes put in her ears when she was small. Her doctor recommended that she use these everytime she went swimming, washed her hair, etc. But of course, you should see your doctor first so that he can flush out the water that is behind the earwax. I know exactly how you feel....it's happened to me before and it does take a couple of days before I can hear again.