Plugged up ears!!!

[Hi Ho]

Isn't it the most annoying thing ever?! Being obsessed with audio simply multiplies the annoyance. Working as a live sound engineer on the side makes it more than an annoyance. It makes it near impossible to do the job when I can't hear!

My right ear had been plugged for over three weeks. I went to the doctor and he flushed out my ears (though there wasn't much wax) and gave me a prescription drug called Loratadine. In less than 24 hours my right ear was mostly unplugged but my left ear was worse than my right ear ever was! I took the medicine for almost a week and there was no change. I accidentally missed a dose a couple nights ago. When I woke up my ear was mostly unplugged. I took a dose and within an hour it was plugged again. So, I haven't taken it since and it's still plugged. What gives?

 

[MDS]

No idea really. An old wives remedy that my mom always used on us was to put a drop of hydrogen peroxide in your ear and then swab it out with a q-tip. That seems to work to clean out the wax.

I rarely do that now but I almost always use a q-tip to dry out my ears when I get out of the shower. It works for me and I rarely ever have plugged up ears and never get ear aches.

 

[Hi Ho]

I always use the Qtip after a shower and I have tried the hydrogen peroxide. The doctor said hydrogen peroxide is fine as long as it's mixed with a bit of mineral oil because it will dry out the skin otherwise.

 

[Rickster71]

While flying, I used to experience clogged ears along with ear pain.
The clogging of my ears would last for a few hours after the flight.
My doctor prescribed Pseudovent-400 capsules. I take them the night before, and the morning of my flight. They work great, I haven't had the problem since.
Good Luck,
Rick

 

[Halon451]

I've suffered from chronic sinus problems and allergies for close to three years now, so I feel your pain. Most of the time it's fine, and my doctor has me on a regular routine of Nasonex to help alleviate the allergy contribution to the problem, but every once in a while my ears get so plugged up I can barely hear anything at all. Hope your current situation clears up soon man.

 

[Swerd]

It sounds like your plugged ears are due to swelling of the eustachian tube. It connects your middle ear to your throat and allows air pressure in the middle ear to equalize with the atmosphere. When I have a cold, it can swell up and cause my ears to plug up.

Anti-immflamatory drugs like aspirin, tylenol, or advil can help. But sometimes they can also cause a ringing sound in the ears.

Pseudofed (pseudoephedrin) can also reduce this swelling.

A trick I once learned from an airline flight attendant works very well for me. When the airplane cabin pressure came on I got a severe case of vertigo because my ears couldn't adjust to the change in pressure. Everything was spinning around so much that I sat in my chair gripping the arm rests for all I could. It was like the worst roller coaster ride of my life.

The attendant took a styrofoam coffee cup and put in a few paper napkins she had wet with water. She heated it about 10 seconds in the microwave, and told me to hold the open end of the cup over my ears. The wet heat penetrated into my ears and relaxed the swelling until my ears could adjust to the cabin pressure. In less than 5 minutes the vertigo was gone.

Try it. It's easy and it might give you temporary relief.