To tell you all that I just unblocked my own ear and it feels AMAZING?

[Fossiliferous]

It's been blocked on and off since I had covid in 2021 😬

It gets worse every time I get a cold or my hayfever is bad, so I assumed it was a middle ear thing. Had a phone appointment with my GP about it when it first started and was advised to do steam inhalation and use otrivine nasal spray, so that's what I've been doing when it blocks and eventually it clears. My ears never seemed very waxy and due to it being linked to congestion I never thought it might be wax.

But about 3 weeks ago it blocked and just wouldn't unblock. I've been almost completely unable to hear from that ear since and it's been misery, so disorientating.

Anyway I thought in desperation last week to try wax removal just in case and got some bicarbonate of soda spray, when I tried it my ear literally fizzed and popped and seemed slightly clearer so I've been doing that twice daily for 5 days. This morning I thought I'd give it a rinse with a bulb thingy and some very slightly salty water and OMG the gak that came out 🤢 I thought it would never end, and then one really big stringy bit (like a ribbon of dead skin) came out and all of a sudden I could hear again and my head stopped feeling faintly swimmy. It took 3 x 500ml jugs of warm water (teaspoon of salt added to each) though, I was rinsing it for about 15 minutes til the water came out clear.

Everything is so loud! Its obviously been far worse than I realised for ages

Once I get used to everything being so loud again I'm going to do the other ear, which I thought was unaffected but now this ear is properly clear I can tell that the other one is a bit blocked too.

Would a calpol syringe do

For all those with blocked ears! Take any runny oil (olive oil, sunflower oil, doesn’t matter), heat it on a spoon which has been put in very hot water, ( or draw it up in a Calpol syringe and put the syringe in hot water), check it’s not too hot then
( possibly with help) put it in your ear canal when you are lying down. Stay there with the warm oil in your ear for 3 minutes, repeat this twice a day for 4 days then spray the shower head in your ear as hot as you can bear it for 3 mins minimum. 99.9% of times this will clear any blockages. Repeat this every 3 months for beautiful clear ear canals!

If you have blocked ears, ear microsuctioning is AMAZING. It sorts you out instantly, feels lovely and tickly, and cleans your ears right out. Way better and faster than Otex or any kind of sprays for me personally. I went through a bit of a phase of watching microsuctioning videos on Youtube when I had mine done, because they are gross but so satisfying :)

I will second the microsuctioning but can be anything from £55 upwards depending on where you live. Also remember if you’ve ever had a ruptured eardrum then microsecond g is your best option- forgot to put that in my post😬

I got an ear irrigation kit from amazon. Collects all the earwax into a pot for you to look at and it feels great too.

For everyone getting tops from this thread: please do not use Calpol syringes or dental picks to fill your ears with water. The pressure from those is too high and can lead to perforated drums.

I have my ears syringed every year, I’m quite friendly with the nurse, she shows me what comes out - it’s amazing / disgusting in equal measures!

I’ve always had a problem with my ears and wax build up. I used to get completely sticky blocked ear too. I once went to micro suction at Specsavers which helped but I don’t remember feeling amazing afterwards though.

I used to have an awful histamine intolerance but since I got in control, I haven’t had a case of blocked ear any longer.
What are other reasons why some people have so much wax build up?

Have just ordered the bicarbonate spray.
excited!

Just ordered the spray!

I've had a blocked ear since Christmas 2019 when I got a dreadful cold. I've tried the oil and rubber pump versions without impact.

For me it's an unusually narrow ear canal coupled with an unusually large wax producing surface (lucky me!). I have been through a lot of drops, sprays, syringing and microsuction. I have been told not to use oil as my problem isn't hard wax, and it being too runny can make it more difficult to remove.

I now only use this from Amazon. Definitely do not blast water from a normal syringe. This one swirls it around your ear and the tip limits the pressure.

Congratulations OP - such a great feeling!

I had a blocked ear I couldn't clear during lockdown, in desperation I tried using a water flosser which mimics ear syringing, worked a treat and never looked back! I know of around 5 other people that now use this method too.

I booked an audiology test at Boots. He took one look down my ear and told me to come back when I'd sorted out the wax. Didn't charge because he couldn't do the test.

My headphones got broken. So I threw them away and dug out earphones from our 'might be useful' drawer. I don't know why they were there because they didn't work either. We don't normally store broken items, it must have been an oversight. So I threw away those too.
Next I ordered nice, great reviews, expensive headphones and when they arrived they were faulty. I returned them, got full refund. Got another pair.
In meantime I had some minor arguments with my daughter who thought I am ignoring her.
During all that I started sleeping better. Our complete horrible windows never did anything for soundproofing.
Then one day as I was falling asleep and rolled over... lightbulb. I realised I can't hear in one ear. Took me a year to figure out.
It took a week to sort it out. Next day audiologist appointment where they showed me my earwax on camera and after a few days of eardrops it was sorted. About 2 hours in travel and appointments time, under £10 for eardrops.
Still feel sorry for my old earphones.

Some people just produce more wax than others (just like people differ in how much oil or sweat they produce or how dry their eyes are) but it can also be more of a problem if you have particularly narrow ear canals because then it builds up before it has a chance to disperse naturally.

DP has ear canals that are not only narrow, but also slightly malformed with an awkward bend in them, so wax doesn't really work its way out like it does with a normal ear. He has to have it removed by suction at least every six months. I can always tell when it needs doing because I'll start being deafened by the volume whenever he puts the telly on.

You'd love my DP. A couple of years ago I got home from work one day and he proudly presented me with this furry lump that he'd dug out. He'd carefully wrapped it in a tissue to preserve it for my arrival🙄
To be fair it was weird looking but I'm more of a blackhead person myself.

So very envious. I've been using olive oil in my ears for three days straight and whilst it feels slightly better, I long for the days when I could actually hear rather than feeling like I'm at the bottom of a very deep well.

YABU to not have filmed/photographed anf posted in Sporner Corner

Apparently I have a funny shaped "step" in the bit of my skull that makes the entrance to my left ear, so the wax that forms gets blocked on that and doesn't work its way out naturally, which is what is meant to happen.

I found this out when having the wax removed with suction after my hearing totally stopped in that ear. It took three visits, with different softening preparations for a week between each one. What eventually came out was the size and colour of a cigarette filter tip.

Suction is a bit painful because a lot of tiny hairs get pulled at the same time. It used to feel as if the doctor was pushing really hard on the eardrum and going to stab me in the brain, but now I know what is going on I picture the pulling of the hairs and it's only painful as oppose to "I am being murdered".

I now go every 6 months (private) which keeps the volume of wax in check. At the same time the doctor gives me a very quick once-over for any signs of stuff that shouldn't be going on in my nose and throat.

That's interesting and sounds satisfying, like plunging a blocked sink and getting the gunk up. I have been tortured with tinnitus for the last year yet have no dizziness or anything, might this be earwax build up?

Anyone tried those Chinese ear candle things?

Yes and they don't work

I get incredibly itchy ears and wax. The peroxide products make it worse (and probably caused it in the first place and the bicarb products were not helping. Tried this https://www.boots.com/earcalm-spray-5ml-10059996 (which they seem to have runout of 🙄) and it helps my ears work properly. 😁

Helpful thread. DH has terrible build up- the suction lady gave up after two visits. He uses all sorts down there, I used to do the syringing for him.

I now have a fully swollen shut ear canal, which I'm struggling to treat. So irritating!

If you mean Hopi ear candles, I have found them quite good. The process removes wax, and the heat and vibration makes your ear drain, so any fluid in the middle ear comes away too