does anyone know about perforated eardrums?

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The NHS website says to avoid getting any water in the ear for 2 months, ie no swimming, careful in the shower etc. GP very relaxed about it- no swimming but don't worry about the shower. My dad (who recently had the same thing) was advised to plug his ear with cotton wool in vaseline when in the shower for 2 months. Anyone know what's the best advice? I've bought some dry shampoo to avoid having to wash my hair as often- it's all a bit stressful to try and avoid getting the water in my ear!!
TIA

We usually advise doing exactly as you say in the shower - vaseline and cotton wool. Are you on antibiotics?

For DS we got some silicone/ squishy mouldable earplugs to use in the bath/ shower on GP's advice. They seemed to work well, and he healed well.

Yes, on antibiotics which are helping.
Where did you get the earplugs Theseboots? I got into a bit of a sticky mess with the vaseline/cotton wool, then still felt like some water had got through!

We got them from our local sports gear shop, they're the swimming earplugs they recommend for children too young to manage a harder type of plug which needs to be put in more accurately IYSWIM. I reckon they'd do the same job in my ear though as they're quite big!

I am very experienced in these matters . dd had her perforation repaired a couple of months ago (after 3.5 years). The best ones we found are called putty buddies and we've bought from a company online called swim stop I think. They post out very quickly.

Hope that helps

Hi,
I don't know how much help i can be but i will try.
Both of my eardrums are perforated for different reasons.

With regards to water in the ear, i am always advised not to get any in at all. With regards to washing my hair i always need a shower that is not attatched IYSWIM. One with a cable that you can take off. If this was not possible then i would not be able to wash my hair.
This can be a pain and inconvienience but i am used to it. I have had them for 13 years now and trust me, its so easy to not get water in my ears once you are used to it.

Plus an advantage i have found is that if flying, you don't get the whole air pressure thing anymore!

Thanks for replies. Will look into swimming ear plugs.

themonster so I'm guessing yours are permanent then? I'm hoping mine will heal in a couple of months- my hearing has reduced massively! The air pressure thing does sound handy though

Also removing the shower head is a good tip- I hadn't thought of that.

Yep mine are permanent!
I do hope yours heal though. It can be a pain but don't get me wrong i still go to waterparks etc even though im not supposed to! Though i can be a bit deaf for a while afterwards. Which is handy for me pretending to not hear people or cut out waffling

What i am trying to say is that it honestly isn't the end of the world if they don't heal either. Lots of fun can be had using them as an excuse for selective hearing!

I had perforated ear drum last year due to an ear infection. It hurt a lot, but cleared up with the antibiotics. The ear drum itself healed well I can hear fine now.