What am I going to do about this ear ache?

[Explaintome]

I've had it since February.

• Initially I saw practice nurse. Wax build up use olive oil 2 weeks and come back.

• Went back no better, use olive oil 2 more weeks

• still no better it needs manual removal, but you'll have to do that privately.

• I did that, the procedure was really painful at the time but the earache did ease a bit.

• 2 weeks later I've still got earache though. Telephone appointment with nurse practitioner. Prescribed antibiotics "just in case". I took them, it made no difference.

• Saw a GP. Looked in my ear said nothing wrong it's probably something muscular in your neck. No treatment offered.

• 3 months later saw another GP. Looked in ear, nothing wrong, no suggestion for anything that might help.

• Now, a few weeks on it still hurts and is getting worse, to the extent that it keeps me awake at night. It's not the agony of an ear infection, but it is a really uncomfortable nagging ache.

Am I just supposed to live with it forever? Or what do I do next?

I swear I didn't put those bullets in or do that spacing!

Have y

Have you had your teeth checked? Sometime toothache can present as ear ache?

Yes I've had 2 dental checkups in this time.

Did you tell the dentist specifically about the earache? If not I would as they could do some X-rays and maybe look for signs of tooth grinding and tmj dysfunction

Sounds horrendous OP and I can sympathise.

Worth trying a dental guard at night in case its TMG/bruxism related.

Does it click/pop/relieve pain at all if you hold a hot wash cloth or steamy mug to the ear (carefully)? Could be eustachian tube/sinus related.

I’m not a doctor but I don’t suppose it’s actively an infection if you’ve had it since February and antibiotics did nothing, unless its leaking pus or something.

Do you have any history of ear issues? Could it be sinus related? If you think it could be, try a nasal spray like Beconase and see if that helps. Have you noticed any fullness in your ear, or that your hearing is affected?

I’ve had ear issues all my life, so this probably won’t be relevant but I’ve had infections that have not been seen when a GP has looked inside my ear. I’ve had swabs that have come back clear when I’ve had an active infection! Luckily I am under the ENT department for life, so I ring them and get seen in the emergency clinic. Last year I started getting problems with one of my ears, I was in the ENT every week for months, kept being told everything looked OK. I knew it wasn’t, I even ended up having an argument with one of the ENT registrars because he was adamant it was OK. Luckily I eventually saw someone who said I needed an MRI and once this was done, they realised I needed an operation. It felt good to finally have my concerns validated but I’m still angry that it took 6 months of endless appointments to get that far (I had my operation 3 months later). I am still having issues with it though, so I am not looking forward to the battle that I know is coming, but if you are still having problems, you need to be persistent and ask for a referral to ENT, especially if you have ruled out other possible causes (like your teeth and TMJ disorder).