I Feel like I'm Under water....HELP!!!

Have you tried an antihistamine to dry up the fluid? It usually takes a couple to three days for antibiotics to work. If not feeling better by Monday I would call the doc. again and see if they can give you something else.

When you saw the Dr., were your ears cleaned out? My husband had this prob over the last few weeks. He jumped in the pool and got water stuck in his ear. It bothered him to the point that he couldn't hear out of one ear within 7 days. I had an ENT appt, and he tagged along. She took one look and said he needed to have it cleaned. The water being trapped caused there to be this waxy buildup so she suctioned it all out and put in anitbiotic drops. There was a lot of junk in there, and he began to have immediate relief, with most of his symptons going away within a few days with no other treatment necessary.

D. S.

You need a decongestant to dry up the fluid trapped under the eardrum. Try Mucinex in the dark navy & white box. You can get it at Walmart. (My daughter just had the same thing and the doctor instructed her to do this.)

I read alot of your other responses. This is not like water in your ear. It is fluid (mucus) that is trapped behind the ear drum. Antibiotics are for infection, not fluid. Hair dryers, hopping with your head tilted, swimmer's ear drops are not going to solve this. And oil in your ear is a breeding ground for bacteria. You may want to give your doctor a call back and just see what he suggests before doing anything or go talk to a pharmicist.

A little about me: I am a 45 yr. old Registered Nurse with 2 grown children, 20 & 24.

If you haven't had any relief or for future ear problems, I recommend Garlic oil/willow bark. You can get it at the health food store. Garlic is a natural antibiotic. I have given this to my oldest child when she had a couple of earaches and she got immediate relief and even fell asleep on the way home. Also, be sure you are drinking enough water and staying away from refined sugar and dairy products. Dairy makes your body produce more mucus. Many docs prescribe antibiotics for ear ailments even if it is not proven that it is bacterial. Antibiotics actually slow down the healing of viral infections. Also, stay away from processed foods as much as possible. If you have an ongoing ear infection, it could be a fungal infection. My neighbor had this happen and went on several rounds of antibiotics before this was discovered. Hope you are feeling better...

I know this may sound silly but it has worked for me in the past. If you have fluids in your ears tilt your head to the side and hop. It usually works right away, but I have to repeat the process a couple of times to clear it all out. Hope it helps.

Okay, this is going to sound weird but it works. Heat up a garlic clove either in a pan or the microwave (about a minute). Let it cool a little just enough to not burn your skin. Then, put it in your ears. What it does is that the heat the garlic releases goes into your ears and releases the pressure causing the pain. This is a temporary fix though - it does not cure the infection. Good luck.

You should take a good decongestant and antihistimine like dimatap. The antihistimine will help to dry the fluid but if the antibiotics are not helping you by the fourth day I would call the doctor's office and talk to the nurse so she can talk to the doctor for you, you may need a different antibiotic. Good luck.

You need to visit a specialist, Here's the info for the one I go to. Not much for visit and helps if you don't have insurance :)

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TOP's E.N.T.
12121 Richmond Ave
Houston, TX 77082

Hi L.,

I am M. and live in Brownsville. When I was growing up, I suffered of ear infections, but when I turned 22, I ask my ENT to perform the ear tubes procedure.
This procedure consists of inserting a tube in your middle ear that will result those unwanted fluids pssing through. Ear infections are pinful, so what I recommend you is to ask your doctor to check if your middle ear is opened. If your middle ear is closed, that will create pressure which result in pain. The tube will help the inner and middle ear to be in the same pressure. If you fly with those tubes, the trip wll be more enjoyable. Unfortunately, you need to make sure that water is not in your ears (avoid swimming). Good luck!

I am into the homeopathic way of taking care of things like this. I know this may sound unusual but have you seen a chiropractor? Believe it or not they can adjust your ears as well as the spine and joints. You will hear a loud pop when they adjust but this opens the ear canal and drainage begins.
Try it. If you are in The Woodlands area there is a Chiropractor on Sawdust in the same shopping center as Petco. His name is Don Jones and his clinic is called Omni Healthcare Centers. He also has an office off 1960 in the Champions area under the clinic name of McDonald Chiropractic.

I don't think anyone has told you about valsalva. It is when you close your mouth, hold your nose closed, and blow as hard as you can. It will force air into your eustacian tubes and can help clear out the fluid. My pediatrician just taught my daughter to do it because allergies have caused her to have fluid build up. Some people can do it by opening wide and wiggling their jaws back and forth, or yawning really wide over and over. That has never worked for me...just hold and blow! Good luck!

I'm not sure about the under water feeling but, peroxide works wonders for ear infections. Just pour a capful in each ear & allow it to drain out. You should do this at least twice a day. You should feel a great difference the following day. Warm, sweet oil afterwards will lubricate the tissue in your ears & reduce the swelling caused by the infection. Pour a capful of the warm sweet oil after the peroxide treatment, then stuff the ear with cotton. Be sure not to make the sweet oil too hot. The sweet oil is available at Walgreens. My daughter was experiencing an ear infection & I followed these procedures then took her to the Dr. the next day. The Dr. asked what had I done, when I told her, she said that was great because the infection was gone. I've been doing it eversince, & it has kept me out of the Doctor's office.

Hi L.,
I don't know if it will help you. I have used ear wax candles before. You can find them at health food stores. They smell horrible, but they really have seemed to help me a few times. I hope you get better. However if you don't you might want to call your doc again. Good luck
Lace

I was you for 2 weeks. I did go to the doctor and got antibiotics but he told me to take other medicine to help clariton, cvs version of allergy medicine, dayquil gave me some relief. Warm baths and warm head wraps. Good luck.

There's a tube that goes from your sinuses to your ears that can get full of snot. A steroid shot or a Medrol Dospak will help dry that stuff quick. You could also try to flush the snot out with nasal saline drops. The steroids are what always kick it in the butt for me, though.

Saved my life in December.

Good luck!!

They have theese 'homeopathic' ear drops that are basically isoprophyl alcohol (but the kit has this little dropper thing that helps you get it in your ear). THese are excellent at drying up stuffed ears. It won't hurt anything to try these. BUt I would also add a decongestant.

hi.L. you might want to try doing the blowdryer thats what i do to mine when i get out of the shower and try puting some ear drops in i cant stand that feeling good luck.

I myself have never had that problem but my husband has lots of times. He always puts a little alcohol in each ear and that dries his ears up. This always saves him a trip to the doctor.

Hope you feel better soon
A. P

My daughter is slowly getting over this, we had to go back to Dr. for different antibiotics. After 3 or 4 doses, I would call them back and make him/her just call a new one in for you. Hope its better.

Have you tried swimmers ear drops?? They may help..

They make this stuff called Aero for ears. It is in a tube and you can find it at the pharmacy. It is sort of like drops/gel. It has never not worked for me or my kids. It helps so much!

If you are not better yet, go back. You may need a different antibiotic.

Better yet, ask to see an ENT!

My Dr. told me to take a decongestant to help get rid of the fluid.(She prescribed one).
She also prescried ear drops.
They were an antibiotic ear drop that also helps w/ the pain.
It took me 3 weeks and one round of antibiotics for mine to clear up.
The ENT suggestion was a good one.
Depending where you live Houston ENT has a bunch of ENT's on staff. I know they have offices in Katy, Richmond,and Memorial city .
Good LUck