Hey, lately after a surf/kite I have been getting blocked ears (right ear usually) which can take 1 hour to go back to normal or like tonight (after 4 days in a row in the water) is still blocked (12 hours after).
I have been given swimmers ear drops but so far no good. Anyone else get this problem and what do they do about it?
Cheers
Wow Chard, thats quite intense, but I know why you vacuum your own ear canal. I must say I have been giving some thought to try some thing like you do. Id love to see a photo of your little device 
I had operation on my right ear to have bone drilled out last winter, one week off work, 8 weeks out off the water, total success, left ear to be done later (ill spare you all the details and photos).
Jonopark
Best way is not let water into your ears, with out dough Blue Tac is great, down side is its hard to hear with blobs in your ears. I use “Doc's pro plugs” now in both ears.
i've had bad ears for about 10 years now. right ear is worse than the left due to prevailing wind direction in tasmania where i grew up surfing as a kid. amazing.
i have experimented with plugs etc, but still find that the best solution is aqua ear drops in and hold head horizontal for 2 mins IMMEDIATELY after getting out of the water.
still though, when ever i get a cold now my sinus is fkd up and i am deaf for about 2 weeks.
good luck.
Wow, I sure feel your pain. Issues for 20 years myself, never had to do the op though. I had more issues with surfing than kite surfing, same with my sinuses. Duck diving always filled my head full of saltwater.
All the suggestions above are great. Doc Prop plugs are the best as you can still hear and not feel like your ear is all clogged up which does affect your balance a little. Plus, (the plugs with the small hole in them) with the Docs when you get driven down to the bottom after a wipeout on big waves your ears will clear the pressure change, where as if you just plug them up they won't, and that hurts.
I used to have to go at least twice a year to the doc to have my ears plunged to get the wax out, disgusting how much crap can get trapped in there. I have a dip in my ear canal where water gets trapped easily. Now after a session I use Aqua Ear, or something like that to dry them. It works well. Since I started this regime I have not had any infections, and I haven't had to have them syringed in two years.
The vacuum cleaner sounds good in principle, but freaks me out a little bit because it can go wrong easily. Perforated ear drums are REALLY painful having gone through that with my board slamming the side of my head in the 70's. While Chard has had success with this, I would be very careful on this approach. The idea is great though.
It all comes down to keeping your ears clean and dry, but for starters I would go the DOcs.
Hey Jonno,
Might be swimmers ear - no need to bust out the black and decker and start drilling just yet hah. That calcification tends to be more of a problem after exposure to freezing waters over a few years.....
Swimmers ear is common over the summer months and is more or less an inflammation of the ear canal, so wax/ sand/ bacteria tend to build up in your ear canal because it cant escape due to the inflammation within the canal.
Mine has improved after using Vosol brand ear drops and also (a hint from an ear doctor) is to use a hair dryer to dry out the canal after contact with water. I have not used ear plugs (even though advised) and it has still cleared up.
It will take a few days/ a week for your hearing to return to normal, but be patient and dont go jamming too many cotton buds up there, it can make the inflammation worse!
Perhaps go see your doc too if its really bad!
Hi Jono,
Having just gone through a blocked ear for a short time (fixed last Friday), go see your Doctor. Probably an infection and there may be some discharge that needs clearing and the Doctor can do it on the spot. Be careful not to wait too long as the discharge can become hard and difficult to remove.
I thought I was going deaf.
Cheers.
Interesting that some of you say your sinus' are screwed up.
I too get bad sinus after a cold. It gets that to the point where I blow my nose and get dizzy from my sinus becoming compressed.
Is this swimmers ear related. Any advice?
Your eyes ears and nose drain into the same pipes which run down beside your ears and down the sides of your neck. Sometimes if I massage the top of my cheeks and sides of my ears and neck it clears the **** out of there.
Hair dryer is a good tip - I'm going to try that next time!
Cheers for the advice guys! I love the idea of vacuums and hair dryers but may go see the doc as its still blocked and now I have an annoying ringing! I bought aqua ear but that doesnt seem to be working (though it maybe a little late!).
Ill ask about blue tak as this seems to be an on going problem (at least 2 years!).
The syringe with water was used a while back and worked great but had the same problem in the near future. Anyway ill fire some questions at the doc (your methods) and come and let you know what he says about them!
For the swimmers ear infection cut a tinny square of garlic wrapped in a small bit of tissue paper and stick it in your outer ear canal overnight
Wow sebol, that looks a hell of a lot more painful than my post op pic that was taken about 6 hours after surgery, about 24/48 hours the bruising was not attractive.
After seeing that pic im glad I went to the doctor!!!
Vacuum is apparently the best method with syringe second. Though I will be using the syringe in 4 days after I use drops every 12 hours and he believes blu tak is fine to put in ear and recommends it. However long term I will invest in silicone ear plugs.
I never wanted to be one of those old dudes with blu tak in my ears that you see surfing all the time! Well better than ear infections I guess.
Recommended to be out of the water until Monday but yeah, def not happening at this stage.
Also aqua ear after every session is also recommended and I shall do!
Hi Jonopark
Lots of advice - I feel your pain, I went to the chemist and got an ear cleaning bottle, essentially like the syringe method. I put warm water and a few drops of vinegar, no fancy vinegars just the cheap and cheerful BBQ cleaner white vinegar, in there and it works a treat
Also I threw the cotton wool buds in the bin as apparently they cause a buildup of wax that water gets trapped behind causing the infuriating clogginess.
There is a solution!
I've have problems with ear blockages on and off for years.
I have tried many of the suggestions posted so far but have found the best thing for me are ear candles.
These draw all the wax out of your ear canal in no time without the need to put water, vinegar or anything else in your ear hole....
You'll be surprised just how much crap they draw out.
Used to find that a couple of drops of olive oil in each ear before a surf worked well for me (in cold SA waters).
Yep that was a very very bad day.
The anestesist got 2 chemicals to use, something to put you to sleep and a muscle relaxant(once you are sleeping) which stops your breaving and they plug you onto a respirator.
He gave me the wrong one first so my breathing stopped while 100% conscious and despite my vain attempt to wiggle (muscle no longer reacted), they sufocated me to unconsciousness
They apparently realised something was wrong when they saw that I was blue and finally plugged me on the respirator but went ahead with the operation anyway
I had extreme difficulties to fall asleep for quite a few weeks after as my body would jerk me awake everytime I would fall asleep.
Got over it and went kiting
Geeeeezzzz sebol, that is one hell of a story,
I checked into hospital about 1pm.
I was wheeled into surgery just before 6pm, given first needle, was woken up post op a few hours later about 10pm.
I was hungry so the nurses got some sandwiches and cups of coffee for me, I watched TV till about 2am (as I slept about 4 hours during op)
Doc and anaesthetist called in to see me about 7am, I had brekkie, waited for my daughter to pick me up about 10am. In and out under 24 hours.
Strongest pain killer I took was panadol for a few days,
Maybe you could come to Newcastle if you need the other ear done, might be a better experience for you
Great attitude you have, "Got over it and went kiting"
Besides the blue-tack, you can also try Doc's Pro-Plugs - they come in about 3 sizes so you need to get your size right. They don't solve the problem but can help stopping it getting any worse.
If you do decide to have the op, do it in your off season as it puts you out of the water for a while.
Jeez, some grizzly pictures here.
Having been unfortunate to suffer three bouts of cholesteatoma (pre kiting and totally unrelated to water), I'm keen to preserve what hearing I have left after having 50% of my hearing bones removed thru modified radical mastoidectomy procedures.
Every ENT surgeon I've seen has recommended the following:
NOT to force liquid down ones ear canal i.e syringeing
Blue-Tac has been proven in medical papers to be just as effective as expensive, custom made plugs
Try keep the cold water and air out of the canal by use of Blue Tac or plugs, and wear either a helmet with ear protection eg Gath type, or a windstopper type hat or headband that covers the ears.
Best to have ears checked out if the problem is reoccurring too, as stuff such as the Aqua Clear type stuff should not be used if there's already perforation of the drum.
Docs Pro plugs are good, though they can pop out from time to time.
I know some people are adverse to wearing a helmet, but they do keep the ear plugs in and stop the wind. They also keep your head warm in cold climates. Those are the added benefits of the safety that they were designed for.
With the Doc Pro plugs you can attach them with fishing line to your wetsuit or rashie so if they do ever pop out you won't lose them.
Having dealt with all of these ear problems (without the op thankfully) I can feel for everyone who has had to deal with this. It hurts, it throws your balance off, and it is incredibly frustrating.
I have tried so many methods to combat this, and I can say that ear candles did nothing for me! I am sure that it has helped somebody out in the past, but it is not something I would ever recommend to anyone. All the other methods work great, and the dude who recommended the garlic was spot on. It is an antibacterial and will cook the infection over night. You will actually feel it doing its thing. I actually chop up the garlic as it releases more oil, wad it into a tissue and put it in. I have used this method in tropical places where infection was just starting and no doctor around for miles. Works really well if you get to it straight away. (wife or girlfriend won't be too happy sleeping with you unless they are really in love with the smell of garlic!)
i ve had both ears done 3 times and my lft is up for another go.
If you get blocked ears.
1 get them checked
2 go to a good specialist not just a doctor
3 ask your mates or any one whos had it done about doctors
4 you should have very little pain and a very small scar after the op
5 once you get it done it comes back even quicker every time u get done
6 wear ear plugs and all this **** is avoided
Wish id listened now im on a four year turnaround.
