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swingaleg Posts: 104,800
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09/11/20 - 11:37 #27
The Otex rubber ball is available from Amazon (and presumably elsewhere)
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andydenyer Posts: 7,161
Forum Member
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09/11/20 - 16:41 #28
njp wrote: »
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
I've only had my ears syringed once - many years ago after some sort of viral infection (I presume) sent my wax production into overdrive. Never had a problem before or since.
The nurse was amused that one of my legs lifted involuntarily into the air each time she squirted water into my ear. Then she told me that they'd had to ban one patient from repeatedly having the procedure when it became clear that he didn't actually need it, and was deriving an unhealthy amount of... 'satisfaction' from it.
Unfortunately, I've had to have mine done several times over the years, not helped by doing a lot of flying on business (but those days are over - for now, at least). One thing I was advised was the shape of my ear canal seems to stop the wax from falling out naturally, causing a build-up over time. I also USED to use headphones/earphones a lot to listen to things (radio/music etc.) on my daily commute, but stopped that years ago as I knew that wasn't helping either.
For me, Otex never worked, and wasn't recommended by my surgery (they put me on to the Sodium Bicarbonate eardrops instead, which DO work for me). But if it's worked for the OP, then that's great. We're not all the same, so different things will work better for different people.
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njp Posts: 27,583
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09/11/20 - 17:22 #29
andydenyer wrote: »
njp wrote: »
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
I've only had my ears syringed once - many years ago after some sort of viral infection (I presume) sent my wax production into overdrive. Never had a problem before or since.
The nurse was amused that one of my legs lifted involuntarily into the air each time she squirted water into my ear. Then she told me that they'd had to ban one patient from repeatedly having the procedure when it became clear that he didn't actually need it, and was deriving an unhealthy amount of... 'satisfaction' from it.
Unfortunately, I've had to have mine done several times over the years, not helped by doing a lot of flying on business (but those days are over - for now, at least). One thing I was advised was the shape of my ear canal seems to stop the wax from falling out naturally, causing a build-up over time. I also USED to use headphones/earphones a lot to listen to things (radio/music etc.) on my daily commute, but stopped that years ago as I knew that wasn't helping either.
For me, Otex never worked, and wasn't recommended by my surgery (they put me on to the Sodium Bicarbonate eardrops instead, which DO work for me). But if it's worked for the OP, then that's great. We're not all the same, so different things will work better for different people.
The pre-treatment for mine was sodium bicarbonate drops. More recently, I noticed that my cat had some hard wax in her ears and successfully loosened it with olive oil.
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m4tt24 Posts: 843
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09/11/20 - 18:37 #30
I suffer with blocked ears from time to time, usually use Otex for a couple of days to break everything down then have a warm bath, lie down and gently using the palm of my hand create a little suction on my ear and the current draws all the wax out.
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Tellystar Posts: 12,253
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09/11/20 - 19:59 #31
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
They do, but £50 whether it’s one or two ears, is a bit steep.
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megashopper Posts: 7,522
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14/11/20 - 13:21 #32
Friend suffered with ear wax for years, she has thin tubes so wax just built up in her ears. Recently she has discovered a product called Otosan which she buys from Amazon, which she uses every day. This stops the wax from building up in the first place and cleans the ears. It's all got hundreds of 5* reviews on Amazon. Believe it's reasonably priced and lasts at least a month with daily use.
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GemofaBird Posts: 1,962
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14/11/20 - 14:09 #33
I used otex for 4 nights at bedtime then turned the shower head to jet and directed it at my ear with my head tilted downwards, a satisfying lump of wax came out 😁
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LaceyLouelle3 Posts: 9,682
Forum Member
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14/11/20 - 16:39 #34
Tellystar wrote: »
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
They do, but £50 whether it’s one or two ears, is a bit steep.
My Mum paid more than double that to get hers sorted out. The GP wouldn't do anything and she could barely hear.
Wish we had known that Specsavers do it. -
Tellystar Posts: 12,253
Forum Member
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14/11/20 - 18:59 #35
LaceyLouelle3 wrote: »
Tellystar wrote: »
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
They do, but £50 whether it’s one or two ears, is a bit steep.
My Mum paid more than double that to get hers sorted out. The GP wouldn't do anything and she could barely hear.
Wish we had known that Specsavers do it.Your Mum was ripped off! Even Specsavers is a rip off . Why not get some otex ear drops , and after a week try one of the methods that other posters on here have found effective?
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LaceyLouelle3 Posts: 9,682
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17/11/20 - 18:18 #36
Tellystar wrote: »
LaceyLouelle3 wrote: »
Tellystar wrote: »
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
They do, but £50 whether it’s one or two ears, is a bit steep.
My Mum paid more than double that to get hers sorted out. The GP wouldn't do anything and she could barely hear.
Wish we had known that Specsavers do it.Your Mum was ripped off! Even Specsavers is a rip off . Why not get some otex ear drops , and after a week try one of the methods that other posters on here have found effective?
She tried all that was suggested by the GP over the course of several weeks, nothing helped.
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ForestChav Posts: 35,127
Forum Member
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17/11/20 - 22:14 #37
Don't be tempted to remove it by any physical methods such as poking things in your ears. The trick is to use drops which break down the wax so it comes out naturally. I've found the peroxide ones (Boots have some) work best.
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bobcar Posts: 19,424
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18/11/20 - 13:23 #38
ForestChav wrote: »
Don't be tempted to remove it by any physical methods such as poking things in your ears. The trick is to use drops which break down the wax so it comes out naturally. I've found the peroxide ones (Boots have some) work best.
It depends on what you mean by "poking things in your ears", the syringes as posted on here are not a problem and work very well, cotton buds on the other hand are a very bad idea.
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bobcar Posts: 19,424
Forum Member
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18/11/20 - 13:25 edited 18/11/20 - 13:27 #39
LaceyLouelle3 wrote: »
Tellystar wrote: »
LaceyLouelle3 wrote: »
Tellystar wrote: »
Lidtop2013 wrote: »
Nigel Goodwin wrote: »
My work colleague went to the doctors (before Covid) and they no longer syringe, but they do vacuum it out - sorted him there and then.
Yeah my dad had the vacuum job done on his ears, his said it’s better as there’s no mess, and nothing to make you jump! Just abit of noise for a minute and everything is out. I know our Specsavers do it.
They do, but £50 whether it’s one or two ears, is a bit steep.
My Mum paid more than double that to get hers sorted out. The GP wouldn't do anything and she could barely hear.
Wish we had known that Specsavers do it.Your Mum was ripped off! Even Specsavers is a rip off . Why not get some otex ear drops , and after a week try one of the methods that other posters on here have found effective?
She tried all that was suggested by the GP over the course of several weeks, nothing helped.
Did she try the syringes or bulbs? I couldn't get rid of my wax with just drops but the combination of drops plus syringe worked well.
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ForestChav Posts: 35,127
Forum Member
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18/11/20 - 22:09 #40
bobcar wrote: »
ForestChav wrote: »
Don't be tempted to remove it by any physical methods such as poking things in your ears. The trick is to use drops which break down the wax so it comes out naturally. I've found the peroxide ones (Boots have some) work best.
It depends on what you mean by "poking things in your ears", the syringes as posted on here are not a problem and work very well, cotton buds on the other hand are a very bad idea.
Actually its been said before (by people far more qualified than I am) that actually doing anything to mechanically dislodge ear wax can damage the ear.
Tempting as it is, and as much a reflex action as it also is, having a little poke around with a finger isn't good either. I guess a syringe type thing (which is more of a pipette really) which just squirts water in is no different to running it under the shower, other than you then having an ear full of water to poke out too...
As I understand it the natural way to get ear wax out is actually chewing...
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Serial Lurker Posts: 10,764
Forum Member
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18/11/20 - 22:54 #41
The last time I got a badly blocked ear I used one of the water syringe style things that have been posted and it worked well. A couple of days putting drops in and then had a go with it, and let's just say it was no surprise that it was blocked considering what came out.
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Wench02 Posts: 2,851
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18/11/20 - 23:50 #42
I had one of those prong things with the screw on the end. Found it didn’t do anything and threw it in the bin.
Personally I’ve found that ear candling has made a difference
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bobcar Posts: 19,424
Forum Member
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19/11/20 - 01:34 #43
ForestChav wrote: »
bobcar wrote: »
ForestChav wrote: »
Don't be tempted to remove it by any physical methods such as poking things in your ears. The trick is to use drops which break down the wax so it comes out naturally. I've found the peroxide ones (Boots have some) work best.
It depends on what you mean by "poking things in your ears", the syringes as posted on here are not a problem and work very well, cotton buds on the other hand are a very bad idea.
Actually its been said before (by people far more qualified than I am) that actually doing anything to mechanically dislodge ear wax can damage the ear.
Tempting as it is, and as much a reflex action as it also is, having a little poke around with a finger isn't good either. I guess a syringe type thing (which is more of a pipette really) which just squirts water in is no different to running it under the shower, other than you then having an ear full of water to poke out too...
As I understand it the natural way to get ear wax out is actually chewing...
As long as you don't have certain ear conditions such as a perforated eardrum or a grommet then the bulbs or the syringes are good - this is from NHS websites. The pressure from them is really mild but still very different from running it under the shower.
After trying drops with no difference other than making the hearing worse the use of one of the irrigation devices cleared my ears immediately with huge lumps of wax coming out. My hearing is now better than it has been for years.
I was a bit wary before I tried the syringe but when using it the gentleness was obvious.
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solarflare Posts: 22,490
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24/11/20 - 19:17 #44
I had to go and get one of my ears syringed today. It got blocked up last Wednesday, but was bearable. I put the Otex Sodium Bicarbonate drops in for 6 days morning and evening and it made precious little difference. It basically just blocked my ear up even worse and the pressure got unbearable, I was really feeling miserable with it. It was tricky getting it out even with the syringe because it was a real lump but it came out and feel a bit better now.
Other ear is probably going to have the same issue very soon but now at least one ear is cleared I can try and focus on softening up the other one. I really didn't want to put drops in both ears at the same time and be almost totally deaf and hugely bunged up.
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Tellystar Posts: 12,253
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24/11/20 - 20:34 #45
Wench02 wrote: »
I had one of those prong things with the screw on the end. Found it didn’t do anything and threw it in the bin.
Personally I’ve found that ear candling has made a difference
It’s not regarded as safe, so not a good idea.
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carax Posts: 3,044
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25/11/20 - 02:47 #46
Please don’t. I have ended up with vertigo (BPPV) thanks to a professional getting rather too vigorous trying to syringe / sook out wax. Which I’m not sure was an issue anyway, but that’s another story.
A medic I saw who specialises in ENT stuff said the only thing you should put in your ear is olive oil.
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solarflare Posts: 22,490
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25/11/20 - 18:51 #47
carax wrote: »
Please don’t. I have ended up with vertigo (BPPV) thanks to a professional getting rather too vigorous trying to syringe / sook out wax. Which I’m not sure was an issue anyway, but that’s another story.
A medic I saw who specialises in ENT stuff said the only thing you should put in your ear is olive oil.
I'm sure olive oil has its place in the treatment for this, and don't doubt that it should be one of the first things on the list to try, but I suspect there will be plenty of instances where on its own it just isn't sufficient. The range of different treatments available sort of hints towards that.
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