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Okay, so I woke up several days ago hearing the world completely differently, as if I had just come out of a pool or my ear had just popped. However, when I jumped to get the water out of my ear and when I tried to "unpop" my ear, nothing happened.

I ended up going to the school nurse to see what she could do about it. She told me that I had severe allergies to pollen that I've never known about... I don't think that's very accurate.. as... I don't have any other allergic reactions, and I've lived in the same area for most of my life, and have never been affected before. I tried taking benadryl twice yesterday, but it didn't help at all.

What's bothering me now is that, several days later, I'm semi-deaf in that ear. I'm not really deaf, but I can't hear right, and it really bothers me when I play/practice piano. I performed last night at a small concert and it threw me off completely. Tomorrow I have an important competition... and I really don't know what to do.

Do I have an inner ear infection? Have you ever had the same experience? Is it just allergies? Is there anything I can do before tomorrow?

A friend of mine had the same problem many years ago, for several days, exactly as you describe, with diminished hearing but no pain or other allergies as you say.

It was a big pimple, not visible from the outside and grown in the wrong spot.

I've had something like this before, and it
was the result of earwax build-up so that
a clump of wax presses against the eardrum
and prevents it from vibrating completely,
resulting in the reduced hearing ability.
The reason why the overworked school nurse
didn't mention this--for she surely would
have noticed it--is apparently because she'd
then be expected to remove the wax, a
long, tedious, and unpleasant process. So
she just says something about pollen, since
the condition is not serious.

There are a number of ways of fixing this.
One might be just to do some underwater
swimming in the school pool: the water
pressure should cause the wax to loosen.
There are also various over-the-counter ear
drops that will loosen the wax.

So we just happened to have one of those ear wax cleaning kits, and I just used it, but to no avail. I've also tried sudafed to help with pressure differences.

A similar thing also happened to me. I had just had my wisdom teeth taken out, and they put me on some kind of antibiotic. I woke up one morning with a high-pitched ringing in my left ear (I later found out this is known as tinnitus). Went to the ENT (ear nose and throat) doctor, and they basically said there's nothing they can do, short of risky surgery which could actually make things worse. They think I had an allergic reaction to the antibiotics.

My hearing in that ear isn't completely lost. The volume level, or amplitude, of the sound waves is normal, but now my ear filters out high frequencies, allowing only lower and mid frequencies to be distinguished normally. It only really becomes an issue if there a lot of sounds going on at once. Hopefully your hearing loss isn't permanent...but if it is, take solace in the fact that you get used to it after a while.

Not sure there's much you can do in 24 hours. Sounds like you need to see a doctor.

Here\'s some info .

If I read your post corrctly, your diagnosis was made by the school nurse. I would suggest that you get the opinion of a doctor--one who specializes in the ear.

Chances are it is nothing serious and will pass in time, but you need the opinion of a doctor to make this determination. Gaby Tu




.

You go to a Doctor for this. This is beyond the ken of a nurse.

Tomasino

You should see an ENT (ear, nose throat doctor). He may want you to have a sinus CT to see if there's some build up of mucus- you'll need antibiotics but this can only be managed by an ENT properly. General physicians may also be able to do this but may not recommend the same kind of CT scan that the ENTs know about. I just went through this - it did impact my hearing in that music can be a bit muffled- drink plenty of water, too.
best to you! You'll be okay!!

p.s., the nurse or the doctor may also recommend a decongestant that helps with drainage...or, something like claritin? But please don't take my word for it- see and call the doctor. Explain your need to feel relief ASAP. Even the over the counter stuff may be helpful but watch for side effects like drowsiness!

I'll agree, see an ent doctor. I've undergone two ear surgeries and can't hear out of my right ear so well,so don't let this linger. Get a professional opinion.

I agree too. I would go see a doctor if you can. This may very well be just a sinus infection or an ear infection which can be treated with antibiotics. Usually when the antibiotics kick in, the problem starts to go away within two days. The last time this happened to me, I had a very bad head cold that settled in my ears and my chest. I couldn't hear anything for about a week until it broke.

Good luck,

John

See a doctor asap. As for wax buildup, I find it necessary to clean my ears with Q-tips, but be very gentile if you do this. Get this advice when you see the physician.

- Mark

You should see a doc, of course.

But you might also try this old-fashioned remedy that helps for various ear problems, too. Get some hydrogen peroxide, in the 3 percent solution you can get at any drugstore. Use a dropper to drip some into your ear until the ear canal is pretty full. You have to completely tilt you head to the side so it won't run out. Or lie down on your side to do it. It can be a little messy, so don't do it on a nice carpet; in the bathtub is a good spot. Anyway, it will bubble and foam and basically do a gentle cleaning job in there along with killing all kinds of germs. Let it work at least for a few minutes. It feels strange if you aren't used to it, but it's safe, and people have been doing this at least since my grandmother's time. My mom says when they were kids (this was around eighty years ago), they did this once a week to keep their ears from getting infections, and it worked.

I forgot - there's another good folk remedy, which is garlic-infused olive oil. You can get it at health-food type places.

Thanks- Actually I went to the doctor's yesterday afternoon, and I'm on amoxicillen now (acute ear infection- apparently both ears??).

You'll be good as new in a week. I didn't go to a doctor, hence, two operations later and looking at a third was not very smart. Hope you feel well soon.