simple remedy for "full" ear feeling? cant hear well?

[seekingsimplicity]

I am an otherwise healthy 51 year old female with a problem I have had about 3-4 months.

My ears feel weird. The only way I can describe it is that they feel full. For example yesterday I was in a loud restaurant and my hearing was really bad. On the phone I have trouble hearing too.

The doctor looked in my ears and could not see a problem, put me on Claritan-D and said maybe the tubes that he cannot see are full of fluid or something. I think he said I could see a specialist to see if that was the case.

I don't know how I could have developed this and it is probably something simple to remedy.

A friend of mine told me she has not had a cold for years because she does not blow her nose, so I have not been blowing my nose if I have the sniffles but now I am questioning that and wondering if blowing my nose would help?

any suggestions? thank you so much!

[CathyA]

Well, I hate to keep bringing up perimenopause......but...........my ears were horrible during perimenopause. I think its that our mucous gets thicker and our eustachian tubes aren't that big. I've talked to lots of women who began to have sinus problems during perimenopause too.
What I ended up doing was making a home-made nasal spray (my ENT's suggestion), and spraying my nose several times a day.
You think there isn't anything up there, but once its sprayed, lots of stuff can come out. Here's the recipe: 1 cup boiled (cooled) water, 1/4 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp salt (without additives). Mix and put into a small spray bottle. I just used an empty spray bottle I had from "Ocean" spray. I just can't tolerate those preservatives in store-bought spray.
See if that helps. Try not to blow your nose so hard that your eustachian tubes clog up.
Another possibility is that you are just losing a bit of your hearing. That's happening to me. :(
Let me know if the spray works. Plus, try to lay off too much salt, and drink lots of water.

No offense, but the concept of not blowing your nose so you don't get a cold is a little curious. Getting all that foreign matter out that has been filtered by your nose hairs is important in keeping your sinuses healthy.

[Mrs-M]

Did the doctor mention anything to you as to wax buildup in your ears? In our house olive oil is what we use and does it ever work great. Warm up a few drops of oil and dispense into ear. I recommend doing it overnight- and add a cotton ball to the ear(s) being treated to keep the oil from leaking out.

An eye dropper or one of those small miniature essential oil bottles w/dropper works wonders for dispensing and warming the oil. I use an essential oil/eye dropper bottle. I just set the bottle into a small bowl of hot water (straight from the tap) to warm. If wax buildup is progressed a few treatments may be necessary.

[CathyA]

I forgot to mention one more thing......Try Mucinex for awhile. You have to drink lots of water or it can dry you out......but it also helped me to clear out the eustachian tubes. It thins mucous.
Also, be sure to take a good multivitamin daily.

[seekingsimplicity]

thank you both of you for the help. I will try all of the above. The doc I went to said there is no wax build-up, thankfully. it could very well be a perimenopause symptom.

big hugs to both of you for your ideas.

[Mrs-M]

And a great big warm hug to you too SS! :) Post a followup if/when you can.

[Rosemary]

Acid reflux does that to me.

[CathyA]

Sort of interesting ................ I don't know if I just got over it after perimenopause, or if it was using my cpap at night (which I began just a few years ago....I'm 61). Using that really keeps my sinuses and eustachian tubes open. But I don't recommend using that, just to keep your eustachian tubes open! :)
I agree.......acid reflux can do a number on just about everything from the stomach up! Some people have a cough all the time that they can't explain, and it ends up being reflux. Do you have reflux Seekingsimplicity?

[seekingsimplicity]

no reflux problems or any other symptoms at all.

[herbgeek]

I used to get this as a young adult, due to getting water in my ears while showering or swimming. I started using a few drops of rubbing alcohol in my ears after getting water in them every day, and have not had this happen since. Don't know if that will help you at all...its more of a preventative to keep problems away than a treatment when you already have problems. It took a week or two of doing this daily before I noticed it helped when my ears were plugged, as I recall.

[nswef]

You might try using some vinegar in your ear. I just take a teaspon and dribble it in...sometimes it fizzes, swallow a few times to help it move. It also might be jaw trouble. I have some neck exercises I use when my ears ache. You lean you ear toward you shoulder, hold for 30 sec. then turn your head toward your underarm as if you are sniffing for odor and hold 30 sec. Do 3 times a day and it seems to loosen up not only the jaw and neck but the ears seem to clear. I'd also recommend Ayr nasal system- essentially salt water in a tube that works like a Neti pot. I do that every morning.

[Wildflower]

I'm 53 and was having the same problem. After a complete ear exam by a ENT doc, which found nothing wrong - a hearing test showed a big hearing loss. Apparently, I have progressive hearing loss. Funny thing is to me it felt just like fluid in my ears that I've had in the past, but no fluid was found to be the problem. Doc said my hearing loss is genetic as well. Bummer...... I am adjusting to it and considering a hearing aid in my future.

[CathyA]

Me too Wildflower....about the hearing aid. They seem to have made big advances in the area of those aids.

[Simpler at Fifty]

I have been bothered by the full ear feeling off and on for a couple years. No wax build up per my Dr. I warm a wet washcloth in the microwave and lay it on paper plate. I lay down with my ear on the cloth (I put a flour sack dishtowel on the waschloth because it gets pretty hot). I might need to do this 5 nights in a row and then the full feeling goes away.

[Gardenarian]

Hi -
I have this problem too. It is so annoying!!
What works for me is to use a neti pot every day - up to four times a day when I'm sick. Mine is cause by eustachian tube dysfunction (very common). When I'm suffering from allergies or cold I take pseudophedrine as well, and that keeps my ear clear. My doctor told me that antihistamines are very drying and can aggravate the eustachian tubes, so I stay away from them. Doc also recommended Mucinex, but I found no difference.

Like your friend, I avoid blowing my nose - I think it makes things worse.

I don't want to worry you, but before I started using the neti pot my ears got so bad that I was having horrible tinnitus (in addition to the stuffiness) and vertigo.

I am also peri-menopausal - I never heard of this as a symptom! It's good to know.

[mira]

I have had a similar problem. My doctor found that my nasal passages were slightly swollen and my eardrums were kind of being pulled inwards. The only thing that helped was 'popping' my ears (this helped for short periods) and taking a steroid-based nasal spray designed for hay fever sufferers.

[ljevtich]

... I'd also recommend Ayr nasal system- essentially salt water in a tube that works like a Neti pot. I do that every morning.

I just got the Neti Pot, WOW is all I can say, it totally helped both me and my DH. He has had nasal problems all his life, we were afraid we would have to do surgery, but now, now, I do not think that will be the case. We tried it out today, the first day, and boy, do I feel great!

[seekingsimplicity]

Just a follow up to say this was Meniere's Disease. Not fun. Hearing loss too. But it has gotten better over the last months. I wear a hearing aid now. Not much the ENT can do for it.