How to Remove Water from your Ear

If water does get trapped in your ear, you can try several at-home remedies for relief:

Jiggle your earlobe

This first method may shake the water out of your ear right away. Gently tug or jiggle your earlobe while tilting your head in a downward motion toward your shoulder. You can also try shaking your head from side to side while in this position.

Make gravity do the work

With this technique, gravity should help the water drain from your ear.Lie on your side for a few minutes, with your head on a towel to absorb the water. The water may slowly drain out of your ear.

Create a vacuum

This method will create a vacuum that may draw the water out.

Tilt your head sideways, and rest your ear onto your cupped palm, creating a tight seal.
Gently push your hand back and forth toward your ear in a rapid motion, flattening it as you push and cupping it as you pull away.
Tilt your head down to allow the water to drain.

Apply a hot compress

Using hot but not scalding water, wet a washcloth. Make sure to wring out the washcloth before using it so that it doesn’t drip.
Tilt head downward on the affected side and apply the cloth to the outside of the ear. Leave it on the ear for about 30 seconds, and then remove it for a minute.
Repeat these steps four or five times. It may help to sit up or lie down on the side opposite of the affected side of your body afterward.

Use a blow dryer

The heat from the dryer can help evaporate the water inside the ear canal.

Set the blow dryer to its lowest setting.
Hold the hair dryer about a foot away from the ear and move it in a back-and-forth motion.
While tugging down on the earlobe, let the warm air blow into the ear.

Try alcohol and vinegar eardrops

The alcohol can help evaporate the water in your ear. Alcohol also works to eliminate the growth of bacteria, which can help prevent infection. If the trapped water occurs due to earwax buildup, the vinegar may help remove it.

Combine equal parts alcohol and vinegar to make eardrops.
Using a sterile dropper, apply three or four drops of this mixture into the ear.
Gently rub the outside of the ear.
Wait 30 seconds, and tilt the head sideways to let the solution drain out.

Use hydrogen peroxide eardrops

Hydrogen peroxide can help clear debris, earwax, bacteria, or trapped water from your ear.

Using a clean dropper, place three to four drops of hydrogen peroxide into your ear.
Wait two to three minutes.
Tilt the affected side downward, allowing the fluid to drain out.

Don’t use this method if you think you have any of these conditions:

an outer ear infection, perforated eardrum and eardrum tubes.

Try olive oil

Olive oil can also help prevent ear infection, as well as repel water out.

Warm some olive oil in a small bowl.
Using a clean dropper, place a few drops of the oil into the affected ear.
Lie on the other side for about 10 minutes, and then sit up and tilt the ear downward. The water and oil should drain out.

Yawn or chew

When water gets stuck, moving your mouth can sometimes help to open the tubes. Yawn or chew gum to relieve tension in your Eustachian tubes.

Perform the Valsalva maneuver

This method can also help open closed eustachian tubes. Be careful not to blow too hard. This can damage your ear drum.

Close your mouth and gently squeeze your nostrils shut with your fingers.
Breathe deeply, and slowly blow the air out of the nose. If popping sound noticed, it means the Eustachian tubes have opened.
Tilt your head to allow the water to drain from your ear.

Use steam

Warm steam can help release water from your middle ear through your eustachian tubes. Try taking a hot shower, or giving yourself a mini sauna with a bowl of hot water.

Fill a large bowl with hot steaming water.
Cover your head with a towel to keep the steam in, and hold your face over the bowl.
Inhale the steam for 5 or 10 minutes, and then tilt your head to the side to drain your ear.
12. Try more water

This technique may sound illogical, but it can actually help draw water out of your ear.

Lying on your side, fill the affected ear with water using a clean dropper.
Wait five seconds and then turn over, with the affected ear facing down. All of the water should drain out.

To read more on First Aid, click on the link below.

First Aid

Tinnitus

What causes tinnitus?

Tinnitus is not a disease. It is a manifestation of problem in the auditory system, which includes the ear, the auditory nerve that connects the inner ear to the brain, and the parts of the brain that process sound. At times, a small collection of ear wax can also cause tinnitus.

Below are some health conditions which can cause tinnitus:

Noise induced hearing loss can result in tinnitus
Ear and sinus infections
Diseases of the heart or blood vessels
Ménière’s disease
Brain tumors
Hormonal changes in women
Thyroid problems
Side effect of some medicines

In older people, tinnitus is the first sign of hearing loss.

Individuals noisy who work in noisy environments such as factory or construction workers, road construction workers, or even musician can develop tinnitus over a period of time as the exposure to extreme noise damages tiny sensory hair cells in the inner ear that help transmit sound to the brain. This is known as noise-induced hearing loss.

Army officials exposed to bomb blasts can develop tinnitus due to sudden and extreme exposure to sound. In fact, tinnitus is one of the most common service-related disabilities among army officials returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Pulsatile tinnitus is a rare type of tinnitus that sounds like a rhythmic pulsing in the ear, which is usually aligned with your heartbeat. A doctor makes a diagnosis by pressing a stethoscope against your neck or by placing a tiny microphone inside the ear canal. This kind of tinnitus is most often caused by problems with blood flow in the head or neck. Pulsatile tinnitus also may be caused by brain tumors or abnormalities in brain structure.

Other causes include fatigue, depression, anxiety, and problems with memory and concentration. Having tinnitus is a cause of stress in many of the affected individuals.

What to do if one has tinnitus?

The first step is to see and visit a doctor. Doctor will examine for problems such as ear wax, examines and question about current health, medical conditions, and would try to see if any medications is causing tinnitus.

A detailed examination is done by a ENT specialist who will physically examine your head, neck, and ears and test your hearing to determine whether you have any hearing loss along with the tinnitus.

What to do if sounds in the ear do not go away?

A consultation and visit to the doctor will help you find out ways to reduce the severity of tinnitus. Your doctor may advice certain lifestyle changes, which can help you to reduce the effects of tinnitus.

Treatment for tinnitus

Tinnitus is an incurable condition, but treatment may help to minimize its severity and effects. Most doctors use combination of the treatments to treat tinnitus:

Hearing aids often are helpful for people who have hearing loss along with tinnitus. A better hearing capability reduces the symptoms of tinnitus
Counseling is important for as it help patients to understand and learn methods that how to live with tinnitus. Most counseling programs have an educational methodology to help you understand what goes on in the brain to cause tinnitus. Counseling also teaches some self measures that how to deal with tinnitus effectively
Wearable sound generators are small electronic devices that fit in the ear and use a soft, pleasant sound to help minimize the sounds of tinnitus. This device masks the sounds created by tinnitus with the help of random tones, or music.
Tabletop sound generators are the devices which are used for relaxation or sleep. Patient can place them near bed, and it plays pleasant sounds such as waves, waterfalls, rain, or the sounds of a summer night. It helps affected people to have good and sound sleep.
Acoustic neural stimulation is a relatively new technique for people whose tinnitus is very loud or won’t go away. It uses a palm-sized device and headphones to deliver a broadband acoustic signal embedded in music. The treatment modality aims to stimulate change in the neural circuits in the brain, which curbs the effects of the tinnitus.
Cochlear implants are sometimes used in people who have tinnitus along with severe hearing loss. A cochlear implant bypasses the damaged portion of the inner ear and sends electrical signals that directly stimulate the auditory nerve. The device brings in outside sounds that help mask tinnitus and stimulate change in the neural circuits.
Antidepressants and antianxiety drugs helps to reduce symptoms of tinnitus

How to prevent tinnitus?

One must refrain from loud noises, as the major cause of noise- induced tinnitus is the exposure to loud noises and sounds. Refrain from loud music of DJ and high noise areas.

Sources:

https://medlineplus.gov/tinnitus.html

https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/tinnitus

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2686891/

https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/tinnitus

Tag: ENT