Sazoo
07-26-2007, 11:59 PM
Has anyone ever had a punctured/perforated ear drum before? I think I have one (going to see the ear-nose-throat specialist tomorrow morning) - and my doctor (or her nurse) did it! :mad:
I went to the doctor yesterday (Wed) to get my ear checked/cleaned out because I thought I had wax build-up in one ear and I wanted it removed before my vacation to Mexico in 3 weeks (it caused me problems in Hawaii last fall - got water stuck in there so badly that I couldn't hear and my head hurt from all the pressure). Two nurses tried flushing out my ear for over an hour and the doctor dug around in there with a little tool and everything but they couldn't get the wax out (apparently I have narrow ear canals, which made it more difficult). Finally the doctor referred me to a specialist, who will have other tools/methods to remove the wax.
So, when I went in to the doctor's office that morning my ear was totally fine. No hearing problems, no water stuck in it, no pain, nothing. I was just getting it checked out as a preventive measure before our Mexico trip. When I left though, my ear was completely clogged with water, it hurt, and I couldn't hear. The pain was tolerable during the day, but last night OMG it was soooo awful. My DH wanted to take me to the ER because I was in so much pain. I did what the doctor recommended & put some hydrogen peroxide in my ear for about 20 min then tried to flush it out with more water, but that only made the pain and pressure worse - a lot worse.
Luckily the pain lessened over night, but all day long today I've had a pretty bad ear ache, I hear ringing in my ear and I've felt sort of lightheaded. From the limited research I've done online, I really think the doctor or her nurse punctured my ear drum yesterday when they were trying to get the wax out! :mad: These symptoms and the severity of my pain do not seem like they could be caused by ear wax alone.
I'm so pissed! If that is in fact what happened I know it was just an accident, but still. I went in there feeling fine, needing to get one problem fixed, and I walked out with that problem still, plus a new (bigger) problem and lots of pain! Now I'm worried that the doctor is going to tell me I can't get my ear wet for awhile, which might mean no (or limited) swimming in Mexico (which would be a serious bummer since that's the only thing on my vacation agenda-hanging out at the pool). I'm also worried he might tell me that my ear might hurt during the flights to/from Mexico due to the pressure changes during flight. Plus I don't know if I should expect my ear to fully heal from the puncture, or if I'll always have this damn ringing in my head...it is truly driving me crazy.
Also, it seems unfair that I'll have to pay for probably a few dr. visits to the specialist for treatment and follow-up, possibly a prescription for some ear drops to prevent infection and for a pain reliever, etc. when it was someone at the medical clinic who caused me to have this problem!
I'm just so upset about this. My attempt to prevent ear problems during our upcoming vacation ended up creating more serious and painful ear problems. So my trip is going to be negatively impacted anyway...why did I even bother going to the doctor in the first place? :confused:
Sorry this is so long; I guess I just needed to vent. I'm hoping tomorrow's appointment isn't too painful, but I'm worried it will be since my ear already hurts and I doubt it's going to feel good having them digging around in there to get the wax out so they can see my ear drum and verify that it is in fact punctured. :(
I went to the doctor yesterday (Wed) to get my ear checked/cleaned out because I thought I had wax build-up in one ear and I wanted it removed before my vacation to Mexico in 3 weeks (it caused me problems in Hawaii last fall - got water stuck in there so badly that I couldn't hear and my head hurt from all the pressure). Two nurses tried flushing out my ear for over an hour and the doctor dug around in there with a little tool and everything but they couldn't get the wax out (apparently I have narrow ear canals, which made it more difficult). Finally the doctor referred me to a specialist, who will have other tools/methods to remove the wax.
So, when I went in to the doctor's office that morning my ear was totally fine. No hearing problems, no water stuck in it, no pain, nothing. I was just getting it checked out as a preventive measure before our Mexico trip. When I left though, my ear was completely clogged with water, it hurt, and I couldn't hear. The pain was tolerable during the day, but last night OMG it was soooo awful. My DH wanted to take me to the ER because I was in so much pain. I did what the doctor recommended & put some hydrogen peroxide in my ear for about 20 min then tried to flush it out with more water, but that only made the pain and pressure worse - a lot worse.
Luckily the pain lessened over night, but all day long today I've had a pretty bad ear ache, I hear ringing in my ear and I've felt sort of lightheaded. From the limited research I've done online, I really think the doctor or her nurse punctured my ear drum yesterday when they were trying to get the wax out! :mad: These symptoms and the severity of my pain do not seem like they could be caused by ear wax alone.
I'm so pissed! If that is in fact what happened I know it was just an accident, but still. I went in there feeling fine, needing to get one problem fixed, and I walked out with that problem still, plus a new (bigger) problem and lots of pain! Now I'm worried that the doctor is going to tell me I can't get my ear wet for awhile, which might mean no (or limited) swimming in Mexico (which would be a serious bummer since that's the only thing on my vacation agenda-hanging out at the pool). I'm also worried he might tell me that my ear might hurt during the flights to/from Mexico due to the pressure changes during flight. Plus I don't know if I should expect my ear to fully heal from the puncture, or if I'll always have this damn ringing in my head...it is truly driving me crazy.
Also, it seems unfair that I'll have to pay for probably a few dr. visits to the specialist for treatment and follow-up, possibly a prescription for some ear drops to prevent infection and for a pain reliever, etc. when it was someone at the medical clinic who caused me to have this problem!
I'm just so upset about this. My attempt to prevent ear problems during our upcoming vacation ended up creating more serious and painful ear problems. So my trip is going to be negatively impacted anyway...why did I even bother going to the doctor in the first place? :confused:
Sorry this is so long; I guess I just needed to vent. I'm hoping tomorrow's appointment isn't too painful, but I'm worried it will be since my ear already hurts and I doubt it's going to feel good having them digging around in there to get the wax out so they can see my ear drum and verify that it is in fact punctured. :(