My ETD experience & myringotomy no tubes

Hi all, first off let me tell you that I've been stressed about ETD for almost 2 weeks.. Ear problems started on July 2 while showering, a little water got in my ears & stayed for a good week. I got frustrated & stuck a q-tip in my ear & finally came out the water. After that, a throbbing pain kicked in a few days later which I ended up going to the Hosptial (it was night time & the weekend had already started). I was told I had swimmers esrs cause  my canal was inflamed. Was prescribed antibiotics ear drops & was to use it for 5 days. After about the 3rd day, my ear suddenly clogged up (like a vacuum had sucked it). Didn't think too much about because I thought it was just the drops that got stuck.. After about a week I ended up making an appointment which I had to wait 2 weeks. By then, pressure built & muffled got irritating. Finally at the clinic, was told I had ETD and was prescribed mucinexD. I was confused because doctor was "assuming I had a cold or suddenly had allergies" (which I didn't have a cold nor do I suffer from allergies). After sbout a week I was literally going crazy.. Endless research online, crying, anxiety, hearing loss & feeling hopeless, I finally went back to the Hosptial. Was then asked by the doctor to forcibly get the tubes open by doing the valsalva maneuver which nothing helped. He then told me thst I had ETD & was prescribed prednisone, naproxen, afrin & mucinexD. After about a week, nothing was working, it was as if things were getting worse not better. I did not have any pain but only severe muffle & a whole lot of pressure.. After informing the doctor at the Hosptial that I fly out in 2 weeks, he then sent in a referral to an ENT specialist to help me since my anxieties were at that point, getting worse. Had to wait another week & finally scheduled my ENT appointment.. At the ENT clinic, doctor did all routine checks in my ear & found nothing but a retracted eardrum meaning negative pressure. Since I had no time to schedule a hearing test, he uses a tuning fork & believed that I had a middle ear problem. He then stuck a microscope into my nostril to see if there was a blockage but nothing. Checked my ear again & found nothing. I kept asking if he could cut my eardrum but he kept putting it off... I told him that it's driving me insane & I can't go on the plane not knowing if there's something seriously wrong... He kept saying afrin nasal spray will help before & after my flight but I was desperate for anything.. Finally my persistence paid off when he said ok I'll perform a myringotomy with no tubes but don't expect a miracle. I guess my desperation made me feel a tiny pinch as he was numbing my eardrum (he did mention that patience did complain of pain when he numbs the eardrum), finally he went in & cut.... He used a suction which didn't hurt much (heard it hurts a lot) & said I only had a little fluids. After the procedure, the pressure was gone but still muffled.. I was confused & disappointment. I felt like it was useless but he assured me that it was just my tubes swollen & that in time it will go away.. Besides, he said, I told you don't expect a miracle. At least the pressure was gone... Left happy because I told myself that if I fly out next week, at least I won't be in pain because of pressure since I'll still have a hole in my eardrum. He prescribed me afrin to take before & after the flight & another mucinexD. After about a few days, I started to get a nasty cold which I haven't had in years. I was beginning to get worried because every time I did the valsalva maneuver, my left ear would clog & ENT doctor did tell me to do it 3x a day to keep the hole in my right ear open as well to allow air to equalize. I was beginning to feel frustrated that the muffleness was already 100% & I could literally hear myself so loud in my head............. Finally, a few days later when I told myself I'm tired of having this affect my life, I'm not going to care anymore, it happened... MY DAMN EAR HAD A SOFT POP & it wasn't as muffled.. I didn't want. Jinx myself so I told myself, nah it's going to muffle up again... So the next day I woke up & I couldn't believe that it was actually gone... I don't know if it was the myringotomy, me giving up, meds or perhaps all of it but one thing is for sure, it has been gone for a few days now 

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