20 days and counting :(
Posted , 3 users are following.
20 days ago I woke up and all the hearing in my left ear was completely muffled. Prior to this I had only ever had one ear infection in that ear which was about 2 years beforehand. No head cold but I do suffer from allergies so it is always my daily routine to take an over the counter antihistamine. I went to the Doctor and he told me he believed that because my ear was completely clear of wax and everything else looked normal I must be suffering from ETD. He was very thorough in explaining what ETD is so I am well aware of what it is and my symptoms are spot on. I have the fullness feeling in the ear. When I move my fingers around my ear like underneath the ear lobe and touch the skin there everything sounds weird and strange (that symptom is the hardest for me to explain!) He put me on Rhinochort nasal spray and told me to keep taking my antihistamines and he referred me straight away for a CT Scan of my sinus to make sure all was ok in that area. Which it was. My sinus were clear. The first week of this my ear would not pop at all and all I could constantly feel was the fluid moving around my ear. My only improvement since then is that my ear now pops up to 4 times a day providing a few minutes of relief before it seems to just close right back up again. I did go back and see him a second time in that 20 days and told him my symptoms were still lingering and he prescribed me 5mg of Predisone steroid tablets and I have to take them twice a day for 5 days. Today is now day 3 of the tablets and I feel no change at all still in my hearing and the pressure feeling. Is it normal for the steroids to take a while to kick in? Should I stop using the nasal spray or ask for a different one? Could the nasal spray be making everything worse? Should I go back and see him or give it more time as he told me it can take a long time for mucus to clear once it does get trapped? Should I just get a referral to an ENT and be done with it? I dont need to tell any of you how frustrating this condition is as you all are going through it just as bad. After 20 days I feel like ripping my hair out. I am a mum of three kids and everyday I am using all my willpower and energy to try and completely ignore my ear and focus on looking after my kids. Thanks for hearing me out and letting me vent and any advice of course would be great xx
0 likes, 4 replies
joyce51362 rosie11232
Posted
Rosie, I have your symptoms, all. I have been to my GP and the ENT, 3 times. I've taken steroids, nasal sprays tried everything. I'm told I just have to wait it out. Within the last 3 days my ear has opened several times, but only for seconds! This started for me beginning of January, 2018. So frustrated, bI have absolutely tried everything. So if yours happens to open, please let me know, that at least will be encouraging
rosie11232 joyce51362
Posted
Hi Joyce, sorry to hear you are going through this. Before it started happening to me I had actually never heard of this condition before. I suffer from other conditions too such as IBS and I also have arthritis in my jaw and funnily enough both of those conditions cause pain yet the ETD because it is constantly just there all the time seems to get to me way worse than the other conditions ever have!!! But having said that you do learn to live with these things unfortunately if you have too. My ear will pop randomly a few times a day so far it happens when I am walking, in the car and also either whilst I am eating or just after a meal. When it does pop the relief is definitely noticeable and I always just wish it would stay open long enough to obviously let the fluid drain. Because I haven't seen an ENT I havent had anyone look at the tube so I have no real idea as to how much fluid might be there or if its even swollen. I am feeling frustrated that the steroid tablets arent working yet because that seemed like the thing most people report to have worked for them. My Dr even told me he would believe that it would give me at least 6 months relief!!! So I think even he realises that once something like this starts there is no real cure. Last few days I realise if I put my head down below my knees my ear will open. If I put my hand under my ear lobe and push upwards it will open. Finally if I yawn and pull a really weird face it opens but all these things are obviously impossible for me to just do continuously. I go for walks daily and exercise. I used to love walking but now every step is just THUD THUD THUD. However I haven't stopped my exercise routine because I feel once I do stop doing the things I love I am going to sit around feeling extremely sorry and stressed out and will just fall into a cycle of depression!.
ashley81307 rosie11232
Posted
rosie11232 ashley81307
Posted
Wow. So very sorry to hear that. What is your advice as far as 'do's and don'ts with this condition and what medications do you currently use to help?