Hank49
Contributor
simbrooks:Well tomorrow is the final day of anti-biotics. Seems to have cleared up the ache and no more discharging stuff, so thats good. However my ear is still a little sensitive - at least when swallowing i get more pressure in my ear than i am used to, trust me it seems kind of different. Hoping this has all cleared up, and whilst i would like to dive this weekend, i am thinking it might wait a little longer to just be safe and also it will be after my follow up appointment on tuesday (i hate paying for these services!).
This has been discussed many times on the board but I'll throw in my 2 cents again. I dived pretty much every day, multiple dives/day in 99, in the tropics. I saw many people get multiple ear infections and they tried all sorts of cleaning procedures...cotton swabs with alcohol, vinegar etc etc. Here is what worked for me. Do NOTHING to your ear except maybe use a moistened, flat toothpick to gently clean the larger pieces of wax every few days. Do NOT use cotton swabs as this cleans off the protective oil and wax coating. After applying this method I never had another ear problem. This method was confirmed in a book by a German doctor who said divers who dive daily should do nothing to their ears. They take care of themselves but most people are hung up on the perceived grossness of a little wax. IMHO. Hank