Hearing problem due to cold virus

[Artificial Emotion]

Unfortuntely I have a really severe cold, verging on being as severe as a mild influenza infection. My sinuses were blocked earlier on which causes an inbalance in air pressure in my ears. Although I have treated the problem with my sinuses using a special decongestant nasal spray, I'm still having a problem with the pressure inside my ears and they consequently feel very blocked, which is driving me nuts. Apart from waiting, is there anything I can do other than blocking my nose and blowing to equalize the pressure?

Oh, and another thing I wanted to ask was about the nasal spray decongestant. I have heard of people becoming dependent on these in a way, since they suffer from rebound congestion on discontinuation of the product. I do not wish for this to happen when I stop using it and was wondering if there is anything I can do to prevent this from occurring? Should I just minimize my usage of the spray?

 

[RhythmSpring]

Yeah, stay away from the spray every day or you'll pay, mkay?

I've had this problem before too, and there are certainly things you can do to help alleviate the problem. Hearing is like muffled and under watery sounding, right?

Try a neti pot for the nasal sinuses. If you don't know what it is, it's a little ceramic genie-lamp-shaped thing that allows you to flush warm saltwater through your nasal passages. Look it up.

Your eustachian tubes may be clogged as well. Try this:

Turn your head 90 degrees to the left if it's your right ear (and vice versa). With your finger, find the spot directly beneath/behind your right earlobe. Massage inward and toward the jawbone. It should feel a little uncomfortable in a good way. This should loosen up some fluid in that area.

Other things that help are hot steam from a shower or sauna, and wasabi. God I miss sushi.

 

[Artificial Emotion]

Hey that's some good advice. Thanks

 

[SA]

H2O2... the cheap 3% strength variety from your local pharmacy. Pick up a bottle and a dropper/pipette. Pour a dropperful in one ear, tilting head to hold it in. Keep tilted, holding peroxide in untill fizzing stops. Do other ear. Repeat daily.

Peroxide is a better disinfectant than bleach or alcohol, with no side effects by contrast. It kills germs on contact. Ears, nose, eyes and throat are primary entry gateways of daily assaults of pathogens.

Pick up one of those nasal mist spray bottles (nasal moisturisers) (like this) at any pharmacy. Choose the cheapest on the shelf from the dozen or so varieties there; should be about 5 bucks. Empty the contents. Rinse and fill with 3% store variety peroxide, full strength (it's weak). Carry with you at all times. Use this mist for everything.

- Instead of those alcohol gel hand sanitizers, squirt some of this mist on your hands to clean them whenever the need arises.
- If you feel something in your throat, or nose after you think you've been in contact with someone who may have cold or flu, spray a few squirts in your wide open mouth, right to the back of the throat, even while softly inhaling, so that some travels down the windpipe. Doing the same in each nostril won't hurt, to reinforce the oral gateway disinfection.
- Squirt in each ear. This should hold you over until you can get into a setting where you can fill each ear at a time with peroxide until it stops fizzing, basically decimating any pathogens in there and forming a temporary profilactic strengthened barrier, as the ear is now free to fight off more normal levels of pathogens.

H2O2 is an amazing compound. It safe taken externally, as well as internally. The latter form of administration is controversial, but there are right and wrong ways of going about most things. Taken the right way, I've got tons and tons of good things to say about H2O2, all tried and true, personally. Whole other topic, for another thread, for another day.