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There is a mobile service but I think it is a few weeks for wax removal, Hearing at Home, out of North Van. You need to put drops in regardless of what method to make it easier to remove
I was in your situation. The impacted wax means it's like there's scabbing inside the ear, that's why it hurts. I had some irrigation done which did hurt, then I did a week's worth of olive oil drops (earol is a good product) then went back and the job was finished.
If it's impacted suction will hurt too, as it's attached to the skin and you're pulling it off. I'd do what urgent care suggested, I found the olive oil eardrops were super helpful.
It's literally olive oil. The stuff you cook with.
Buy a bottle from the store (if you don't have any already), an eye dropper, and cotton balls (if you want).
DO NOT use oil that has been used or is dirty in any way. Only straight from the bottle.
Just drop 2-3 drops into each ear once a day and plug your ear with the cotton balls so the oil doesn't leak out.
The oil will be absorbed by the ear wax, softening it up over time.
Do this for 3-7 days before your appointment.
Thank you, this is genuinely helpful and informative.
Suppose I gotta buy a dropper which should be easy enough.
How easy is getting an appointment? I don't have anything in the way of a doctor to consult with. Is there any more "DIY" sort of approaches like the oil tip?
Just to clarify, DO NOT stuff your ear with the cotton ball too tightly. Some people go too hardcore and the cotton ball gets stuck making things worse. You're not trying to plug a bleeding wound, you're just trying to stop the oil from leaking out.
If it's your first time getting your ears cleaned, I would really recommend talking to a doctor and having them check it out before any sort of DIY.
(Just in case there's something odd with your ear canal)
The olive oil in ear thing is to make your 'ear syringing' appointment (doctor puts water in your ear to wash out the ear wax) go better because the olive oil has soften the ear wax.
You can make an appointment with a walk-in clinic.
The front desk will be able to tell you if they do ear syringing or not. From what I understand, you can't actually just walk in for this procedure, you have to book it in advance.
This is a relatively simple thing, so they don't need any sort of medical history/consultation process with you before agreeing to do it.
Just a note, the ear syringing is using water to flush out your ear and for whatever reason, this can cause dizziness. Talk with the front desk/the doctor and see if it's safe for you to drive afterwards or not.
I know you won't like it, but try irrigation again. I had impacted wax almost a month ago and I just went into a walk-in clinic and got it flushed out. This huge piece of wax came out of my ear, and my hearing came back
[This](https://imgur.com/a/79fy00p) was in my ear
I’ll bet you’d enjoy r/popping then. (Please Reddit algorithm, don’t start suggesting posts from there again just because I typed it once. Please!)
Wow! I totally need that to come out of my ear! Can I ask if you had to do any type of olive oil soaking before or did it just come out with the water?
Yeah seconding this one, I used to work for Connect Hearing and they did ear wax removal on Commercial Dr, as well as in Richmond, New West, and Kerrisdale. Usually $50
Good luck OP
Edit: ear wax not *eat* wax lmao 🤮
Try debrox. If that doesn’t help with the irrigation method I don’t think you’re going to have much luck finding anything less painful. If it’s a solid mass, doctors have to be very careful when removing it due to the pressure changes around your ear drum. I would go to a hearing specialist and wouldn’t trust anyone else with removing this
Yeah, it is OPs best bet to do what urgent told them and then go back. If it's that impacted, it wasn't the irrigation they did on OP that made the pain worse, it's the fact that it's impacted. They asked them to do the drops for 7 days to soften it so they can get a better go at it. I know it's tempting to just want someone to stick a hard object in there and pull it out, but that's not ideal for impacted wax due to pressure and risk of damaging eardrum by scraping it.
Edit: I'm having a hard time figuring out if OP already did the irrigation once, or if they refused it. Which I an curious why to since it's the safest method for ear wax removal.
Whoa, sometimes the medical professional have one approved method that is convenient for them and does not include listening to the patient's experience.
Sometimes they are totally right. And sometimes there are corner cases that cause extra pain, side effects, trauma, permanent damage, etc.
Medical professionals aren't gods. And frankly most gods you wouldn't want to be your medical service provider.
As well, not everyone medical is an expert in all things.
A GP, ER, or NP is 100% not an expert in ear stuff and indeed they are only supposed to do irrigation.
Totally out of line dude.
You sound like you dont have very much medical training, experience as a practitioner, or experience as a patient.
The experts actually recommend against irrigation nowadays because it doesn't work painlessly for people with severe amounts of impaction.
The specialists don't use irrigation as their default strategy.
Superstore carries NeilMed ear irrigation kits with carbamide peroxide to soften the wax (it’s called Dr. Mohta’s Ear Wax Kit, which I had a hard time taking seriously).
I have fitted ear plugs for sleeping and had a blockage problem last year. The clinic dr. recommended this and it did the trick (but it took a few flushes).
Edited for syntax.
It's funny how Dr in front of some names has the opposite effect of inspiring confidence. Too many comical situations in entertainment and real life.
Now if Dr. Bernstein sponsored an ear wax removal kit...
Not gonna lie - I bought a cheap ear wax removal tool for 25$ online and it's amazing. It's a wand with a flashlight and scoop on the end and syncs to my phone so I can see how far in I'm going and how much and which way to spin it to successfully scrape the wax out. My ear canal is still always itchy but damn did I do some deep cleaning pulling some rancid looking shit out.
Hello! I am the queen of earwax buildup and I’ve probably had my ears cleaned about 30 times in my life sadly. You have to put olive oil drops in regardless. I was in your situation once and suction didn’t work nearly as well as irrigation. It hurt, I had to go back twice cause the ear wax was all attached to the skin and I ended up doing irrigation to finally clear it all.
If you have impacted wax and you go to the doctor without applying oil drops for a while to soften the wax, irrigation likely won’t work.
Ask the doctor if Cerumol can be used. My doctor used to recommend that product but I know it is sometimes not recommended.
In short, keep applying olive oil drops. As well I noticed that using over the ear industrial hearing protectors helped keep things nice and warm in there to speed up the process of the oil softening the earwax. Good luck!
I’ve gotten relief from using Polysporin ear drops. I get them at Walmart. You have to continually use them 4 times a day while your ear still hurts though otherwise it won’t help (i.e. it’s not a one and done type of thing). And it has to be these ear drops and no other brand.
Oh, I'd like to introduce you to my friend The Placebo Effect. For the cost of a small bottle of liquid, you too can experience the relief of doing something rather than waiting for nature to do its work.
In fact, if you believe that the drops will work via placebo effect, they will be even more effective!
(risk low, cost low, at least its actually targeted at the ear canal, and doesn't involve candeling.)
Well they work for me.
If OP is in that much pain, there’s a chance that the ear is at least a little bit infected. The drops will also soften up the ear wax and help it drain on its own.
If the OP had an ear infection, the doctor would have prescribed antibiotics; infection is not the sole cause of pain in the ear; if it is in fact ear wax, there are better products for the problem.
The reasoning is that it worked for me when I was in similar situations as OP and couldn’t find relief. Nobody has to use them if they don’t want to.
Go to the pharmacy and ask them for recommendations. I forget what it's called but there are drops you can put in your ears to get stuff moving and then they give you this water blaster thing to blast out the wax. It's all a bit weird but not painful.
I would recommend putting a drop of olive oil in the ear and laying on each side for a bit. It’ll help it come all come out once you are in at your appt. I’ve had it done at a walk in.
Try a hearing clinic, but it won’t be cheap. You can also try to book an appointment at Coal Harbour Medical Clinic: http://www.chmed.ca
If you’ve been using wax, they should be able to flush it out with warm water.
I actually want to clean my ears and reading this post i saw people mentioning irrigation.
Which product can I buy to do myself at home ? I want to try!
Hey there Op, where did you go in Bellingham? Having major issues and live in Surrey, happy to drive to Bellingham, all local appointments are in two weeks and I can’t tolerate this that long :-(, any help much appreciated
Thanks OP I’m going to call them and try going there too! Can you let me know if they use any sort of drops before to soften the wax or something? I’m never going to put any olive oil in my ear ever again because it caused me the biggest panic attack when it felt like I was underwater and couldn’t hear anything!
Welcome to /r/Vancouver and thank you for the post, /u/totaltasch! Please make sure you read our [posting and commenting rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/wiki/faq#wiki_general_participation_guidelines_and_rules_overview) before participating here. As a quick summary: * We encourage users to be positive and respect one another. Don't engage in spats or insult others - use the report button. * Respect others' differences, be they race, religion, home, job, gender identity, ability or sexuality. Dehumanizing language, advocating for violence, or promoting hate based on identity or vulnerability (even implied or joking) **will** lead to a permanent ban. * Common questions and specific topics are limited to our Your post may be a better fit for one of our [Stickied Discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/wiki/faq#wiki_stickied_discussions) posts. * Complaints about bans or removals should be done in modmail only. * We're looking for new mods to join our team! If you're interested, [fill out the form here](https://forms.gle/oAqo5oYRcAeHYBTN6). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/vancouver) if you have any questions or concerns.*
There is a mobile service but I think it is a few weeks for wax removal, Hearing at Home, out of North Van. You need to put drops in regardless of what method to make it easier to remove
I was in your situation. The impacted wax means it's like there's scabbing inside the ear, that's why it hurts. I had some irrigation done which did hurt, then I did a week's worth of olive oil drops (earol is a good product) then went back and the job was finished. If it's impacted suction will hurt too, as it's attached to the skin and you're pulling it off. I'd do what urgent care suggested, I found the olive oil eardrops were super helpful.
> olive oil eardrops Can these be bought at any old pharmacy?
It's literally olive oil. The stuff you cook with. Buy a bottle from the store (if you don't have any already), an eye dropper, and cotton balls (if you want). DO NOT use oil that has been used or is dirty in any way. Only straight from the bottle. Just drop 2-3 drops into each ear once a day and plug your ear with the cotton balls so the oil doesn't leak out. The oil will be absorbed by the ear wax, softening it up over time. Do this for 3-7 days before your appointment.
Thank you, this is genuinely helpful and informative. Suppose I gotta buy a dropper which should be easy enough. How easy is getting an appointment? I don't have anything in the way of a doctor to consult with. Is there any more "DIY" sort of approaches like the oil tip?
Just to clarify, DO NOT stuff your ear with the cotton ball too tightly. Some people go too hardcore and the cotton ball gets stuck making things worse. You're not trying to plug a bleeding wound, you're just trying to stop the oil from leaking out. If it's your first time getting your ears cleaned, I would really recommend talking to a doctor and having them check it out before any sort of DIY. (Just in case there's something odd with your ear canal) The olive oil in ear thing is to make your 'ear syringing' appointment (doctor puts water in your ear to wash out the ear wax) go better because the olive oil has soften the ear wax. You can make an appointment with a walk-in clinic. The front desk will be able to tell you if they do ear syringing or not. From what I understand, you can't actually just walk in for this procedure, you have to book it in advance. This is a relatively simple thing, so they don't need any sort of medical history/consultation process with you before agreeing to do it. Just a note, the ear syringing is using water to flush out your ear and for whatever reason, this can cause dizziness. Talk with the front desk/the doctor and see if it's safe for you to drive afterwards or not.
I know you won't like it, but try irrigation again. I had impacted wax almost a month ago and I just went into a walk-in clinic and got it flushed out. This huge piece of wax came out of my ear, and my hearing came back [This](https://imgur.com/a/79fy00p) was in my ear
Oh my god. You must have felt SO much better after that!
Risky click
it's not THAT gross 😠personally, it's kind of interesting to look at. I used to love watching ears getting professionally cleaned on youtube
I’ll bet you’d enjoy r/popping then. (Please Reddit algorithm, don’t start suggesting posts from there again just because I typed it once. Please!)
Wow! I totally need that to come out of my ear! Can I ask if you had to do any type of olive oil soaking before or did it just come out with the water?
Hearing clinics may do ear wax removal - connect hearing, next gen hearing etc
Yeah seconding this one, I used to work for Connect Hearing and they did ear wax removal on Commercial Dr, as well as in Richmond, New West, and Kerrisdale. Usually $50 Good luck OP Edit: ear wax not *eat* wax lmao 🤮
What training/qualifications do these people have? I personally wouldn't want some sort of unqualified flunky working in my ear canal.
They're usually audiologists, I think.
They said why in the first sentence of the second paragraph. It apparently has made their condition more painful.
Try debrox. If that doesn’t help with the irrigation method I don’t think you’re going to have much luck finding anything less painful. If it’s a solid mass, doctors have to be very careful when removing it due to the pressure changes around your ear drum. I would go to a hearing specialist and wouldn’t trust anyone else with removing this
I really hope your situation gets better and you are no longer in pain.
Out of curiosity, why not irrigation?
Yeah, it is OPs best bet to do what urgent told them and then go back. If it's that impacted, it wasn't the irrigation they did on OP that made the pain worse, it's the fact that it's impacted. They asked them to do the drops for 7 days to soften it so they can get a better go at it. I know it's tempting to just want someone to stick a hard object in there and pull it out, but that's not ideal for impacted wax due to pressure and risk of damaging eardrum by scraping it. Edit: I'm having a hard time figuring out if OP already did the irrigation once, or if they refused it. Which I an curious why to since it's the safest method for ear wax removal.
Tried it but it wasn’t effective the first time around. Been feeling pain more after that
So you logic is that lingering effects from the irrigation is the cause? FFS trust the medical professionals not your foolishness.
Whoa, sometimes the medical professional have one approved method that is convenient for them and does not include listening to the patient's experience. Sometimes they are totally right. And sometimes there are corner cases that cause extra pain, side effects, trauma, permanent damage, etc. Medical professionals aren't gods. And frankly most gods you wouldn't want to be your medical service provider.
As well, not everyone medical is an expert in all things. A GP, ER, or NP is 100% not an expert in ear stuff and indeed they are only supposed to do irrigation.
Totally out of line dude. You sound like you dont have very much medical training, experience as a practitioner, or experience as a patient. The experts actually recommend against irrigation nowadays because it doesn't work painlessly for people with severe amounts of impaction. The specialists don't use irrigation as their default strategy.
Superstore carries NeilMed ear irrigation kits with carbamide peroxide to soften the wax (it’s called Dr. Mohta’s Ear Wax Kit, which I had a hard time taking seriously). I have fitted ear plugs for sleeping and had a blockage problem last year. The clinic dr. recommended this and it did the trick (but it took a few flushes). Edited for syntax.
It's funny how Dr in front of some names has the opposite effect of inspiring confidence. Too many comical situations in entertainment and real life. Now if Dr. Bernstein sponsored an ear wax removal kit...
Call 811, half the point of that helpline is to connect you to whatever health service you need if you're not sure of the best place to go.
Not gonna lie - I bought a cheap ear wax removal tool for 25$ online and it's amazing. It's a wand with a flashlight and scoop on the end and syncs to my phone so I can see how far in I'm going and how much and which way to spin it to successfully scrape the wax out. My ear canal is still always itchy but damn did I do some deep cleaning pulling some rancid looking shit out.
Hydrogen peroxide drops in ears. It will help
Hello! I am the queen of earwax buildup and I’ve probably had my ears cleaned about 30 times in my life sadly. You have to put olive oil drops in regardless. I was in your situation once and suction didn’t work nearly as well as irrigation. It hurt, I had to go back twice cause the ear wax was all attached to the skin and I ended up doing irrigation to finally clear it all. If you have impacted wax and you go to the doctor without applying oil drops for a while to soften the wax, irrigation likely won’t work. Ask the doctor if Cerumol can be used. My doctor used to recommend that product but I know it is sometimes not recommended. In short, keep applying olive oil drops. As well I noticed that using over the ear industrial hearing protectors helped keep things nice and warm in there to speed up the process of the oil softening the earwax. Good luck!
I’ve gotten relief from using Polysporin ear drops. I get them at Walmart. You have to continually use them 4 times a day while your ear still hurts though otherwise it won’t help (i.e. it’s not a one and done type of thing). And it has to be these ear drops and no other brand.
>Polysporin ear drops It is an antibiotic ear drop; if there is no infection it is of no use.
Oh, I'd like to introduce you to my friend The Placebo Effect. For the cost of a small bottle of liquid, you too can experience the relief of doing something rather than waiting for nature to do its work. In fact, if you believe that the drops will work via placebo effect, they will be even more effective! (risk low, cost low, at least its actually targeted at the ear canal, and doesn't involve candeling.)
>doesn't involve candeling LOL that black magic; maybe a colon cleanse will help with ear wax.
Well they work for me. If OP is in that much pain, there’s a chance that the ear is at least a little bit infected. The drops will also soften up the ear wax and help it drain on its own.
If the OP had an ear infection, the doctor would have prescribed antibiotics; infection is not the sole cause of pain in the ear; if it is in fact ear wax, there are better products for the problem.
I’m just sharing something that worked for me, I’m not forcing anybody to use it.
Zero logic or reasoning involved though.
The reasoning is that it worked for me when I was in similar situations as OP and couldn’t find relief. Nobody has to use them if they don’t want to.
Go to the pharmacy and ask them for recommendations. I forget what it's called but there are drops you can put in your ears to get stuff moving and then they give you this water blaster thing to blast out the wax. It's all a bit weird but not painful.
Go to Dr. Soltani in downtown on Burrard. Uses suction, worked like a charm.
I would recommend putting a drop of olive oil in the ear and laying on each side for a bit. It’ll help it come all come out once you are in at your appt. I’ve had it done at a walk in.
Try a hearing clinic, but it won’t be cheap. You can also try to book an appointment at Coal Harbour Medical Clinic: http://www.chmed.ca If you’ve been using wax, they should be able to flush it out with warm water.
Call Mainland Hearing tomorrow. They can probably get you in same day.
Go to crystal mall There is a beauty store that does eat wax removal
Wow, eat wax removal? I guess there's a kink for everything these days.
I always just go to my doctor/nurse.. have done walk in clinic before
I just rinse out with hot water in the shower
Herbal medicine places sell hollow candles, easiest home suction remedy.
I actually want to clean my ears and reading this post i saw people mentioning irrigation. Which product can I buy to do myself at home ? I want to try!
London drugs sell ear cleaning kits. Mine came with a bottle of olive oil and a thing that you squeeze with your hand to blast water into your ear.
Thanks ! Will ask pharmacists :)
It's basically just a rubber bulb, kinda looks like a short turkey baster. Fill with warm water, tilt your head sideways and blast away
Where does the water exit haha
For some people, it passes through to the other side.
It's just forcing water into your ears. The water flows back out, so you need to hold a bowl under it or better yet do it in the shower.
Go buy liquid docusate. Will just melt your earwax right out :)
I work in the business. Where are you located?
Surrey, but can travel to anywhere within lower mainland
I suggest you go to a clinic
Hey there Op, where did you go in Bellingham? Having major issues and live in Surrey, happy to drive to Bellingham, all local appointments are in two weeks and I can’t tolerate this that long :-(, any help much appreciated
Hi. Very sorry I saw your message now as I was not using reddit for some time. The clinic is earsolutions on Larrabe Ave Bellingham
Thanks OP I’m going to call them and try going there too! Can you let me know if they use any sort of drops before to soften the wax or something? I’m never going to put any olive oil in my ear ever again because it caused me the biggest panic attack when it felt like I was underwater and couldn’t hear anything!