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Extreme outer ear pain: What can it be?
Please....someone help me.
I’ve visited my allergist, an ear-nose-throat specialist and my own internist.
None of them have ever heard of my problem and don’t know how to help me.
Started approx 20 yrs ago, Every couple of months I would get an awful pain on one of my ears if I had been laying on it during the night. It would happen to either ear, whichever one I laid on.
To describe the pain. It is so intense that it wakes me. Pain is NOT inside the ear but around the edges of the entrance of it. It is so painful, I can’t touch it. It will be throbbing. It also hurts tremendously behind, towards the bottom back of the ear. Can’t touch that either. The only thing that will make it go away is when I then get up and stand and within approx 30 min it is gone. I even tested it by massaging behind the ear (once I could bear to touch it) and it seemed to make pain go away faster.
The last approx 3 years, I have no longer been able to even lay on either ear when in bed because now the pain will come every time. I have learned to sleep on my back. Sometimes I would still move onto my side during night, and wake up with pain.
For last 6 months, I’ve been having pressure and achy feeling around one of the ears, even while laying on my back. Then I started getting the pain even while sleeping on my back.
I am very much afraid that the day will come when I will no longer be able to lay down in my bed to go to sleep.
I am desperate to get to the bottom of this and perhaps for first time in 20 years be able to comfortably lay on my side in bed.
My ENT doctor said my ears are healthy .... i have no hearing loss.
This ear pain, however, is starting to affect my daily living, since I don’t seem to be able to get the restful sleep I need.
I will be forever grateful if someone could pinpoint this. thanks.
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I had this over 15 years. I had a post over a year ago on this chain. Long story short. For past 4 years no more waking up up with ear throbbing. Through a chiropractor issue with my neck. ( Nothing to do with my ear) he had me by a water pillow. Didn't help my neck. But a miracle for my ear. Kept on thinking it's a fluke. Till I stayed in a hotel on vacation. Ear throbbing every night what ever side I was laying on. Went home 1st night no ear pain! Bought a travel size. Never leave home without it. The pain is u have to drain it to get on plane.
Thank you very interesting, hope I can get one here in the U.K, anything is worth trying for relief from this .
Can you please tell me what brand water pillow you got as there are so many, and quite expensive, but worth it if they work ?.
Chiroflow, I paid a lot for my 1st one since I bought it at chiropractor office. But I bought 1 for my cabin and a travel size on Amazon 1/2 the price.
I just checked online. I bought mine 4 years ago. So I would assume it would be the less expensive one as they have new ones with gel ECT. I don't have gel or anything fancy.
Thank you for both your replies, I'm looking on eBay as most of them have fee postage compared to Amazon.
Please tell me if this helps you. Very curious . I thought I was the only person with this problem. A lot of people on thread had other weird symptoms or vitamin supplements or stuff. It was just when you lay on that ear. Then roll over than that ear.
Yes I will let you know, just trying to search for the best one here in the U.K.
I’m 38 and have been experiencing this pain since I was about 17. The thing that I’ve found to help me is using those beige cylinder ear plugs. For some reason it stops the pain from happening, not always entirely but almost all the way gone that I can sleep through the night. If i don’t wear the ear plugs, the pain is excruciating. My outer ear hurts so bad it’s unbearable for about 30 seconds and then my ear aches for the rest of the night a little bit. I’ve learned to sleep with a body pillow and also position my head on my main pillow in a way that the pressure isn’t directly on my ear. Docs have said the same thing, that my ears appear to be fine. Do any of you still have your wisdom teeth? My pain seems to be always worse on the side that I still have my bottom wisdom tooth. Also, I can’t wear over ear head phones, both my ears always ache terribly, does that also happen to any of you?
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1 ReactionThank you for the ear plug suggestion, the pain disturbs my sleep that I will try anything, I also had suggested to me a water pillow, which I bought, it is really for back trouble, but this person said that it helped her ears, I have used it for about four nights, it has helped a little it seems, not too sure about it yet.
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