something wrong with my ear

[gib65]

It's been two days now and this weird sensation in my right ear is not going away. It feels like it's become extra sensitive, or like the inner cavity has become more hollow so that all sounds seem to resonate more. Could this have to do with damage to the eardrum or ossicles or anything. I haven't been listening to any loud music or been around any loud noises. What could this be?

[Heretic]

Okay finally my expertise! I can't believe I get to be useful! It's so rare someone asks an ear question!

 

Okay, this feeling is more likely then not fluid inside what's known as the middle ear. It's right behind your eardrum. The reason it makes things seem more sensitive is pretty simple actually.

 

There is a huge impedence between the air outside your head that carries sound and the fluid in your inner ear (cochlea). This would prevent you from hearing sounds clearly except that the bones in your middle ear amplify sound using leverage bascially.

 

When your middle ear fills with fluid these bones can no longer move properly and your eardrum also cannot do its job since it's movement is also restricted. What you are hearing is refered to as bone conduction. Since the bones in your skull can resonate sound into the fluid inside your inner ear it can allow you to perceive sounds even when your hearing bones (I'm doing my best to keep this layman) are missing or damaged. The problem is it's also vibrating the fluid inside your middle ear which can be uncomfortable and also that fluid will then vibrate the fluid inside the cochlea causing a sort of echo or amplification.

 

Don't worry fluid in the middle ear may not be normal but it can be dealt with easily. You have a tube that runs from your middle ear to your throat to help balance the pressure so your eardrums don't burst. Simply chewing on gum will help massage this tube and slowly remove the fluid from your ear.

 

If you've had a cold recently it's probably a related occurance and you have nothing to worry about. Stay away from loud noises as with all that fluid a loud bang could cause serious damage. However if you have been swimming or use Q-tips (which is a big no no your ears are naturally clean) you might have burst your eardrum. Even then perforations can heal over time but I'd see an ENT (Ear Nose and Throat Doctor) just in case you've really hurt yourself.

 

Best of luck hope this helped!

[gib65]

Thanks Heretic, I feel a bit better now. I was panicking there a bit because for the last year my wife's been nagging me about my loud music. She always tells me I'm going to burst my eardrums one day, and I thought maybe I finally did it. Although for the last several months, I've been taking her words to heart and keeping the volume down to a minimum. I didn't have any music blasting when I first started feeling these symptoms, but I thought maybe my eardrums have been taking such a beating over the years that it only took something trivial to finally rupture them.

 

Anyway, since I last posted, the resonating sound had migrated - from my right ear to my left ear. Sounds like what you described. Also, I did have a very sudden and brief cold on New Years morning (did last more than a day). Hopefully my hearing will return to normal in a short while - but until then, it's really annoying... oh well

[JesuBungle]

You'll know when you burst an eardrum, it's quite painful. And when the pain goes away you'll be walking at a slant for a while.

[gib65]

You'll know when you burst an eardrum, it's quite painful. And when the pain goes away you'll be walking at a slant for a while.

 

cool!