I can't hear! Ear candles/ear syringing?

I have no idea what ear candles are. (I shall be googling that in a moment).

However, I did have a completely blocked ear a couple of weeks ago. It nearly drove me mad. I tried Otex ear drops for a few days, and they didn't help. So I called my GP, got an emergency appointment on the basis that I was completely deaf in one ear, and she told me I had a bit of an ear infection, along with the wax. She prescribed some antibiotic and antifungal and steroidal drops, to use for a week, followed by ear syringing. She also told me to put olive oil in my ear at bedtime every night as well, which would help soften the wax. I'm not sure if it was the drops or the olive oil, but the day before my ear was due to be syringed, my hearing improved a lot. I still kept the appointment for syringing, because it wasn't 100%, and copious amounts of yuk came out of my ear.

I didn't find the syringing bad though. Not exactly pleasant, but it was fine. I did feel slightly dizzy afterwards though.

Its certainly not sore at all.

however, i tried it and all it achieved was to make me look like a twat with a candle sticking out of his ear (as opposed to a twat without one)

Ear candles are hollow tubes coated in wax which are inserted into patients’ ears and then lit at the far end. The procedure is used as a complementary therapy for a wide range of conditions. A critical assessment of the evidence shows that its mode of action is implausible and demonstrably wrong. There are no data to suggest that it is effective for any condition. Furthermore, ear candles havebeen associated with ear injuries. The inescapable conclusion is that ear candles do more harm than good. Their use should be discouraged.

Talk about sitting on the fence.

I've used ear candles before but I didn't have blocked ears so can't comment whether it made a difference or not. It doesn't hurt at all (unless you set fire to your head of course!) but you may feel a little sick when you see all the muck they draw out ?

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Ear Candles - total quackery. See Ben Goldacre. It can also cause burns and damage to hearing.

Ear wax - as long as it's definitely wax and not eustachian tube dysfunction, then daily olive oil for 1-2 weeks often sorts out the problem. If you need syringing then oiling them for a week is vital in any case.

Hmmm, I've google the ear candles now. Wouldn't like to make any judgement on whether they might actually work or not. But the stuff I read said you shouldn't use them if you've got any inflammation or infection. Since you'd have to visit the doctor anyway to rule out those, then you might as well go with the tried and tested drops and syringing route.

In the meantime go with the olive oil as well. Apparently you can also use a hot water bottle over your ear as the heat can help to melt the wax.

I've had the ear candles- my sister offers it as one of her treatments- I thoroughly enjoyed it- was such a nice sensation but the gunk it draws out was unbelieveable! If you dont like the syringing why not try the candles nothing to loose!

Did anyone read the link on BG to the butt candles? ??

Don't use ear candles. The 'gunk' they apparently draw out of your ear is actually the wax from the inside of the candle. If you lit one and left it on the sideboard you'd probably get the same result. They can also damage your ear if the hot wax drips inside - probably very painful.

I've had my ears syringed once - the nurse told me to tell her if it made me feel dizzy, as apparently they can occasionally get near a nerve with the water jet - it's that which probably made you pass out last time.

Try some ear drops or olive oil, and go see your GP to rule out an infection.

I've had my ears syringed a few times - the first time it hurt a lot as the wax was so impacted. After that I learnt to literally pour copious amounts of oil into my ears then bung them up with cotton wool for at least 7-10 nights before getting them done.

Since then it hasn't been painful, just a bit uncomfortable and noisy!

I've had ear candles and really enjoyed it, although there was nothing wrong with my ears just as part of a spa day. I did get my sense of smell back though which I'd lost for a few months, but that might be more to do with just having a relaxing day iyswim.

I have since bought some off internet and done it at home, its very nice. Although I wouldn't see it as a subsitute for medical poorly ear cures.