Earaches can hurt you no matter what age you are in. The ringing sound in your ear due to oscillating pain may be hard to digest as it may adversely affect your quality of life.
An earache does not necessarily mean that you are suffering from an ear infection. The pain in your ears may also be due to excessive wax causing muffled hearing, earache, and irritation. Since most of the earaches are not the result of infection, popping up antibiotics in such situations may won’t help you. There are several earache treatment methods available that can help reduce earache.
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How to stop an earache fast?
Earache is a result of an infection that is associated with cold or flu. This may cause an accumulation of fluid inside the ear causing earache. The pain may be so intense that you may start looking for ways to overcome it immediately. Even though some over the counter medications may help relieve your pain immediately, they may pose certain side effects. It may also be a difficult situation for a parent to give such medication to the child. Parents often concerned about their child’s earache prefer herbal and natural remedies as they are safe to use. A simple and effective method to stop an earache fast includes using a warm compress.
Applying a warm compress may relax your blood vessels and loosen the congestion in the ear. A warm compress can reduce the inflammation and inflammatory mediators to the site. (Also Read: 15 Possible Causes of Ear Pain)
You may be wondering how to use a warm compress against an earache? Well, the procedure for applying a warm compress is mentioned below.
It’s a very simple procedure where you just soak a piece of cloth in warm water, then squeeze out the excess water out of the cloth. After this, simply apply it on the top of your ear for over 10-15 minutes. You can also use a heating pad or warmed gel to soothe your earache.
Other home remedies that can help stop an earache fast include:
Depending on the cause of your earache, certain methods will be more effective at providing relief. These methods are designed to get to the root of ear pain. Some of them are listed below:
Steam
Steam in the throat and nose may add up to the earache and associated problems. In such a case taking steam from a humidifier, may help open the blocked nose, ear, and relax airways, thus reducing the ear pressure and earache.
Gargling with Salt Water
Gargling with warm salt water may soothe your earache and sore throat.
Oils
Coconut oil, Garlic and onion oil are used to treat earache and ear infection since ancient times. These oils exert numerous benefits by providing analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, antiviral and anti-fungal properties.
Hydrogen Peroxide Mixture
People suffering from swimmers’ ears may suffer from earache due to the accumulation of water in the ear. To get rid of excess moisture from ears, a combination of hydrogen peroxide and water in a 1:1 ratio can be used. Similarly, equal parts of vinegar combined with rubbing alcohol can also help dry the excess moisture from ears.
Chewing Gum –
Earaches may also result from changes in air pressure which usually happens from flying or scuba diving. In such cases, chewing gum can release the pressure from your ears and reduce pain or pressure which you are experiencing.
Sleeping upright –
Certain sleep positions where your ear remains in an upright position rather than facing it flat on the pillow can ease the earache by draining the fluid from the ear.
Neck exercises –
Neck exercise can help relieve the pressure and congestion around the ear and shoulders. Making parallel motions with your head and around the shoulders may help ease the pain in the ears.
Over the counter pain medication
Anesthetic ear drops and over the counter pain relievers like ibuprofen and acetaminophen helps control the earache associated with painful ear infection like acute otitis media. They can also help reduce pain associated with ear wax.
Naturopathic ear drops:
These drops are made from herbal extracts in an olive oil base which can help relieve the earache and associated conditions.
Take Away
There are various causes related to ear infection and ear pain. Many ear infections may clear up on their own in just a few weeks and certain cases by using some of the OTC medicines. However, if one doesn’t like to use medicines or is concerned about the side effects of these medications then consult an ENT specialist.
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