Blog #2 - My ETD

After a couple of years of ignoring the symptoms, I finally went to the doctor 3.5 months ago and got diagnosed with Eustachian Tube Dysfunction.  What’s a Eustachian tube?  Well, it’s part of your middle ear (which is located on the inside of your head behind your ear drum).  Here’s a link from wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eustachian_tube

At first, my left ear would only bother me for 10-15 minutes twice a week or so (usually when I was driving), but—randomly—something changed in the beginning of June, and it started acting up for several hours everyday; hence, I finally broke down, called Kaiser for an appointment, and got diagnosed.

Eustachian Tube Dysfunction occurs when your body, for whatever reason, loses the ability to properly regulate the pressure in your middle ear.  When you drive through the mountains, fly in an airplane, or dive into the deep end of a pool and feel an unusual amount of pressure in your ears, that pressure is in your Eustachian tubes.  People with my “dysfunction” feel that uncomfortable pressure just going about their everyday lives.  Here’s a link for more info: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002059/

My regular doctor and an ENT specialist both failed to offer any helpful advice in terms of treatment options.  In fact, when I passed a hearing test, they basically told me to suck it up.  After a few weeks of suffering, however, I was getting rather depressed.  The only thing that relieved the pressure was lying on my back, so I literally didn’t want to get out of bed in the morning; I was a complete and utter wreck.  Luckily, a friend who had just finished medical school in India suggested a few potential home remedies—including sinus rinsing twice a day—and I am so grateful because this suggestion has been a lifesaver.

I don’t have any sort of medical explanation for it (I’m assuming that it has something to do with the fact that your ears/eyes/nose/mouth are all connected by various tubes), but squirting salt water up my nose with a squeeze bottle helps fix the unfortunate pressure in my left ear.  At first, the process of “rinsing” was foreign and a tad uncomfortable, but I got used to it very quickly.  I am never congested, so the saline solution flows in one nostril and out the other with ease.

I have actually started keeping an extra rinse kit in my car, just in case my ear starts to bug me when I am away from home.  The only problem is that I am supposed to use warm water, and it is impossible to find public restrooms with non-icy tap water.  Also, it is kind of embarrassing if someone catches me blowing water up my nostrils at the sink (sorry little girl in Target and that lady in the English Department!).

Other than the sinus rinsing, chewing gum seems to help a little, which is why I sometimes have to chomp away on my gum while trying to teach class.  In fact, I’ve had to start chewing gum when I go to zumba each week since exercise makes my Eustachian Tube Dysfunction so much worse.

I’m not sure if my ETD will ever go away, but I am so glad that it only affects one of my ears.

 

 

------------------------------------------------------------------