RealSurf Surfers' Forum

Also, where does the science sit on whether it is cold wind or cold water that contributes to exostosis? Or is it a combination?

It's exposure to cold.
So on the east coast the water is not so cold but when you get moisture in your ear with a cold winter Sou westerly you'll start to get it.

Cold winds on wet ears. Supposedly, one ear can be worse than the other if there is a prevailing wind.

Yep, south coast and east coast of oz you expect right ear to be worse. West coast the left ear.

Ah ok. So if these plugs are letting in a bit of water, but protect from wind they may be ok.

Wyre wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 26, 2019 6:37 pm

Ah ok. So if these plugs are letting in a bit of water, but protect from wind they may be ok.

The only way to keep them completely dry is Blu tac. I have the surf ears and a little bit still gets in but now they are dry for longer, hearing has improved significantly and th blockages have stopped.

Yeah, they aren't supposed to eliminate all water just stop surges. I always thought it was kind of obvious my right ear was worse since I grew up getting whacked in the ear by a variety of North Coast Point Breaks. The perforated ones allow you to hear quite well.

Beanpole wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 26, 2019 9:14 pm

Yeah, they aren't supposed to eliminate all water just stop surges. I always thought it was kind of obvious my right ear was worse since I grew up getting whacked in the ear by a variety of North Coast Point Breaks. The perforated ones allow you to hear quite well.

Ok gotcha. So, in warm water eg Hawaii surfers ear would be less of a thing. Cheers BP.
Tried them again with this in mind and they seem pretty good. Thanks all!

Since posting I went to a specialist ear wax remover in bondi junction and it was a disappointment. It seems my right ear is so bad she couldnt suction it properly .she showed me a video of my ear canal and its completely shut. The left isn't much better. Looks like I need an ent specialist in the short term to clean it out, then look at the drill soon. I've been close to deaf the last few days and its driving me mental.

Shithouse Ricky G.

Yeah it is horrible when you can't hear properly, very frustrating.

I heard a tale recently about a man who was involved in an accident in India which had him in an Indian hospital where he picked up a stomach worm.

A few months after that, he was rock climbing in Oz and ended up falling in a remote area. Didn't eat for days and when they eventually got him to hospital and were fixing him up, the worm came out of his mouth to munch on the glycerol on his lips.

Perhaps you could fast for a while and rub some sugar on your ears?

Could take the term 'earworm' to a whole new level!

Just remember Ricky, Wyre's not a doctor, but that sounds foolproof.

Trev wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 25, 2019 9:36 pm

^
I already have high frequency hearing loss and tinnitus.
No way I'd be trying to flush my own ears out.
But I'd understand done carefully itd probably be OK.

Like boo I use a soft rubber syringe. I've been using them for over 50 years, its virtually impossible to do any damage.

Cranked wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 29, 2019 8:52 am

Trev wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 25, 2019 9:36 pm

^
I already have high frequency hearing loss and tinnitus.
No way I'd be trying to flush my own ears out.
But I'd understand done carefully itd probably be OK.

Like boo I use a soft rubber syringe. I've been using them for over 50 years, its virtually impossible to do any damage.

Fortunately, I don't have to.
Yet.

My wife often syringes her own ears, and quickly and painlessly get a couple of pea-sized lumps of wax out with no dramas. I've tried it a few times with little success - understandable given the ear canal's closed shut

RickyG wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 29, 2019 1:00 pm

My wife often syringes her own ears, and quickly and painlessly get a couple of pea-sized lumps of wax out with no dramas. I've tried it a few times with little success - understandable given the ear canal's closed shut

I've got a great hammer drill here.
Just let me know what size hole you want and I'll fix it for you.
Cheaps.

Trev wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 29, 2019 1:22 pm

RickyG wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 29, 2019 1:00 pm

My wife often syringes her own ears, and quickly and painlessly get a couple of pea-sized lumps of wax out with no dramas. I've tried it a few times with little success - understandable given the ear canal's closed shut

I've got a great hammer drill here.
Just let me know what size hole you want and I'll fix it for you.
Cheaps.

Yeah, I'm sure there's some backyard operators who'll have a look at it for me on the cheap

Ok, could someone tell me whether the temperature of the wind makes a difference?

Say for example these cold water upwellings with a nor'easter. Cold water in the ears, warm wind. I presume that any wind on your water filled ear is a problem?

Can you see this https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/p ... 265A535452, Wyre?

I think it's open access. The Discussion section and onward references probably have most of what you're looking for. A skim seems to suggest that there's quite a lot of 'may' and not a lot of certainty though