Ear Infections - Oakland,CA

Hi J.,
The best Chiropractor in the bay area... hands down is Dr. Judy Day. I havent ever asked her about ear infections but she did an amazing job on my 4 year old Seth when he had a bad tumble in an inflatable jumper house. Best of luck!
She is located at:

450 E 14th St
San Leandro, CA 94577
###-###-####

I know an incredible DC in Oakland. Her name is Adeline Seccia and her number is: ###-###-####. She is extremely wise and compassionate. Adeline has many years of experience and many connections should you need referrals. She is one of my top 3 favorite chiros (and I know a lot of them.)

One other avenue you may not have considered if it does turn out to be excess ear fluid that isn't draining is testing for allergies. My daughter had problems with excess fluid and it turned out she is allergic to dust mites. Once I cleared her room of most stuffed toys and pillows, (and took various other steps to rid the house of the buggers!) she stopped having the problem. It was something my pediatrician hadn't even considered after battling with it for months! I had to twist his arm a little, but it was worth it.

May this all pass quickly...

Def. can't hurt to have an audiogram/tympanogram done. Another suggestion your ped. might have could be to see an ENT, but in my experience, they're often quick to suggest putting drainage tubes in.
My first step would be to try a chiropractor (less invasive) and tho I have yet to find one in our area, I have the most amazing chiropractor in Sunnyvale to whom I travel regularly (3x/week when I was pregnant!) because he's so affordable (very willing to work w/ your budget, believing nobody should suffer because their wallet doesn't allow for medical care) and incredible w/ both adults, kids and even specialized issues. He travels to Mexico to provide his services for free to children 1x/year and is a sweetheart to my daughter who tags along to my appointments.
I can't imagine he'd need to be seen too frequently for a eustacian tube issue, so it might just be worth the trip for the peace of mind of having such a great person for your son.
His name is Dr. Anthony Wilson of Silicon Valley Chiropractic ###-###-####

Also, consider giving your son probiotics w/ his breakfast (a sprinkle or a chewable) ea. morning to build up those good bacteria which will help fend off the ones causing the ear infections.

Hello
I am an acupuncturist and specialize in pediatrics. I have had a lot of good response with treatment. Traditional Chinese medicine uses massage, herbs, and acupuncture.
Good Luck
pearlmoon.us
Jennifer French

Not to scare you. Just sounds a little to familiar...My son had reocurring ear infections (12 in the 1st year of his little life. I too thought he was having a hard time hearing the first 2 years I really thought he was deaf. Come to find out he did say "Mama" and "Dada" and "bottle" but after his 13 month check up he had lost his speach all together. However his hearing checked out perfect...My son was diagnosed at 2 with Autism. I would love to talk with you if you get any spare time. This may not be your story. I was just sharing mine:) Please if you need a listening ear? Good Luck and may you find a little peace in this storm my friend. Take Care

I have an excellent chiropractor who works with a lot of kids. Her name is Elizabeth Welch and her studio is called Sunflower Chiropractic. She has a really gentle touch and a great gift. She is located in Montclair and has reasonable rates.

I am curious to know how a chiropractor can help with ear/speech issues. Money and time maybe better spent with a speech therapist. Either way I would at least wait for results of audiology test. Obviously you care and are a great mom so don't worry to much about his speaking little. Everyone learns differently and at different paces. What did the pedatrician suggest?

I go to a lovely woman in San Francisco named Christine Hicks when I'm pregnant (I'm on #2) and I see her treating babies too as a family chiropractor. She was recommended to me by a prenatal yoga instructor many years ago. I think the practice is called "more mojo" chiropractic. It's at 1347 Church St (@ Clipper) and the number is ###-###-####. Good luck - it will be wonderful if non-invasive alternative treatments can help your son... and I can't see how it can hurt. Sessions are roughly $40, I think.

my sister's daughter had the same problem and was considering surgery when she tried blue green algae tablets. she'd add it to her daughter's drink (bottles at the time) and the problem resolved itself and they never had trouble after that.

J.,
My son had cronic ear infections when a friend mentioned going to a Chiro. it was at the time that they wanted to put tubes in and I really didn't want to do that. We went faithfully and the ear infections stopped. That Chiropractor isn't in this area any more so I can't recommend, but I would try and find a good one before doing anything extreme.

Good Luck,
K.

Hi!
I work at the school for the Deaf in Fremont and we have great resources for you, all in a supportive, non-judgmental format. Your doctor will probably only give you the medical perspective on any kind of hearing loss, but there is another side. Now is the time to get your son exposed to and using language - don't miss out on this "window" timeframe of opportunity. Check out this website and/or contact the school for more info: www.csdf.k12.ca.us/resources/babies.htm
I'd be happy to chat with you about options and ideas too.
Best wishes,
A.

Hi J.-

It could be that there is persistent fluid in his estuation tubes that's not draining properly. My son had that problem (his tubes are smaller than normal). Our pediatrician had him on a course on low dose antibiotics for 6 months, from age 12-18 months first (12 years ago) to see if that would dry up the fluid before sending us to an ENT. Ultimately he needed ear tubes twice. Once at 20 months and again at 4.5 years old.

Our son spoke normally, but after the first set of tubes, his vocabulary exploded! The ENT and audiologist said that he had most likely been reading lips and learned to speak that way (his hearing test results at 18 months showed that he was deaf).

If you do end up needing an ENT, ours was wonderful! He's in Fremont and was great with us this first time and awesome with our son the second time. He was very thorough making sure we understood everything and all our questions and concerns were addressed. The second time we were more relaxed and the doctor focused on our son rather than us with the discussion and spoke to him in terms that a 4 year old could understand.

Advantages to the ear tubes were, no issues with equalizing pressure while flying in airplanes and we had NO ear infections while they were in (takes about a year or two before they are pushed out by growth in the area). Downsides, you can't swim in lakes or rivers, and you can't go under water more than a few inches in a pool or tub without earplugs.

Good Luck!