I have a 13 year old that I am almost sure has swimmers ear. He went to a friends house and they were at the pool most of the day now he's complaining of an earache/headache and he said it seems like he has water in his ear. It's better than it was but it still hurts him. Yes I know I can take him to the doctor, but there is no way he can be seen today. I read online that vinegar drops in the ear is a good home remedy. I was just wondering if anyone has tried that or are there any other home remedies I can try to at least help a little bit until his appointment. Thanks for your responses in advance!
Thanks everyone! I did a few drops of the alcohol and then a few drops of the vinegar ( I read you can use white or apple cider, so I used apple cider) and my baby is no longer in pain! He said it tickled when I put the drops in but his ear is no longer throbbing! We will be using ear plugs from now on while swimming...and I also heard this is good to do after swimming to prevent this from happening! : )
Drop of rubbing alcohol. I've also used the hair dryer to 'dry' the inside of my daughter's ear, and that worked.
When I was on swim team as a kid, we used to put a few drops of rubbing alcohol in our ears to dry it out afterwards and prevent swimmers ear. My mom always used an eye dropper to put 2-3 drops in.
I have heard of rubbing alcohol or you can heat some oil. Baby oil or cooking oil on a spoon with a lighter or match and then put it in his ear. It will sooth it and the oil will make the water come out. Have him lay on his side when you put it in for a few mins if he can and maybe even put a cotton ball in it. The longer you leave it the better.
Good luck and God Bless!
We put a little rubbing alcohol in my son's ear when he got water in it and helped to evaporate it. We just soaked a cotton ball in it and dribbled some in his ear.
My son had swimmer's ear last summer after spending a full day in Lake Michigan. My husband took him to the clinic at Walgreens. It was cheaper than the doc for such a small thing (relatively anyway), they accept insurance, and they gave us the prescription. He was better after 2 days since his ear was hurting really bad.
B., if you want to be super-safe about this, run out to the drug store and buy swimmers ear drops. They are over-the-counter and formulated specifically for this purpose. I kind of doubt that he has swimmer's ear just from swimming TODAY, but if he was in the pool before today, it could be setting up.
I'd do this quickly if I were you. If the water stays in there, he may develop "swimmer's ear" which is an infection of the outer ear. That requires a trip to the doctor and it is VERY VERY painful. Sometimes swimmer's ear migrates into the middle ear and then antibiotics are required in addition to prescription ear drops.
After you do this, if he's hurting tomorrow or the next day, you have to get him to the doctor.
After all is said and done, provide him wih the over-the-counter drops from now on to dry out his ears so that he won't continue to get infected.
Good luck!
Dawn
I swam year-round on swim team growing up, and because I was prone to ear infections, my mom always had a mixture of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar handy as soon as I got out. A capful in each ear, leave it in for 5-10 seconds, and done! It dries up any water that remains in the ear canal, and the acidity prevents any bacteria from growing (which is what causes swimmer's ear).
If it's possible he has a lot of ear wax inside the ear canal, have him lay on one side and put a capful of hydrogen peroxide in his ear. Let it sit for a good 10 minutes, drain, and repeat on the other side. Our pediatrician gave us that advice and neither of my girls has ever had an ear infection since. Yes, you can purchase Debrox at the drugstore, but it's not as effective, and costs a lot more! :)
at camp we all had mandatory ear drops of rubbing acohol. it is what i use with my kiddos too.
