Water in my ear?

So, okay, basically for like a year now, I’ve been dealing with this totally unbearable itching inside my ears 🙄

About 8 months back, I mentioned it to my doctor—I also told her I’d been sneezing like crazy for a few months at the time—and she just decided, without even actually looking in there, that it was all just allergies...

A couple of months went by and the sneezing finally stopped, but the ear thing? Yeah, that never went away...

And now, honestly, things have gotten pretty gross... the itching is constant, there's this yellow discharge happening all the time in huge amounts, and today—which is actually the second time in ten days—I woke up and found a literal puddle on my pillow from my ear leaking out...

I'm heading back to see that same doctor tomorrow—yeah, the one who brushed it off as an allergy—so I was wondering what else I should point out to her (just in case she tries to claim it's just allergies again)...

Thanks!

A GP can't really diagnose an allergy just by chatting with you
unless your doctor happens to have a crystal ball tucked in their desk drawer 😬

Get a referral for an ENT
And ask for a referral for allergy testing; that respiratory clinic over at the local community health center should be perfectly fine

Actually, a coworker was just venting to me last week about having similar ear issues—he's been struggling with strep for months now
You should get swabs taken from all those spots—eyes, nose, ears, throat—at the clinic on Main Street

Are your tests looking okay?
Sinuses? Your ENT will be the one to tell you that
Tonsils? Are they acting up?

It’s all so interconnected; we don't even realize how much until things actually start going wrong

jadesailor14 said:I mean, you can't just look at a conversation and decide it's an allergy, right?
unless your doctor has some kind of crystal ball hidden in their desk or something😬

get a referral for an ENT
and a referral for allergy testing... honestly, that clinic over at the local community health center should be totally fine for you

it’s funny, a coworker was actually venting to me last week about having super similar ear issues—turns out he's been battling strep for months now
you know, those swabs they do for everything—eyes, nose, ears, throat—at the local urgent care

are you feeling okay otherwise?
your sinuses? yeah, an ENT would definitely need to check that out
tonsils? do you have issues there?

it’s all so connected, I guess... we don't even realize how much is going on until things actually start acting up

if it's actually from strep* 😬 then I’m already past the point of caring about the cost because this crap has been messing with me for a whole year🙄
🙄

* just to avoid any more confusion, she meant strep😉

brisknomad6 said:That’s pretty much what I was thinking.

If that's the case, then things have really blown up after a year, and who knows how many different types I might be carrying around now.🙄

Streptococcus is everywhere... most people just carry it around. It's a commensal, meaning we actually need it, but like anything else, it tends to cause trouble if it gets the chance—usually triggered by things like stress, a weakened immune system, or other similar factors.😬

quiethound45 said:Streptococcus is basically everywhere... honestly, we all have it on us. It’s kind of like a commensal—we actually need it to function, but just like any other little bug, it loves to throw a massive tantrum if things get out of hand, you know? Like if you're super stressed or your immune system takes a hit, it’ll definitely try to make a scene.😬

So, like, can I just deport this guy living in my ear to some 😁 😁
?
I’m seriously dying to know what’s gonna happen tomorrow after almost a whole day of waiting, 🙄 🙄