Do your ears feel blocked, itchy or sore? Are you noticing that you’re asking people to repeat themselves, or your hearing is muffled? Maybe you’re feeling dizzy and off-balance? You might be suffering from excess or impacted earwax!
Around 1 in 20 adults suffer from excess earwax, making it a fairly common problem which can easily be fixed with a visit to a professional ear wax removal service such as Earworx. Normally, our ears naturally remove earwax out of the ear without us even noticing, but sometimes this process can be interrupted and when earwax becomes built up, hard and impacted. Our trained professionals can certainly help you.
What does excess or impacted ear wax feel like?
The symptoms of impacted and excess earwax vary. Some of the common symptoms of excess and built up wax include a blocked or full sensation inside the ear, itching, and discharge from the ear. Your ears might smell differently, and you might hear a ringing sound in the ear, known as tinnitus. More serious symptoms include pain, dizziness or vertigo, and loss of hearing.
What causes excess or impacted ear wax?
There are a few different causes for excess or impacted ear wax, and these can be influenced by your age, your environment & lifestyle, your family history and your behaviours. Your age can affect your ears ability to self-clean, as wax can become drier as we age so it is more likely to get stuck in your ear canal. If you live or work in an environment that is dusty and dirty, you are more likely to have excess wax because it is trapping these particles to protect your ear. Your family history can determine if your ears produce more wax than is necessary, or your ear canals may be narrow, bendy or hairy making it harder for wax to move out of the canal. And finally, if you are in the habit of inserting things into your ear canal such as hearing aids, cotton buds, ear candles, ear phones and ear plugs, this can prevent the natural pathway of wax out of the ear canal, and may even push wax further down the canal where it can become stuck and impacted.
Does excess wax need to be removed regularly?
For some people, yes. If you are prone to wax build up and blockages, you may need to have your ears cleaned professionally on a regular basis.
How will I know that I need to get my ears checked?
If you come to an Earworx clinic, and we recommend that you have your ears cleaned regularly, we will send you a friendly reminder at an agreed timeframe such as annually or 6 monthly. This gives you a prompt to start thinking about your ears; are they starting to feel blocked again? Is my hearing reducing? Is water becoming trapped in my ears after swimming or bathing? Our goal is to determine over time the correct time frame for wax removal appointments for you, and ways to lengthen the time between appointments.
What can I do in between cleans?
If you are prone to excess or impacted ear wax, you might benefit from using softening drops regularly. Your Earworx nurse will discuss this with you at your local Earworx clinic, and provide you with a regime specifically suited to your ears and your lifestyle.
More Information
Click here to view or download the Earworx brochure
Please contact your nearest Earworx clinic and our Registered Nurses will answer any questions that you may have. Click here for further details about our clinic locations.