When to See an Audiologist for Ear Cleaning

Ear cleaning is a topic that often confuses people. How should you clean your ears? How often should this be done? Generally speaking, the ears clean themselves, meaning you have very little to worry about. However, there are times where your ears get so clogged up with wax that you simply can’t remove it without professional help.

So, when should you seek out professional ear cleaning from an audiologist? Hopefully, this post will shed some light on things and notify you of a few things to look for before booking an appointment.

Consistent ear pain

Impacted earwax is a term that refers to a situation where the wax in your ears becomes very tightly packed in your ear canal. When this happens, it tends to solidify and cause issues in your ear. One of the telltale signs of this is ear pain. Hard wax in your ear will cause consistent pain over a few days, so you need to be wary of this. If your ears hurt, and you don’t know why, then see an audiologist and they can clean your ears and remove the impacted wax.

Constant itchiness

Another sign that it’s time to book an ear cleaning appointment is when your ears are very itchy. Again, this is caused by the build-up of wax inside your ear canal. There’s so much stuff in there, and it’s causing irritation to parts of your middle ear. If you’re always feeling the need to scratch your ears like crazy – or have started using a cotton bud to really get deep in there and scratch around – then you need ear cleaning from your audiologist.

Hearing problems

What do you think happens to your hearing when you have a build-up of earwax? It’s essentially the same as putting an earbud in – sound is blocked out. People with impacted earwax tend to find that their hearing gradually gets worse. It’s harder to hear what others are saying, you’re turning the volume up on the TV, and everything seems slightly muffled. When you recognize your hearing has deteriorated, it’s common to get a bit scared as you assume it’s gone forever. However, book an appointment with your audiologist, and they will inspect your ears and see if they need cleaning or not. In a lot of cases, the cause of your hearing loss is impacted wax. When this is removed, things return to normal.

When nothing else works!

Finally, it’s important to note that you should try out different methods of ear cleaning at home before you call an audiologist. Try using olive oil drops to naturally soften the wax and remove it from your ears. If this doesn’t work, then the only other option is your audiologist!

Most people don’t have to worry about ear cleaning as it happens naturally. But, if you get a build up of impacted wax in your ears, then you need to have it removed. Book an appointment with your audiologist if you notice any of the symptoms mentioned above, and you’ve tried cleaning your ears at home with no success. They use professional methods to clean your ears and get rid of any impacted wax.