How long do ear infections last?!


Question: How long do ear infections last?
I have family visiting from another state, and with them they brought wonderful germs lol. I'm rarely sick usually 1 or 2 times a year, and this took me down fast. First day, I had a sore throat, and a small cough. My ear was popping with swallowing and such.

I didn't give it much thought took some tylenol and called it a day. Next day, I was shivering and trembling in a room heated at 75 F, with tons of blankets, and was sweating so I figured, oh hey, a fever, take tylenol and get rest. Ear still popping, and starting to hurt slightly. That night around 5PM it started. I got sharp pains on outer ear, and I could feel pain inside it too. I thought, ear ache from the popping, just go to bed.

That night I woke up with shivering again, figured it was a fever so I brushed it off and went to bed or tried, I slept maybe 1 hour because the pain in my ear got so sever that I couldn't lay, talk, walk or do anything with out it throbbing due to my heartbeat which I could hear, and aching on the inside, and sharp pains on the outside. After crying for most of the night I went to ER, I just couldn't take the pain. The doc was rude and arrogant.

When asked what the pain was like on a scale of 1-10 I said 10, maybe 11. He said that couldn't be right, then he had the nurse give me numbing eardrops which did nothing but make me cry because I had to stay on my side laying down, then motrin. I went home slightly irritated but happy to have something, a prescription for antibiotics and some mixture of tylenol and codine. I told him I was taking tylenol and hydrocodone (SP?) already for it and they did nothing but he prescribed it anyhow.

I slept, because I felt better for about 4 hours. then it came back again, and so, unable to bear the pain, went to my primary doctor, told him of the night. And I could see in his eyes that he was shocked at my previous prescription. He gave me a shot for antibiotics, and a shot for the pain, then told me to take ibuprofren since the eardrum was inflamed and it needed to be a medicine with anti-inflamitory in it and motrin has mostly ibuprofren which is why I felt better.


So in the end, without insurance, I spent 2k in a ER getting NOTHING done, and went through more pain than I should have. Now its been 3 days since, and I feel ok because I have ibuprofren, taking my antibiotics on schedule. However...I can't hear out of that ear. I still feel and hear the heartbeat, like its still inflamed maybe. And I get a slight numbing sensation on my head that side. How long will I have this issue? I figured with the shot, I should have seen some relief from this hearing loss sooner. people will be talking to me on the side of the infection, and I could swear they where on my other side talking. its taken me by suprise, how do kids put up with this. may god have mercy on their souls.

Answers:

Most ear infections take a minimum of a week before you are feeling better and it takes a minimum of 72 hours for any antibiotic to be working effectively in your body . Continue with the regular use of the ibuprofen but, you can also take your hydrocodone in-between for better pain contol - the two meds are different so you don't need to worry about overdosing on too much tylenol which is contained in the hydrocodone. You could also take an over the counter decongestant which can help take the pressure off the eardrum from the back side - that is why your hearing still hasn't returned - there is probably still fluid in this area which decreases your hearing ability. Do NOT take the tylenol with codeine and the hydrocodone together - it will be too much tylenol in a 24 hour period if you do. The prescriptions you got in the ER are common treatment for any ear infection but, people respond differently to different medications so your treatment was appropriate for an ear infection. And, you did the correct thing by seeing your family doctor when the medications given were not working for you. Give this more time, finish every single antibiotic pill that you were given and expect this to gradually get better and better after about 5 days.

Health care provider



It depends on your condition , you probly have a serious ear condition if you do it will take up 2 or 1 week . if its not that big of a deal i give it 3 or 2 days to last . ! ! !




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