am i doing the right thing? ear infections

[snuffles]

hello, i am new to these forums. i am 22 yrs old and have 3 kids- ages 4, 15 months, and one month. although my son was vaccinated, after reading dr. mendelsohn's how to.. i did not vax my last two, and amtrying to follow his suggestions as closely as possible when it comes to health, but i wish he had written a book for adults!

after my 15 month old was born, i went for a fast walk (almost jog) and woke up later that night with a horrible ear infection. it was so painful i went to the docand took amoxil, which did not work, so i got a shot and took augmentin, which seemed to work. this was in my left ear. thinking back i wonder if itwas just an inflamation of the ear canal ( i remember it was a very cold and windy night and i could feel the wind in my ears), because i am having the same pain in that ear again after once again having my ears examined (yesterday morning my husband insisted we go to the doc even though i had no plans to-- we thought we had strep throat--- i HAD woken up with an ache in the OTHER ear but it had gone away and the left (other) ear never hurt until right after the exam). anyway then while pregnant with my one month old i got another infection, this time in my right ear. the pain was so bad-- all i could do was cry and i finally went and got some antibiotics. this time i took omnicef and it seemed to help, but then for several weeks i had a very bad hearing loss (fluid in the ear) -- it took a long time before i could hear normally. i had gone to the doc for the hearing loss and he said i still needed antibiotics to prevent another infection (bc of all the fluid). i never filled the prescrip. b/c i had no pain. now after this terrible virus me and dh had (it wasnt strep) my right ear is supposedy full of yellow pus -- it only hurts during the night (laying down) and slowly goes away during the morning. and just a little while ago it has started to sound muffled and i am having some ringing in my head but im not sure if its from the left or right ear or both. and my left ear felt fine earlier today but i unthinkingly rubbed inside the canal with my finger (it was really itchy) and ever since it has ached. ached so bad i broke down and took tylenol. the doc looked at that ear yesterday and said it looked ok. so i am wondering if maybe he had irritated the canal, but now i am having crackling and a feeling of fluid in the ear.. the crackling seems to help relieve some of the pressure.

sorry this is so long winded and not very pretty. it is the middle of the night, my left ear was really hurting and i am also holding a a sleepy baby in one arm. i have decided not to take the antibiotic he gave me (zithromicin) and my dh thinks im nuts. but now after reading some things i am wondering if i should take it just to be safe. i am a worry wort and this time i am runniung fever (i had run fever with the sore throat virus but it broke on tuesday and started back today at about 101). i am worried about meningitis and inner ear infections ( i have been a little dizzy) and of course another terrible ear infection that will leave me unable to function like before. so should i take the antibiotic, or should i wait it out? this is so frustrating.

thanks mel

[BusyMommy]

I think I'd take it w/o delay. You have some kind of infection and it doesn't sound like it's going away on its own.

I'd also look up some hoemopathics to take in case it ever happens again. But, at this point, it sounds like it's advancing prettyquickly.

I'd also go to the health food store today and buy some good (Herb Pharm?) mullein & garlic ear drops. Warm the dropper and use them 3x/day for a couple days and then go down to 2x/day until it's better.

GOOD LUCK!

PS: Pick up some probiotics from the frig. section while you're on antibiotics. Or, at least eat some real yogurt.

[gossamer]

I have had several ear infections and have constant fluid in my inner ear. I have also experienced the "crackling" sound you mentioned. I think the pain is from fluid pressure behind your ear drum. My ear drums have burst several times and it always hurt worst right before it burst because of the pressure. I would see if your doctor could aspirate the fluid or try a homeopathic solution to try to dry up the fluid, or a decongestant. SOme tiems a heating pad will help the pain. Does this help at all?

[snuffles]

thanks for the replies-- i really am not sure what to do. i guess i should prob take the antibiotics but i hate doing that. i really feel crappy. my ears are not hurting right now but the right one is stuffy and ringing. my left hurts every once in a while. i am a little concerned about taking antibiotics though because i cant find any good info on azithromicin and breastfeeding. it is prob okay BUT the baby still has jaundice (the level was 15 two weeks ago and I'll bet she stilll has it pretty high). i know the liver needs to break down the drug and i saw some drugs are not to be taken while a baby is breastfed and jaundiced. err why does everything have to be so difficult?! gossamer i thought about decongestants but i dont want to take those while nursing. a heating pad or cold compress does help when it is aching.

mel

[Stacie]

A good herb for liver health is Milk Thistle. You could try contacting someone at kirkman labs to find out if it passed thru breastmilk - probably is.


Milk Thistle is a herb recognized since ancient times for its medicinal value. It grows in moderate climates of North America and Europe, easily recognized by its large purple thistle-like flower heads.

By the Middle Ages, the seed of the milk thistle plant was used to treat liver diseases, to promote the flow of bile and as a general tonic for the stomach, spleen, gallbladder and liver.

http://www.kirkmanlabs.com/products/...C_100_Spec.htm