Seeking Advice About Ear Infections and Possible Tubes..

I know you have gotten tons of advice but I am too one that will tell you take her to a chiropractor they can do wonders for helping clear up ear infections. They can usually stop them within 6 visits. A lot of them will see you for a low cost consultation or even free. I know a lot of people think it's a bit quacky to go this route but I too swear by it. Good Luck to you whatever you decide to do

Have you taken her to see a chiropractor? I know trhat sounds weird but the nerves that go to the nerves go through the neck. If they are compromised then the signal is disrupted and things do not respond the way they should. My daughter had tubes in her ears and tshe was fine. If I had had the choice I would have tried a chiroppractor first. Good luck, J. F

One avenue you may want to try before tubes would be chiropractic. My son, now 3, then 20 months, had suffered from 7 ear infections in 10 months, so hid pedi was wanting to do tubes. I told my chiropractor about it and he said that the tubes in our ears are directly tied to our spine and he said that he could adjust him and he would not need tubes. I was skeptical, but it totally worked. He has only had 2 ear infections in the last 2+ years and those only come on when he has a bad cold or some other illness, so when his immune system is already low! It iw worth a try to maybe avoid the surgery. good luck!

I would recommend taking your daugther to a chiropractor too. We have had nothing but positive results. My daughter has been going since she was about 2 weeks old and she is now almost 2 1/2. We go about every two weeks to a month just to keep us in line. With all the bumps and falls this keeps her little body in line with where it is supposed to be. We have managed to avoid most of the colds and sickness even after being exposed. As a matter of fact, I get sick and she doesn't. It has been proven that children who go to chiropactic care have less incidence of needing tubes in their ears.
I wish you the best with whatever you decide. May God Bless your baby with great health. God Bless you and your family!

B.,

Everyone has there own viewpoint and experiences, so here is mine. My son had tubes placed in both ears when he was 5 months old. It was the best thing we ever did for him. He had antibiotics way too many times before that!!!! He would be back in to see the doctor within 24-48 hours of ending the medication. It was horrible!!!! Just so you know, the procedure is fairly simple and routine not intensive and drastic(of course this doesn't mean there are no risks involved - speak to your doctor about that). Pain is also not the only issue - consider wether it is affecting your daughter's hearing. Good luck with your decision.

Hi B.. I have a 5-1/2 yr old and 3-1/2 yr old. My oldest had ear infections alot as a baby and tubes were suggested to me, but I chose not to have them put in. She was almost 2 and our doc told us alot of kids grow out of the ear infecs by then. She was on the border of needing them so b/c I thought it would be too scary for her (more like me) I choose to wait it out. She did sort of grow out of it. She has had maybe 2 or 3 in the last few yrs. My son on the other hand did have the tubes when he was 18 months old. It was by far the best thing we ever did for him. I wish I would've done it for my daughter. He had chronic ear infecs until we put the tubes in. He hasn't had ONE since and he is now 3-1/2. It used to be every time he would get a little cold it would turn into an ear infection. The doc was concerned with all the antibiotics he had been on too. The procedure itself was a piece of cake. They don't even put an IV in or anything. They actually had me give him some oral medicine that made him very relaxed and almost drunk like, which was a little wierd, but it made it so they could take him from me with him not caring at all. They gave him some gas and within 20 mins I was in recovery holding him. The coming out of it part was a little hard. He was just unconsolable and out of sorts. The nurses assured me this was totally normal. Within an hour he was sleeping in my arms and then after that he ate a popcicle and we took him home. Never had a problem after that. We did it March so I was concerned about the summer time in the water, but he did fine. I never put wax or ear plugs or anything in his ears. He played in the pool and sprinkler and bath with no probs at all. Sorry this is so long, hope it helps. Good luck and she will do fine!! It's way harder on us than them!!

Please try this simple remedy; use 1/2 vinegar (any kind rice wine, apple cider etc) 1/2 rubbing alcohol use a dropper like the little bulbs for noses ,heck even a turkey baster ...get the liquid inside. This has helped some many people! The pain goes away instantly!

I would suggest taking her to the chiropractor before you do something as drastic as tubes. You don't have to sign up for a plan or spend tons of money just a few adjustments should do the trick. Most will even do a lower rate for young children.

We took our daughter off of all milk products (used soy) for a while when she was 14 months. The mucus it produces was preventing her ears from draining properly. It worked like a charm! Good luck.

I had two children that had chronic ear infections, and neither had tubes. I too had problems with my ears when I was young. I know most drs will go off of how often and severe the infections are before they decide to tube. WE did antibiotics for about two months straight as a preventive and the ear infections werent so often after that. The best thing to do is talk to the dr and see what they suggest, possibly a second opinion. I know our Dr didnt like putting tubes in kids, taht is why I suggest a second opinion if you feel it is something your child needs.
Best of luck, I know how hard this is. My son acted out in anger when he was hurting, and NEVER ran a fever with his infections, and never told me he was hurting.

We had tubes put in our son's ears because of chronic ear infections when he was 2 yrs old and they seem to have worked. He is now almost 3 1/2 years old and hasn't had another ear infection. The procedure was pretty fast and painless because of the medicine they administer just prior to the procedure. I think it was worth it.

My daughter got tubes in her ears when she was about 18 months old. It was the BEST THING we ever did. The pediatrician put it off for a while, saying it should be a last resort. And we went through what seemed like a million ear infections and a million different antibiotics before the decision was FINALLY made to get tubes. I don't know why it should be the very last resort. My daughter had to suffer way too much before we got her the tubes. Once she had them, she NEVER had another ear infection. She is now 4 years old. My husband and I often talk about how the decision to get tubes was such a great decision for our daughter. I have no regrets. My daughter was the same as yours in that she didn't always let me know when she had an ear infection. I thought she had a high tolerance for the pain, but now I think that she was just so used to living with the pain that she didn't recognize that there was something actually wrong when she had an ear infection. I hardly every respond to these message boards, but I wanted to take the time to respond to you because I know exactly what you're going through. You should go ahead and have your daughter get tubes. You both will feel so much better afterwards. Good luck!

Hi B. - my son had tubes when he was about your daughter's age. He's 9 now, and hasn't had an ear infection since! Obviously every child is different, and you will make the best choice for your precious one; but for us, tubes were much better than continual antibiotics and I would call it a success!
Best Wishes

T.
www.thislittlemommystayedhome.com

I absolutley recommend getting the tubes. Our daughter got them at about 18 months and I wish we had done it sooner. She completely stopped getting ear infections after that and before she was getting pretty much one a month. It was pretty scary watching our baby go under anesthesia but we took her ot Children's and they were amazing and everything went so smoothly. We were home the same day with a happy healthy kid. I will also tell you that all those antibiotics she took before getting tubes had after affects on her teeth. Her back molars never fully formed properly - the top layer of enamel is soft and yellow - so she had to get crowns on all 4 back teeth when she was only 5. Her first 2 permananent teeth have come in now and it looks like they have a little bit of the same type of damage but luckily not as bad. Anyway the sooner you can get off the antibiotics the better. For us the tubes were the right answer.

Hi B., my daughter had to have tubes put in at about 15months of age. She went in for surgery fine, came out fine, never complained one bit about pain, everything went smoothly after that. Tori will be 7 this Sunday, and she had her first ear infection about 6 months ago. In my opinion, I say do it and don't look back. They were a tremendous help, no more ear infections and antibiotics every 2-4 weeks. Good luck!!

Both of my kids have had to have the tubes and they have worked. With my daughter she had to have three sets before her infections finally cleared. With my son he is on set two and hopefully this is his last set. I would recommend them if she keeps getting them because the constant infections can cause scare tissue and lead to a hearing loss later and they can cause developmental delays from all of the fluid being in the ear, my son had that. We had a wonderful ENT with Childrens Hospital.

My middle child had chronic ear infections since she was 6 months old. It seemed like every time we turned around she was going to the doctor for yet another ear infection. She eventually grew tolerant to the pain and got really bad before we even knew she had one. When she was 6, I ended up having to take her to an ear, nose, and throat doctor because she had gotten a pebble stuck in her ear (doctor thought she may have put it there because she was trying to make her ear feel better). It turned out she had a double ear infection! He called my pediatrician and told her he recommended that my little girl get tubes in her ears.....FINALLY!!!!! I had been asking doctors since she was 2 years old for them to consider tubes and they just told me that she hadn't had enough ear infections in one year to warrant the surgery. Anyways, long story short, getting the tubes put in her ears and her adenoids removed proved to be the best thing for her. Even at 13 she still gets irritations in her ears....they get sore for a bit but never turn into full blown ear infections.

B.,

Highly recommend the tubes. I have two teens who both ended up with ear tubes as babies and it helped immensely. Especially considering the alternative is pain, antibiotics, more antibiotics and possible long term damage.

J.

Chronic ear infections (or any chronic respiratory infection) is very often related to a food intolerance. If a child is not digesting a particular food (often it's dairy), it sets up a chronic inflammatory reaction in the digestive tract. Since the membranes that line the digestive tract are connected to those that line the respiratory tract (right on up to the ears), the immune system is triggered, and frequent infections ensue. I don't know anything about your daughter's medical history and thus can't say whether this is her particular issue, so I will carefully stop short here of recommending anything in particular, other than recommending that you consult a natuoropathic physician. I noticed in another post that you were looking for someone (a chiropractor) in the Spokane area, so I'm assuming that's where you are :). I know a great naturopathic doctor in Spokane: Dr. Letitia Watrous. Definitely worth going to talk to her... If you do, tell her I sent you!

p.s., just a note because there was a home remedy recommendation below. I'm all for home remedies and personal empowerment with our health, but I like to caution people not to put medicines in the ear unless you know for sure that the eardrums are not ruptured.

Many blessings,
D. E., ND

My son had to have ear tubes put in three times...the first was a nightmare with a doctor that strapped him to a pappoose board (told us new parents that was how it was always done) and did a very poor job of it, the next doctor did it surgically as it should have been done and did beautifully...my son has 100% hearing now and we don't regret a minute of it. He had a little discomfort for maybe a day, but the infections stopped and he was even happier than normal. Nothing but good from the last two tube insertions! :)

My son, whom is now a very healthy, active 18yr old, had too many ear infections to count between 1month old and 1 1/2yrs old. Finally at 1 1/2 yrs a specialist put tubes in his ears and since that time he's only had 1 minor ear infection. The surgery was only 10 minutes and his tubes fell out naturally without us being aware. His fear of water getting into his ears took longer to deal with than anything else. Of course there's always risks when children have surgery, but research the facts and choose a competent doctor to do the procedure, should you elect to have it done. Good luck. It's no fun when they have ear infections! B. F.

Tubes are worth it. Repeated ear infections and cycles of antibiotic can cause other problems, like speech delays. You don't want this to happen. Tubes will require some additional attention and care on your part. Ear plugs anytime she's near water for example. As an adult I have a tube in my one ear due to some surgery that compromised my inner ear. It has made all the difference in the world when it came to pain management, hearing and life in general. Do it for her. A good ENT will be able to do this in their office or on an out-patient surgery basis at your local hospital. Best wishes for a speedy recovery!!!

My son had tubes put in when he was 18 mos. because of the pain and too many times on antibiotics. He still had infections after, but the pain of pressure was released, (running down his face) and he was much happier. Without them his eardrums can build up too much scar tissue that can cause hearing problems. The only thing odd was that because he had to wear ear plugs for bathing, kiddy pool, sprinkler, we were constantly saying, "Dont get your ears wet!" and he became afraid later to learn to swim and put his head in the water.

ear infections were common in my family, i used to get them all the time ( sometimes up to 20 a yr, dad, mom n my older bros the same, sometimes more) we all ended up getting tubes in our ears and we never once had another ear infection or problem with our ears,it was done right in the docs office, they didnt hurt or anything, they r sooooo small too , which was easy for them to put in, it took like 5 mins for each of us, to get it done, we didnt have to take any meds or anything before or after, and we could even enjoy going in water again ( we never had to use ear plugs or anything )our hearing was alot better too, there was no upkeep on our end for them, no meds to take or anything for them, etc

and my goddaughter ( whom i have custody of) was constantly suffering ear infections as a infant, i would say she would get bout 8-9 a month, and i didnt like her being on all those antibiotics because ur body becomes immune to them and they can quit working, and in the long run, may do damage to you in diff ways, when she was about 15-16 months old i had enough of it all and took her in to get tubes in her ears, doc did it right in his office, took him bout 6 mins, he didnt have to give her anything, she sat down for him and let him do it, she wasnt in pain or anything, there was no upkeep for hers either, and she was able to go in the water etc, no ear plugs or anything and she never had another ear infection, shes 8 yrs going on 9 yrs now :)

u will make the right decisian for ur little one, many hugs to u

my daughter had ear infection after ear infection and so we had tubes put in just after she turned a year old. All the ear infections also seemed to be causeing hearing problems. It was so worth it. The stress of tubes going in was worse on me than her but after the tubes she could speak clearly and we havne't had another ear infections since and she will be seven this year. So yes i feel it was well worth it.

I love this question! This happened to my daughter...19 ear infections by the time she was 2-1/2 AND the doc didn't seem to think this was a problem.
I ended up taking her to an Osteopath because I was opposed to ear tubes. She had her head "adjusted" over a period of 6 weeks and has NEVER had another ear ache. It had to do with the way her head allowed the ear canals to drain. The adjustment opened her passages and all was well with the world.
(My daughter has a high pain threshold as well and it killed me to find that she'd been suffering at all...so I sympathize!)

Good luck!