Tilting head to remove water from ear

How to Get Water Out of Your Ear

Water can easily find its way to your ear during swimming, shower or bath if you are not careful. usually the ear wax in the ear canal will prevent it from going deep inside the ear, but the water can get trapped in the ear canal causing tickling sensation and discomfort.

The trapped water should not be allowed to stay in the ears it may cause eardrum inflammation, cyst formation, hearing loss and other difficulties. The fluid can be trapped in the outer ear or middle ear. You should get rid of any fluid in the ear immediately. If the fluid is trapped in the middle ear then you will require a doctor's help.

 

You can remove any fluid trapped in outer ear at home. There are many simple home remedies to get rid of water in your ear.

3 Best Ways to get Water out of Your Ear

These are the safest ways to remove water from the ear. They are safe and effective because they do not require any thing to insert in the ears.

1. Tilt Your Head for Gravity to Remove Water

This is the most intuitive and easiest way to remove water from the ears. As soon as you realize that there is water in the ears, you can do this to remove it.

  • Stand up right or sit in a chair
  • Move your head a little forward and tilt it on one side
  • The water should come out due to gravity.
  • Do the same on the other ear by tilting on the other side.

If there is still some water then keep your head tilted so that the ear is in horizontal position. Cover your ear with palm to make it airtight. Then remove your palm with a jerk downwards. This will create a vacuum and the remaining water will come out.

2. Stretch the Ear to Straighten the Ear Canal for Easy Removal

This is an extension of the above method of tilting the ear to remove water. If you are tilted towards the left side to remove fluid from the left ear, then take the right hand behind your head and hold the top of the left ear and stretch it. This will straighten the ear canal and water will drain out with ease.

3. Use a Dryer to Dry out Water in the Ear

Hair dryer can be very handy to remove the traces of water which are still left in the ear after the above natural ways to remove the fluid from the ears.

  • Keep hair dryer on the cold air mode. Do Not use hot air mode which can damage your skin.
  • Keep the hair dryer at a safe distance ( about 4-6 inches away from the ear) from where the air can be blown with ease.
  • Within a few minutes the remaining water will dry out.

In addition to the above three methods, you can use inhaling of steam. This is an indirect but very effective method of removing water from ears. Inhalation of steam moistens the mucus membranes in the sinus ducts which are connected to the ears as well. The loosening of mucus membrane helps ejecting water from the ears.

Other Methods to Remove Water

There are many other ways to get rid of water from your ear such as putting hydrogen peroxide, olive oil, garlic and salt etc. in the ear. These methods have been used for ages to clean ears and mostly work well, but some time can create additional complications by putting more stuff in the ear instead of removing what is already inside. When you can completely remove water from your outer ear by non invasive methods why do you need to try any other method?

If the water is not out of your ears and you continue to feel the tingling sensation or heaviness in the ear then it is most likely that the fluid has gone deeper and inside the middle ear. In that case take doctors help. Don't insert paper or q-tips. You may damage your ears.