We were goofing off on the Ocoee river today in a rapid call Cat's Pajama's that has a powerful whirlpool. I jumped in and was sucked down to the first ledge, and then further down in a matter of ~3 seconds about 20-25ft. I have no way of knowing exactly how deep but it was totally dark and I felt intense pressure on my ears and sinuses. I'm a scuba diver but it happened so fast and violently that I didn't have time to equalize the pressure in my ears. I'm having moderate pain and hearing impairment in my right ear. It feels like an infection with fluid behind the eardrum, but there is no fluid and my tubes are clear. Am I going to die?

8/3/2007 4:54:43 PM

not necessarily no fluid in there... put a few drops of swimmer's ear crap in there... worked for me a while back.

8/3/2007 5:01:56 PM

Possible perforated eardrum, if you continue to have pain and/or bloody/waxy drainage I'd see an ear doctor. These things can heal on their own, but depending on how big the rupture might need an ENT doctor's hand to help quicken healing and prevent a middle ear infection from forming. Can cause permanent damage if left untreated.

any ringing when it happened or now? or just pain

[Edited on August 3, 2007 at 5:03 PM. Reason : ]

8/3/2007 5:02:34 PM

Initially just everything hurt, both ears and sinuses, and the tubes. I cleared them several times. There was no ringing. There was more pain in the right one, but both hurt. It got better, this was around 2:00. Things now sound dull in my right ear, like if it needs to be popped really bad, but isn't. : (

8/3/2007 5:09:09 PM

i had an ear infection in high school that caused a perforated ear drum. there was VERY sharp pain in my ear when that happened. i don't know if that's always what happens, but there was no mistaking what was going on when my eardrum was perforated. i ended up using some ear drop stuff prescribed from the doctor to control the infection and help the eardrum heal. but long story short: see an ear person. i almost lost hearing in one ear permanently because i held off going to a specialist (in favor of my family doctor) for a few days.

[Edited on August 3, 2007 at 5:38 PM. Reason : .]

8/3/2007 5:13:46 PM

Is it possible that my eardrum is "strained," kinda like it was stretched inwardly by the pressure and will recover?

8/3/2007 5:16:20 PM

dude, it might recover on its own, but ears are something you don't want to fuck with.

i would suggest you go see a specialist ASAP.

8/3/2007 5:31:00 PM

^what he said.

8/3/2007 5:38:31 PM

It's gonna be kinda hard to find an ENT on Friday afternoon.

8/3/2007 5:57:20 PM

damn, that sucks man
but it had to be cool to get sucked down like that

8/3/2007 6:08:59 PM

w3rd

8/3/2007 6:15:01 PM

Yeah, it's pretty awesome... you just jump into this surging pulsing rapid and relax. You go way down and pop up about 20 seconds later 50-75 feet downstream. I also got worked in a hydraulic today, the second hole at Double Suck. It was dark and I was trying to "spider-man" thinking that I was trapped under the boat... I wasn't I was just way down. I definitely got my fill of swimming Class IV water today.

Here's a picture of my last trip into Double Suck



[Edited on August 3, 2007 at 6:20 PM. Reason : Double Suck]

8/3/2007 6:15:25 PM

i thought it was common for people to get sucked down into those things and get stuck

is that false

8/3/2007 6:24:19 PM

American Whitewater on Double Suck:

Quote :

"The river will bend to the right and you will notice a large rock outcropping in the middle of the river. A metal plate is affixed to the boulder at the right side of the outcropping. This is Double Suck -- and on this rock outcropping is found a nearly-extinct plant, Ruth's Golden Aster. The metal plate notifies you of a prohibition against walking on the island. Double Suck is a Class III ledge, and gets its name from two closely spaced holes, the second of which is very strong and advisable to avoid. Run this four-foot drop with a strong angle pointing river left in order to eddy out behind the large rock and avoid the second hole. Many thrashings have occurred from paddling right down the middle and thinking the worst is over, before being sucked back into the second hole."

There are two schools of thought on how to escape a hole... both are wrong.

8/3/2007 6:28:55 PM

post?

i know a great ENT doc at Duke if you end up needing to see someone.

8/3/2007 6:48:38 PM

i think it's pretty unlikely you perf'd your TM...more likely you got a middle ear infection from something in the water

but bottom line is, go see a doc (if not a specialist)

[Edited on August 3, 2007 at 7:40 PM. Reason : ]

8/3/2007 7:39:55 PM

It's not an infection... at least not initially... this happened all at once. It's an injury for lack of a better word.

8/3/2007 7:41:23 PM

you'll have to go to a doctor and have them look at this one to get this diagnosed.

8/5/2007 8:42:41 PM

I'd suggest you go get it checked out. You know I'm an avid diver, and we both know there's no way you should go to 20-25ft without equalizing.

Chances are, your eardrums are perforated. If you really want to check it out, drop some vinegar/alcohol solution (same stuff you use to prevent infections) in there. If you eardrum is perforated the solution will drop down your eustachian (sp?) tubes to you throat, burning like a red-hot iron all the way...

Go get someone to look at it. Possibly losing your hearing isn't worth it.

8/6/2007 7:16:31 AM

^ agree also you can use warm cloth and lay it with your ear on it facing down. Usually if you do that for a night if you did get fluid behind your ear drum it will leak out. It happens to me all the time you will be fine. If the pain continues after 3 days go the ear nose and throat doctor.

8/6/2007 9:28:43 AM

You have AIDS

8/6/2007 2:13:02 PM

^Yes, that's beside the point.

In an update, the pain subsided and the ear now functions again 95% normally. In a typical day I got up and down ~1000 ft of altitude half a dozen times and it has been equalizing normally. I think I just bruised or strained the eardrum and I hope to take this as a lesson on what not to do next time.

8/6/2007 7:55:05 PM

OK, in unrelated news I think I have an outer ear infection. I'm trying to get an appt. with the Dr. Are there effective over-the-counter meds that you have used?

8/20/2007 8:57:05 AM

http://tinyurl.com/ynvkte

[Edited on August 20, 2007 at 9:00 AM. Reason : .]

8/20/2007 8:59:25 AM

Hmm, my pharmacist says it's probably a middle or inner infection and that there are not really any effective over-the-counter drops for ear pain.


[fail]

8/20/2007 9:16:51 AM

Haha, I have a bulk bottle of Amoxil that we picked up in the Bahamas maybe this will clear it up!

8/20/2007 12:17:31 PM