In Reply to: ear infections posted by TLM on Tuesday, 9. August 2005 at 17:56 Bali Time:
... just in case anyone wants to try it (and it really works - at the first sign of ear pain, try it on yourself, you'll see): I should have said HOT wet compress (i.e, a washcloth held under a hot tap until hot, then wrung out - or maybe in Bali from a kettle of safe boiled water). Hold the hot wet cloth firmly against the ear that hurts so the steam gets into the ear channel. When it gets cool, hold under hot tap again and repeat a few times until stops hurting. Aaahhh, such a relief!
With a child, keep asking them throughout day if their ear hurts anymore, and if yes, repeat process again. We have had to do it up to three or four times in a day. Obviously, if pain doesn't go away after a day or two, it hasn't worked - but it has never NOT worked for any of us yet, but trick is to catch it at first sign of pain - with younger kids, sometimes they won't (or just can't) tell you they have pain, but if you notice their hands going to, or fiddling with, their ears more than usual ask, several times if necessary: 'does your ear hurt'?
Doctor who told us about this (we were at an after-hours clinic yet again with a child with a miserable ear infection) said her 4 kids, by then teenagers, had never had a single ear infection (and never been on antibiotics, imagine that!)