Friday, February 26, 2010

How to Drain Your Cauliflowering Ear - By Georgette Oden

Thanks Georgette for the how to on draining cauliflower ear!


"I used insulin needles. I went to Walgreens at the pharmacy counter and asked for the tiniest gauge needles they had; a sack of 10 syringes with super-teeny needles was like $2.50.

I also bought a box of alcohol pads that happened to have anesthetic in there too. (No harm in being a pain-weenie.)

I carefuly wiped all around the inside and outside of my ear and let the pad sit for a minute or so on the place where the fluid was filled up, so the novacaine could soak in if it was going to. (As it turns out, it doesn't numb your ear, at least not that I could feel. But the needle prick isn't all that painful either.)

Depending where the fluid pocket is, you'll need to play around with where to stick the needle. Pull all your hair back and use bobby pins so you have a very clear view and do this in front of your bathroom mirror. Take all the protective caps off the syringe, needle-end and plunger-end. Work the plunger in and out a little bit so it doesn't stick, and I left the plunger out about .5cc so there was some airspace the fluid could flow into.

You'll want to put the needle in all the way, and have the tip of the needle in the middle of the deepest part of the fluid. The hardest part is actually penetrating your skin (the top layer is tough!) Sometimes, just getting into the ear is enough to get the blood/fluid draining. Sometimes, you need to get the needle in and then pull the plunger back bit by bit.

If nothing at all comes into the chamber when you pull the plunger a bit, you may need to change the angle of the needle relative to the pocket of fluid, or maybe pull the needle out a tiny bit to get less deeply into the pocket, or ick, you may need to change where you pierce the skin entirely.

Sad to say, you'll get a good feel for that particular pocket over the next day or two, and you'll find a place and angle that reliably works. That one "stick site" will become sore but the feeling of relief and the lack of vegetableness of your ear will be worth it.

FYI-- sometimes, the fluid is bloody (even really dark red) and sometimes it's clear-yellow serum. Usually, it starts out with a droplet of blood- then a bunch of serum- then the tail end of that draw will be blood, which actually looks pretty cool as it swirls into the serum. Sorry, I guess I'm twisted.

Make sure you use an alcohol pad to pinch against the stick site again, and hold it tightly for a minute or so to stop any residual bleeding. Also make sure you bend the needle back (pressing it against the floor or a hard nonscratch surface) and then re-cap it so no one can reuse it."  - 
http://georgetteoden.blogspot.com/2010/02/how-to-drain-your-cauliflowering-ear.html




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