Why does my left ear feel clogged?

Are you one of those people who constantly ask themselves ‘why does my left ear feel like it’s stuffed with cotton?’ or do you regularly suffer from the uncomfortable sensation of your ears being clogged? Well, fear not because there are plenty of possible reasons why this may be happening to you.

Anatomy and Physiology behind an Ear Blockage

Before we delve into some potential causes for a blocked ear, let’s take a moment to appreciate the complex anatomy of this tiny part in our body.

  • The outer ear includes the auricle (visible part), which serves as a funnel to collect sounds and assist with directional hearing.
  • Sound waves travel through the external auditory canal up until they reach the eardrum.
  • From here on out, things get more complicated:
    • Behind it lies three ossicles – namely malleus (hammer), incus (anvil) & stapes (stirrup) – that transmit vibrations by means of synovial folds between them
    • The inner cochlea contains hair cells that vibrate when stimulated by these sound waves; converting them into electrical impulses sent through nerves towards brain where ultimate interpretation happens [^1].

Now let’s move onto what might cause an imbalance in this delicate system!

Wax build-up

First off, wax can build up inside your ears over time. While yellowish-brown wax is normal and usually harmless , sometimes it accumulates excessively and ultimately plugs your ear causing pain/pressure sensing sensation (ouch!) Common ways folks generally try removing extra wax involve Q-tips but alas doctors usually don’t recommend using anything smaller than elbow for cleaning their airholes!. So make sure to tread carefully if planning on extracting oneself.

Infection:

Secondly,ear infections can lead toward discomfort in one or both sides especially during childhood/transitions period or recurring occasions. Considered common among children, symptoms such as pain and difficulty hearing can add to the experience in the adults. An excellent tip for those who face this frustrating issue is trying a heating pad to alleviate some of the discomfort [^2].

Pressure Changes

Changes in air pressure may also impact persons with tubes insertion (an ear infection treatment) or existent abnormalities; Such changes perhaps most frequently arise during ascent/descent on airplanes changing altitudes —results toward an excess of outside pressure needing to be released via ‘pop’. This action results from equalizing inner and outer atmospheric pressures surrounding your eardrum/causing them temporary alterations from equilibrium levels until balance restored .

Sinus infections:

Meanwhile sinus infections impacting ears seems unlikely but it’s worth noting that they often can build up fluid into Eustachian tube disabling said aforementioned release mechanism.

Furthermore activities involving rigorous exercise beneath water (without proper precautions) such as scuba diving/snorkelling might cause this pressure change effecting yur interior canal[ ^3]

Allergies

Seasonal allergies might irritate nasal passageways connected towards causing inflammation hence possible slight sensation unwillingly provoked. Unfortunately most treatements include behaviour modification (avoidance) instead of overt interventions/assuaging agitating symptoms.. oh well!

Other miscellaneous causes vary greatly ranging from various inner ear issues due viral invasion injury to central nervous system complications although difficult diagnosing in (most/all) cases requires prior medical diagnoses,a thorough assessment by professional ENT physicians specialists.

To summarize,our ears serve us very impressively at maintaining oversight over our surroundings through sound wave conversion decipherment. However sometimes even tiny obstructions/excess pressures responsible ,plugging forcing you wonder “why does left/right one feel clogged” – make sure whatever steps are taken first consulting doctor before resolve to stickling strange objects into ear canals (bad idea)

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