I called my doctor Friday morning. Not being able to hear clearly got my attention. Wax tends to build up in my right ear (and - I later learned - was pretty severe at this point), so I was effectively deaf. When I called, I got a message that the doctor was out of the office, and gave an alternate number "in case of emergency".
At the time, I wasn't sure whether this qualified as an emergency. I thought it possible the symptom would clear up on its own over the weekend.
An ice storm was predicted for Oklahoma, and our office closed at noon on Friday. The campus was also closed Monday for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
The ice storm did hit. Most people stayed in through-out the three-day weekend. Many people in eastern Oklahoma lost power. Happily, I did not (I live in central OK).
I surfed to WebMD, and learned that ringing in the ear (tinnitus) is quite serious, and that I should have tried the alternate number. At any rate, I got an appointment for Tuesday (1/16).
She didn't see any severe problems in the ear, and prescribed an antibiotic for the cold.
My ear was still ringing on Friday of that week (1/19). At a co-worker's urging, I called the doctor back (I was near the end of the script for the antibiotic). She suggested we wait over the weekend.
My ear was still ringing on Monday. The doc referred me to an ORL specialist ("ear, nose, throat"), who I saw this Monday (1/22). Immediately, he noticed both ears were congested with wax. Although my regular doc claimed she could see my ear drum, the specialist said he couldn't see it for all the wax.
So, he lavaged both ears. Then he prescribed steroids for the swelling in the eustachian tube.
One moral to this tale of woe: I need a new primary care physician.
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