My wife and I just returned last week from a nice trip to Carmel, Monterrey and the California coast. The weather was perfect. My health was pretty good except for my right ear feeling like it was full of water that I couldn’t get out. Today though I have developed a pain in my left ear. I just figured it was an ear infection.

Went to the doctor’s office.

I told the doctor my symptoms and also told him quite clearly that the pain in my ear was at an 8 out of 10. He didn't give me anything. Said he thought it was a blocked eustachian tube. I told him I had experienced that many times while flying and the pain was not near as severe as what I was experiencing now. I also told him I could easily clear my eustachian tube by using the valsalva maneuver whenever I wanted to. (Pinching nose and forcing air in). I must not have been very convincing as I was not given anything for my symptoms.

Later this same week, I became so frustrated with the pain that I started shopping health food stores looking for something I could put in my ear - anything to ease the pain. It was hard to concentrate at work. I read all I could on the internet and found something worth trying - colloidal silver. Supposed to work wonders for earaches. I purchased a bottle and put some in my ear immediately. I also put some down my throat and it did ease my throat pain a little - probably a placebo effect.

The next morning the pain was still bad and I noticed some 'numbness' on the left side of my face and I began to have trouble walking across the room. I thought that I had really screwed up by putting that colloidal silver in my ear and now I was going to pay the price.

I was so dizzy that I gave up driving.