I have never really shared the full story about my ear problems here, so I thought it was time to finally write about it.
My ear problems started when I was a child.
I had chronic ear infections for most of my life, until I was 23, when I finally received proper treatment. For many years, my ear would often have discharge that smelled bad, especially when the infection was bad.
I still remember when I was in elementary school and someone called me “stinky”. No one knew what I was actually dealing with at the time.
I made countless visits to regular clinics and was given medication for my ear infections, but nothing ever seemed to work for long.
Sometimes, when I cleaned my ear with a cotton bud, I would notice black marks on the cotton bud. My doctor told me that it was fungus and advised me not to use cotton buds because they could make the infection worse. It was also painful whenever I had a fungal infection.
After changing clinics and hospitals several times, I finally started seeing the ENT department at Pusat Perubatan Universiti Malaya (PPUM) in 2013.
It was a specialist at the ENT clinic in Kajang who first found a cyst in my middle ear called a Cholesteatoma. By the time it was found, my ear was already in pretty bad condition. It had become so sensitive that even sounds and changes in temperature could make it hurt.
The pain could be unbearable. Honestly, I used to say that even a toothache couldn’t compare to it.
It was that painful. Really painful.
He then referred me to a hospital for further treatment. At first, I went to Hospital Putrajaya, but I was not happy with the treatment I received there. One of my colleagues then suggested that I try PPUM instead.
So I did.
And since then, PPUM has been a big part of my ear treatment journey.
In July 2014, I had my first ear surgery, called a modified radical mastoidectomy (MRM). The surgery took about 3 hours, and everything went well.
I was given about a month of medical leave to recover. I had some trouble walking right after the surgery because my ear affected my balance, and there was also some blood coming from my ear during recovery. Other than that, I was happy with how the procedure went.
Afterwards, my ear did not get infected as often as it used to, and I was really relieved about that.
Still, I had to see my doctor once or twice a month, depending on the condition of my ear. During these visits, my doctor would clean my ear and check how it was healing and progressing.
I thought that maybe I was finally done with the problem.
Unfortunately, my ear still had discharge. It was clear and watery, almost like water, with no colour or bad smell. My doctor told me that the discharge was keratin.
It was still uncomfortable because I had expected the discharge to stop completely after the surgery. However, almost 3 years later, I was still dealing with it.
My doctor decided to do another CT scan to check what was happening inside. After that, I was initially told that I might need a second surgery. The thought of going through another surgery was scary. I was not happy to hear that.
Thankfully, my doctor decided to try another option first.
This time, I was going to have a grommet, inserted into my eardrum. A grommet, also known as an ear tube, is a small tube that helps drain fluid from the middle ear.
Before the procedure, my doctor asked me to buy EMLA cream, a local anaesthetic cream used to numb the skin and reduce pain. I bought it from the hospital pharmacy because the hospital did not provide it. It cost me around RM30 at the time.
The cream was applied to my ear, and then I had to wait for about 2 hours before the procedure.
I remember asking my doctor, “Sakit tak nanti, doctor?” because I was worried about how painful it would be.
He jokingly replied, “That is why I asked you to bring your boyfriend. Time ni la nak manja-manja.”
Basically, he was telling me that this was the time to let my boyfriend pamper me. 😂
After the cream was applied, I remember feeling quite dizzy. So I spent the next 2 hours waiting and thinking about the procedure. I had also read things online before going for it. Some people said it was very painful, while others talked about problems with their hearing afterwards. That made me even more nervous.
After waiting for about 2 hours, it was finally time.
The doctor cleaned my ear first. Then he made a small opening in my eardrum before inserting the grommet. The whole procedure took around 15 to 20 minutes.
To be honest, it was not as bad as I had imagined.
For most of the procedure, I did not feel much. There were a few moments when I felt some discomfort, but it was still bearable for me. I did not experience the severe pain or hearing problems that I had worried about after reading things online.
When the doctor finally said, “Okay, dah siap,” I felt so relieved.
It was over.
After the procedure, my ear felt full and I experienced tinnitus, which is a ringing or other noise in the ear. I also had occasional brief pain and could hear some popping sounds.
On the second day, the pain still came and went, but it was manageable. The tinnitus was still there too.
My doctor prescribed paracetamol for the pain and gave me one week of medical leave.
The procedure was done as a day procedure, so I did not have to stay in the hospital overnight. I was able to go home on the same day, although my doctor advised me not to drive afterwards.
At that point, I still had to wait and see if the grommet would actually help my ear. If it didn’t work, I might still need the surgery. For the first few days, I actually noticed more discharge coming from my ear. It was quite heavy, and I would sometimes wake up with my pillow wet around my ear.
Then, after a few days, the discharge completely stopped.
I haven’t had any discharge from my ear since then.
The grommet basically worked! I didn’t need another surgery after all.
Now, as I’m updating this post in 2025, I’m happy to say that my ear has completely healed. Looking back at everything I went through, there are a few things I wish I had known earlier, and a few things I would like to share with anyone who may be going through something similar.
Looking back, I wish I had taken my ear problems more seriously from the beginning.
I remember I used to put cotton balls in my ear to stop the discharge from coming out and simply rely on medication from a regular clinic without seeking further treatment. At the time, I had gotten so used to dealing with it that I thought it was just something I had to live with.
I’m sharing my experience because I know there may be other people going through something similar and wondering what they should do next.
If your ear keeps getting infected, stays wet, has discharge, smells bad, or has other unusual symptoms, please don’t simply ignore it. My biggest advice is to see an ENT specialist and get your ear properly checked. Don’t rely only on what you read online, especially when it comes to deciding if you need a procedure or surgery.
There can be many different reasons for these symptoms, and not everyone with ear discharge has cholesteatoma. In my case, I never really knew what was causing my chronic ear infections for all those years. Eventually, I was diagnosed with cholesteatoma, which led to a painful journey, surgery, and years of follow-up.
I’m just really grateful that the whole journey is finally over and that my ear has healed.
If your doctor recommends a procedure, don’t be afraid to ask questions. Ask what the procedure is for, how it will be done, what you might feel during it, what you should expect afterwards, and what will happen if it does not work.
I also learned that reading too many scary experiences online can sometimes make you more frightened than you need to be. Everyone’s experience can be different. In my case, I was worried that the grommet procedure would be extremely painful and that it might affect my hearing. It was much more manageable than I expected.
That does not mean everyone will have the same experience. Pain levels, recovery and treatment can be different from one person to another.
This post is simply my personal experience of living with chronic ear infections, having surgery for cholesteatoma, and later having a grommet inserted.
My ear problems have been a long journey, and I still need to take care of my ears and continue with follow-up treatment.
Still, I’m grateful for the doctors who have taken care of me throughout the years. The doctor who treated me at PPUM was Dr Chong, and I always felt more comfortable whenever I got to see him because he knew my case so well. He was the one who performed my ear surgery, and he did such a neat job with the stitches that I barely have any visible scar. He was also fun to talk to, which always helped me feel more relaxed before my checkups. Whenever I saw another doctor instead, I would feel a little disappointed because I knew Dr Chong understood my history better. Dr Aiman was also very helpful during my treatment.
Honestly, I only really trusted these two with my ears. 😂 I’m really grateful for the way they treated me and for the care they gave me throughout my journey.
If you’re in Malaysia and looking for a place to get your ear checked or treated, I highly recommend PPUM. After everything I’ve been through there, I can honestly say that I’ve had a really good experience with the care and treatment I received.
Disclaimer: This post is based on my personal experience and is not medical advice.
Until then,
Auri Duham 🌻
