“My journey of ear problems began when I was still a child and started having pus discharge from my left ear. It was often difficult to go to school when my ear discharging and sometimes it would even have a bad smell. At times, I had to miss school due to ear pain or discharge. My parents were unsure what to do and didn’t get any help from the local doctor, and so I grew up with it”, narrates Poonam, a mother of two living in a Northern State of India. 

“It was as a married adult that I started noticing difficulty in hearing on the left side. I would often miss what my children said or when my husband called, and couldn’t use my mobile phone on the left side. Life was busy with two children to care for, so I kept ignoring it. However, about a year back I noticed a ringing in my left ear. At first, I tried to ignore it. It seemed to get better during the day. Gradually, it became louder and louder and I could not ignore it anymore. It became difficult to sleep at night. My ear discharge was constant and the hearing problem was also increasing. It became a challenge to get through my daily chores and parenting responsibilities.”  

“Upon encouragement from my family, I sought advice from ENT specialists at the Lok Nayak Hospital in Delhi. Doctors there diagnosed that I had a chronic ear infection (chronic suppurative otitis media) and the bones inside and behind my ear had become infected. That was the reason for the ear discharge, hearing loss and constant ringing. They advised me to undergo an ear surgery to remove the diseased bones and to repair the hearing mechanism.”  

“I reluctantly agreed. I was really scared and anxious. What if I lose my hearing completely? What if I have a big scar on the side of my face?  Finally the surgery was done and doctors told me that it had gone well. For a few days, I had to wear a big bandage on the side of my head. I stayed in the hospital for three days. It was after I returned home and the bandage and stitches were removed that I felt the difference. The pus discharge stopped, my hearing improved and I can hear my children clearly. The persistent tinnitus has also gradually faded away and the world has regained its clarity and quietness.” 

“There remains a scar behind my ear, but nothing that is visible or ugly. Conversations are easier, sleep comes with ease, and I am finally rid of the smelly ear discharge that had accompanied me since childhood. I am so grateful to my doctors for my renewed sense of well-being.” 

 “Thanks to my ear surgery, the world has regained its clarity.”