Home care and prevention
Swimming, showering and ear wax
Water can make wax swell and block an ear that felt fine the day before. How to protect your ears in the pool, the sea and the shower, and when to get help.
In short
- Water rarely blocks an ear on its own. It usually makes wax that was already in the canal swell and close the gap.
- Trapped water tends to drain within hours. A blocked feeling that lasts for days points to wax, and itching that turns into pain points to swimmer's ear.
- Tilt your head and let gravity do the work. Never dig water out with cotton buds, fingers or a twisted towel.
- A swimming hat or well-fitting earplugs keep most water out. Dry your outer ears when you get out.
- If you have a perforated eardrum, keep the ear completely dry until it heals.
If your ear feels blocked after a swim or a shower, the usual cause is wax that was already there. Ear wax soaks up water and swells, closing the small gap that was letting sound through, so an ear that sounded fine yesterday is suddenly muffled. Trapped water normally drains within a few hours. A blocked feeling that lasts longer is more likely to be wax, while itching and pain that build over a day or two suggest swimmer's ear, an infection of the ear canal.
Why your ear blocks after swimming or a shower
Healthy ear wax repels water. A thin coating on the skin of the ear canal stops it going soggy every time you wash your hair, and most of the time water runs straight back out.
Problems start when there's more wax than usual. A partial build-up can sit in the canal for weeks without you noticing, because sound still gets past it. Then water soaks into the wax, particularly the softer, wet kind, and it swells. The gap closes and your hearing drops, usually in one ear. Water can also get caught behind a plug of wax, which is why some people hear a slosh or feel a tickle deep inside.
So swimming doesn't cause a build-up. It reveals one. That is also why the blocked feeling doesn't lift once the water has drained: the wax is still there. Some people are simply more prone to it than others, for reasons explained in what ear wax is and why it builds up.
Cold water and surfer's ear
People who swim or surf often in cold water can develop small bony lumps in the ear canal, called exostoses or surfer's ear. They grow slowly over years and narrow the canal, so wax and water find it harder to get out. Earplugs and a hood in cold water help protect against them. If your ears seem to trap water more easily than they used to, mention it to a GP or ear care clinician.
Trapped water, swollen wax or swimmer's ear?
All three can feel much the same in the first hour. They behave quite differently over the following days, and that's the easiest way to tell them apart.
| Trapped water | Swollen wax | Swimmer's ear | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starts | Straight after swimming or a shower | After water gets in, sometimes not until the next morning | Usually a day or two after swimming |
| Feels like | Sloshing, a tickle or muffled hearing | A dull, plugged ear, and your own voice may sound loud | Itching that turns into pain, worse when the ear is touched or pulled |
| Other signs | Usually none | Sometimes ringing, mild discomfort or dizziness | Redness, swelling or discharge, and sometimes a high temperature |
| How long | A few hours as it drains | Stays until the wax softens or is removed | Can get worse without treatment |
| What helps | Tilting your head and letting it drain | Olive or almond oil drops for 3 to 5 days, then removal if needed | Keeping the ear dry and seeing a pharmacist or GP |
Swimmer's ear is the everyday name for otitis externa, inflammation or infection of the outer ear canal.
Work out which one you're dealing with before putting anything in your ear. Oil drops won't treat an infection, and a sore, swollen canal needs to be seen by a pharmacist or GP before anyone tries to remove wax from it. A blocked ear can also come from fluid behind the eardrum after a cold, or from pressure changes on a flight home from a beach holiday.
How to get water out of your ear safely
Most trapped water finds its own way out. You can help it along:
- Tilt your head so the blocked ear faces the floor, then gently pull the top of your ear up and back. This straightens the canal.
- While your head is tilted, open and close your mouth, chew or yawn.
- Lie on that side on a towel for a few minutes.
- Pat your outer ear dry with a soft towel, without pushing any of it into the canal.
Some people find a hairdryer on its coolest, lowest setting, held well away from the ear, helps dry the entrance of the canal. Don't hold it close, and stop if it feels hot.
Don't go digging for it
Cotton buds, fingers, hairgrips and twisted towel corners don't get water out. They scratch the thin skin of the canal and push wax deeper, and scratched, damp skin is exactly how swimmer's ear gets started. See why cotton buds make ear wax worse for the damage they do.
Protecting your ears in the pool and the sea
For people prone to outer ear infections, the NHS suggests wearing earplugs or a swimming hat over your ears when you swim. The same steps help if your wax tends to swell.
What to pack if your ears block easily
- A silicone swimming hat pulled down over your ears
- Earplugs that fit well: mouldable silicone putty, or custom-made swim plugs from a hearing care professional
- A neoprene headband over the plugs if you swim a lot or surf
- A dry towel to pat your outer ears as soon as you get out
Earplugs come with a trade-off. They keep water out, but any plug pushed deep into the canal can nudge wax further in, just as earbuds do. Choose plugs that sit in or over the opening rather than deep inside, wash reusable ones after each swim and don't force them in. The same effect is explained in more detail in earphones and ear wax.
If you have a perforated eardrum or grommets
Keep water out of an ear with a perforated eardrum until it has healed. The NHS advises not swimming or getting the ear wet in the meantime, and putting a large piece of cotton wool covered in petroleum jelly in your outer ear when you wash your hair. Don't use oil drops in that ear either.
Children and adults with grommets should follow the advice of the ENT team that fitted them, as recommendations on swimming vary.
Showers, baths and hair washing
You get far more water in your ears in the shower than in the pool, simply because you shower every day. There's no need to avoid getting your ears wet. Let the water run off rather than aiming the shower head into your ear, and dry your outer ears afterwards.
Lying back in the bath with your ears under water is a common way to set off a blockage in a waxy ear. If you're prone to outer ear infections, the NHS suggests trying to keep water and shampoo out of your ears when you shower or bathe. When that's hard, a piece of cotton wool smeared with petroleum jelly, placed in the outer ear, works as a simple plug. It's handy for the few days after ear wax removal too, if the clinician has asked you to keep your ears dry.
What to do if your ear still feels blocked
If the blocked feeling lasts more than a day and there's no pain, wax is the likely cause. The NHS suggests 2 to 3 drops of olive or almond oil in the ear, 3 to 4 times a day for 3 to 5 days, lying on your side for 5 to 10 minutes afterwards so the oil can soak in. Skip the drops if your eardrum might be perforated. Softened wax can take up to a couple of weeks to work its way out, often at night. Our guide on how to use ear drops covers the technique.
While you're using drops, it's sensible to stay out of the pool and keep water out in the shower, so the wax isn't soaking up more water as it softens.
If the drops haven't worked, a clinician can remove the wax. Microsuction uses gentle suction and no water, while ear irrigation washes softened wax out with a controlled flow of warm water. Our comparison of microsuction and irrigation explains which suits whom. Either way, ask when you can get back in the water.
See a GP or contact NHS 111 if you have
- ear pain that is severe or getting worse
- discharge, blood or pus coming from the ear
- swelling or redness of the ear or the skin around it
- a high temperature, or you feel generally unwell
- sudden hearing loss in one or both ears
- severe dizziness
Pain or bleeding after diving, or after hitting the water hard, can mean a perforated eardrum and needs checking.
Find a clinic
Back from the pool with a blocked ear?
If a few days of drops haven't cleared it, search by town or postcode for ear wax removal clinics near you.
Common questions
Does swimming make your ears produce more wax?
No. Water doesn't make the glands in your ear canal produce more wax. Swimming exposes a build-up that was already there, because the wax swells when it gets wet. Regular cold-water swimmers are a partial exception: over years, bony growths can narrow the canal and make it easier for wax to collect.
How long after ear wax removal can I go swimming?
Ask the clinician who treated you, as it depends on the method used and how your ear looked afterwards. After a straightforward removal, many people are back in the water within a few days. If the canal was sore, scratched or infected you may be asked to wait longer. Our guide to aftercare after wax removal covers the first few days.
Should I put drops in my ears after every swim?
Most people don't need anything at all. If you block often, a clinician may suggest using olive oil drops now and then to keep the wax soft, but that is a routine to agree with them rather than something to do after every swim. Never use drops if your ear is painful or discharging, or your eardrum might be perforated.
Is it better to have all my ear wax removed before a swimming holiday?
Only if you already have a build-up. A thin layer of wax helps protect the canal by repelling water, and removing wax from an ear that doesn't need it brings no benefit. If you know your ears block easily, having them checked a week or two before you travel means any wax can be dealt with before it swells on the first day by the pool.
Treatments mentioned in this guide
Microsuction
Gentle suction under magnification
