How to get a bug out of your ear with water

You may have recently read our nightmare bug-in-ear story by Katie Holley, a woman who rushed to the ER with a live roach in her ear, which crawled up in there while she was sleeping.

In case you missed it, we’ll give you the TL;DR version that sums up the horror: “I could feel that my ear was not right. I grabbed a cotton swab and gently inserted it into my ear to see what was up and I felt something move," Holley wrote. "When I pulled the cotton swab out, there were two dark brown, skinny pieces stuck to the tip. Moments later, I came to the realization that they were legs. LEGS. Legs that could only belong to an adventurous palmetto bug [a type of roach] exploring my ear canal.”

So, Holley rushed to the ER with a freaking roach in her ear to have it surgically removed by a doctor. Until that point, she could feel the thing crawling around in there. Unfortunately, things didn’t end there. A few days later, she went to see her primary care physician, who flushed her ear and removed a few more roach pieces. She was then referred to an ear, nose, and throat specialist, who discovered there was still a head, torso, more limbs, and antennae in there. Thankfully, it was all removed—a week after the bug first crawled in there—and she’s now doing OK. Or...as OK as you can be after that trauma.

The idea of a bug in your ear is horrifying enough. But knowing that it happens (somewhat) regularly is even worse.

One of the scariest parts of Holley's story was when the ENT told her that he extracted bugs from peoples' ears at least once a month—and that she was the second person that day who needed. it. Cue internal (or external, honestly) screaming.

“We see this about four to five times a year in our clinic,” Benjamin McGrew, M.D., an associate professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham department of otolaryngology (who did not treat Holley), tells SELF. “Usually it’s a cockroach that has wedged in the ear canal and can’t get out.”

It can get even grosser than that: “I’ve seen spiders make a web in the ear canal; small moths and flying insects can get in as well,” Erich Voigt, M.D., chief of general/sleep otolaryngology at NYU Langone Health, tells SELF. “Cockroaches tend to get stuck inside and will scratch at the ear drum with their front legs.”

Because the critter is usually still alive, it can create a bunch of bizarre and uncomfortable symptoms, including pain and a weird crawling sensation, Michael Tom, M.D., an ear nose and throat physician with ENT and Allergy Associates, tells SELF. And, if the insect has wings, the patient might also hear a buzzing sound or noise related to the wing movement. “Often the bug tries to crawl but keeps running into the eardrum,” Dr. Tom says.

So, OK, this happens. Maybe not all the time, but enough to fuel your nightmares. Here's what might increase the chances of this happening to you.

While ENTs may see this a few times a year, Nancy Troyano, Ph.D., a board-certified entomologist and director of technical education and training for Rentokil North America, tells SELF it’s pretty rare as a whole. However, she says there are a few scenarios where it’s more likely to happen than others:

• You’re sleeping in a cockroach-infested room: “Cockroaches are active at night, and are always looking to squeeze themselves into tight spaces,” Dr. Troyano says.

• You’re camping out: “There may be some critters crawling around on the ground that could accidentally enter your ear canal,” Dr. Troyano says.

• You have flying indoor insects: Flies are attracted to the chemicals people emit, and one could make an accidental landing in your ear and crawl inside.

While any bug could make their way into your ears, cockroaches and flies are the biggest ones to be concerned about, Dr. Troyano says.

This may not be any consolation, but the bug probably got in there by accident—and it wants to get out as much as you want it to. “Entry into the ear canal is an accidental one,” Dr. Troyano says. “You happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.” So, maybe it's good to know that most bugs aren't just hunting for your ears every night. Maybe?

If you do happen to get a bug in your ear, there are a few things you should—and shouldn’t—do.

The Mayo Clinic specifically recommends using mineral oil, olive oil, or baby oil to try to float the critter out. First, tilt your head so that the insect ear is pointing up, pour warm—not hot—oil into your ear (fun!). The hope is that the insect will get caught in the oil and literally float or drain out of your ear. If nothing else, this should kill the insect, Dr. Voigt says.

You may be tempted to probe around in there with a cotton swab to see what’s in your ear, but the Mayo Clinic says this is a not a good idea: You risk pushing the bug in further and damaging your ear in the process.

Then, get to a doctor—even if you think you got the sucker out yourself. You want to make sure everything is out and your ear is OK. If you didn’t kill the insect or can’t figure out how to take it down, your doctor will kill it with alcohol or oil, Dr. McGrew says. Then, they’ll remove it with small forceps that fit into the ear canal.

And, not that you would, but you don’t want to just leave a bug in there: It could lead to an ear canal infection, Dr. Voigt says.

Believe it or not, it’s possible to have bugs in your ears and not know it. “I have had several patients who had no idea there was a bug in their ear,” says Dr. Tom. “I have removed small bedbugs and small winged insects, and there was no known history of anything abnormal in their ear.”

Finally—and most importantly—how can you make sure this never happens to you?

Sleeping in a clean bed with clean sheets is a good idea, Dr. Troyano says. And, if you’re sleeping outside, wear insect repellent.

But, if you live in a particularly buggy location (whether that's a humid climate or an old apartment building) there just may be bugs around even if you're super clean. If that's the case, getting an exterminator wouldn't be a bad idea. And on top of that, make sure you avoid wearing perfume or strongly-scented shampoos or lotions to bed since bugs tend to be attracted to these, Dr. Troyano says. Of course, you could resort to wearing earplugs at night, but it’s probably not necessary if you don’t have a bug problem at your place.

Good luck out there, everybody.

Related:

• I Went to the ER With a Live Cockroach in My Ear and It Was as Terrifying as You'd Expect
• 6 Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Emergency Room Visit, From an ER Doctor
• A Brown Recluse Spider Bite Left a Hole In Singer Meghan Linsey's Face

Can you use water to get a bug out of your ear?

What happens if a bug gets stuck in your ear?

How can I remove insect from my ear?

How long can a bug live in your ear?