Ear Infections

Don't worry, Norah doesn't have an ear infection. In fact, she's never had an ear infection. That hasn't stopped me, however, from spending roughly $10,000 on doctor's co-pays for them to continue to tell me that she doesn't have an ear infection.

She has had an on-again, off-again cold now for months (or at least it seems like months), and lately, in addition to massive amounts of thick snot, she has been f'ing with her left ear all of the time. She pulls on it, she scratches it, she sticks her little finger in it and digs for gold. She scratched it so badly one day that she drew blood. Clearly this seems like her ear bothers her, right?* Well, I always decide after hours that she must have an ear infection so we have seen a wide variety of urgent care doctors that all assure me she is fine. When she was doing it again earlier this week, I called during the day (what a novel idea) and we got to see her actual pediatrician. She didn't have an ear infection. What she did have, however, was a MASSIVE amount of impacted ear-wax. The doctor removed it with a little tool that looked like a mini-crochet needle. It was beyond disgusting how much thick yellow wax this kid had in her left ear. Grown men who live on the streets don't have that much ear wax.

However, I am happy to report that since the removal she has left that poor ear alone and we have stayed out of urgent care.

These pictures have nothing to do with her ear, but are awesome because the other day she learned how to duck around the recliner in her room and turn her lamp on and off.



(*BVZ and I watch a lot of that show 'Intervention' (if you haven't seen it, do so immediately), and a common theme is that substance addiction is usually caused by something traumatic that happens during ones childhood. In the book Million Little Pieces, the author, in trying to figure out what caused his tremendous addiction, theorizes that it was perhaps because as an infant he was left to suffer with raging, untreated ear infections. His mother defended herself by saying that they didn't have a lot of money to keep going to the doctor and it was impossible for her to tell when in fact he actually had an ear infection. I know the book has been discredited as a bunch of bullshit, but I will never forget that. Apparently untreated ear infection=major drug abuse as an adult. I am just trying to keep Norah off the streets and off the pole, people).