Mother, 28, who couldn’t hear out of her left ear for 11 YEARS discovers she has had a BB gun PELLET lodged in it the whole time
- Jade Harris was left in agony when a nurse tried to syringe water out of her ears
- Referred to hospital, where doctors discovered the BB gun ball in her left ear
- After using a metal hook to remove it, Ms Harris could instantly hear better
A mother-of-two who became ‘paranoid’ when she was unable to hear properly was stunned to discover a BB gun bullet had been wedged in her ear for 11 years.
Jade Harris was referred to hospital after having her ears syringed at her GP clinic left her in agony and still unable to hear.
Once at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, stunned medics found a BB gun ball lodged in the 28-year-old’s left ear canal.
After doctors used a metal hook to pluck the bullet out, the healthcare assistant could instantly hear more clearly and even says her own voice sounded different.
Seeing the ball instantly made her remember playing with a BB gun at a house party when she was just 17, with the bullet clipping her ear after it bounced off a window.
Jade Harris (left), who became ‘paranoid’ when she was unable to hear properly was stunned to discover a BB gun bullet (pictured right) had been wedged in her ear for 11 years
Pictured with her daughters – eight-year-old Gracie-Mai Jade Biggs and five-year-old Hope Jade Corbin – Ms Harris went to have her ears syringed when she got water in her right ear, only for the simple procedure to leave her in agony. She was then referred to hospital
For more than a decade, Ms Harris was forced to listen to her TV at near full volume and was always asking people to repeat themselves.
‘Everyone always told me off for being loud as I was shouting a lot due to not hearing myself,’ she said.
‘It felt awful not being able to hear properly and it was so embarrassing.
‘I had no pain from the ear but had to turn the telly up and was constantly saying, “what did you say?” and “pardon” to people.
‘This went on for 11 years, everyone would always laugh and say I needed my hearing to be checked.’
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COCKROACH WAS STUCK IN A WOMAN’S EAR FOR A WEEK
A woman had a cockroach stuck in her ear for more than a week after the insect crawled in while she slept.
Katie Holley, 29, from Florida, woke startled to find what felt like a piece of ice lodged in her left ear, only to discover two bug legs sticking out.
After her husband was only able to remove a few legs with tweezers, Mrs Holley rushed to A&E while the cockroach continue to wriggle deeper into her ear canal.
Doctors thought they had removed the roach until – nine days later – Mrs Holley continued to experience pain and a loss of hearing in her ear, leading to a local medic removing six more piece of the insect’s carcass.
Later that day, an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist managed to remove the cockroach’s entire head, upper torso, remaining limbs and antennae.
‘He told me he extracted bugs from peoples’ ears at least once a month – and I was the second person that day who needed it,’ Mrs Holley said.
Cockroaches are thought to crawl into people’s ears in search of food.
Ms Harris – who is mother to eight-year-old Gracie-Mai Jade Biggs and five-year-old Hope Jade Corbin – finally went to her GP last July after getting water in her right ear, which made her hearing even worse.
During the appointment, her doctors checked her left ear and recommended she have it syringed to remove a ‘build-up of wax’.
When she went to the syringe appointment on July 13, a puzzled nurse realised it was not wax and referred Ms Harris to the hospital that same day.
‘The nurse started with the left ear but the “wax” wasn’t budging and it was then she asked if I had put anything in there,’ Ms Harris said.
‘Two more doctors came to look at my ear to see what was in there, I thought they meant a family of bugs so was freaking out.
‘They got me an appointment at the hospital straight away because I was a wreck.’
Once at the hospital, Ms Harris’ doctor tried to use a hoover-like device to suck whatever was lodged out, with the medic initially think it was a yellow bead.
‘She then got a metal hook and had to push past it which absolutely killed, my hand flew up and I almost hit her from the shock of it,’ Ms Harris said.
‘Once she got behind it she managed to pull it out and that’s when when we realised what it was.
‘She was really nice throughout the appointment and said she’d seen all sorts in ears over the years but never a BB gun bullet.’
Once at hospital, doctors discovered what appeared to be a build up of wax or a small yellow bead in her left ear. Medics were forced to use a ‘metal hook’ to pluck the intruding ball out, which was so painful it ‘killed’. Ms Harris is pictured left and right with her daughters
Although the ordeal was painful, Ms Harris immediately felt better once the offending bullet was removed.
‘As soon as it came out it felt amazing and I could instantly hear better,’ she said.
‘My voice sounded different and and having the wind hitting it felt really strange.
‘Inside my ear was red raw from where the BB gun bullet was lodged but my ear was really clean as it had stopped anything going in.
‘I was given an ear spray to put in to ease the redness, which lasted a week.’
Pictured left after the ordeal – holding an image of the bullet – Ms Harris could instantly hear better, with even her own voice sounding different. After years of asking people to repeat themselves, Ms Harris (also pictured right) is enjoying hearing the sound of her children laugh
As soon as Ms Harris saw the pellet, she was struck with the memory of how the obscure item got into her ear canal.
‘I had some people in my house for a party 11 years ago and a friend was messing around with a BB gun,’ she said.
‘The bullet bounced off a glass and then, so I thought, hit me on the ear and pinged off.
‘It hurt like it had hit me, it was so fast and powerful, but I wasn’t aware it had gone into my ear which it obviously did.’
Doctors discovered – and removed – the bullet at Derriford Hospital (pictured) in Plymouth
Although not painful, having the bullet lodged in her ear had a big impact on Ms Harris’ life.
‘I never went swimming as I was paranoid about my hearing getting worse,’ she said.
‘Going to loud places such as gigs or a play centre, or [a] children’s party with the kids was a no-no because I couldn’t hear well as it was so I wouldn’t have heard a thing.
‘I used to get my friends and family to take the them to places I couldn’t so they wouldn’t miss out.
‘I just tended to stay home a lot but would take the kids to the park.’
Ms Harris is now relishing being able to hear her children laugh while they play.
‘It’s a big relief being able to hear properly now and I’m just glad it wasn’t something more serious,’ she said.
‘Since having the bullet removed I’ve been able to go swimming with the girls which is lovely and I can just hear so much better and not constantly saying “pardon?” which is nice.
‘It’s great to be able to hear the children laughing and playing – though sadly I can also hear them when they’re shouting too.
‘It’ll be a funny story to tell them when they’re grown up, but I’m certainly staying clear of any BB guns from now on.’
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