Where Oh Where Do My Eustachian Tubes Go?

My neck has been hurting pretty badly lately as a result of that ear infection that I couldn’t afford to treat. Totally and completely weird that the pain is in my neck - I’ve never had that happen before with an ear infection, that I can remember. I’m told it’s caused by a buildup of fluid from the infection in my Eustachian tubes. My mother-in-law had told me to put heat on it, but, I didn’t know how in the heck to do that. I didn’t want to put Freeze It on my neck - I was afraid that would be uncomfortable. And my heating pad - how the hell do I get it to stick to the side of my neck?

Well, yesterday I woke up in way more pain, and I did some researching on the internet about ear infections. And what did I find? “Put heat on it.” Gah - don’t you hate it when MIL’s are right about stuff? ugh. So I piled all my notebooks and my notebook in bed with me and I just stuck that heating pad on my neck, haphazard and all. It was awkward, and it was really only in direct contact with my neck when I was hanging onto it in some way - like I’d kinda pull gently on the electrical cord. When I was watching TV later, right before going to sleep last night, I was able to just sit there with it on my neck constantly. And then when we turned off the TV (Hulu on the) computer, I switched the heating pad to ‘off’ and let the heat wear out on my neck, while I dozed off to sleep.

And I woke up this morning in considerably less pain. It was really great to be relieved of that - it’s been hurting so long. It’s starting to come back now, too, after a day without heat - I’ve been working at my desk today. So I’ll need to skedaddle on in there in a minute, but, I wanted to share with you my oh-so-lovely thought processes first. Aren’t you lucky?

I just got to thinking this afternoon about what all of this meant, and about how my upper regions functioned, and this is what it led me to:

Ok, so if the pain in my neck was caused by fluid build up in my Eustachian tubes from the ear infection….

And today it didn’t hurt so much, after having had heat on it a lot of the day yesterday….

Then that means that fluid was backed up in there, hence the pain….

And that means that the heat loosened that fluid up and let it drain…

Drain?! Drain where?! Don’t your Eustachian tubes connect your ears to your throat?