Otitis externa

It burns. It throbs. It itches and hurts at a depth you can barely reach — somewhere there, where the outside transitions into the inside. The ear canal is inflamed, swollen, sensitive to the slightest touch. Every chewing, every swallowing, every turning of the head reminds you that something here no longer lets things through.

Medically this is called otitis externa — an inflammation of the outer ear canal. Often after swimming, often after bathing, often after days when water or something else has entered the ear. "Swimmer's ear" is the common name for it, and that word already contains the whole hint: something has penetrated that is not allowed to remain there. And your body is defending itself with all its strength.