It’s a very good thing we don’t have socialized medicine like in Canada or the OP would have to wait to see someone. 
Ducking and running out of thread. Hope OP gets some relief.
And some specialists require a referral as a matter of course. I worked for a neurologist who required a referral for a first appointment. She didn’t want to see every person with a headache who thought they had a brain tumor.
StG
Just finished my appointment. I have fluid behind the eardrum. She said last weeks drainage was a tear that’s already sealed.
She gave me a bottle of antibiotic ear drops.
I’m supposed to use Afrin nose drops 3 days to dry up any fluid.
I have a follow up appointment in 2 weeks.
They’ll lance the eardrum if the fluid hasn’t gone.
Yeah I had to deal with that with my 14 year old seeing an endocrinologist for what was eventually diagnosed as PCOS. She was menstruating for over a year, every single day, all month long while she waited. She was also found to be anemic! Surprise surprise! It really took longer than that, because her pediatrician thought it made more sense to send her to an OB/GYN and that took a few months for the appointment and all that doctor said said she should have been sent directly to endo. After getting her on some meds the specialist said she could just get her pediatrician to approve the meds from that point on. I called the nurse when her second 90 day scrip was close to running out. They said no, they would not be able to write that scrip and to call the endo. Endo said she needs to come back since it’s been six months… now she can’t get her meds refilled until May 25th. I called in January. It’s going to take five months just for her to get back on her meds after only being on them for three months. It makes no sense at all. This all started when she was 11. She’s 14 now. The crazy thing is it’s just birth control. I could probably just take her to the health department and get her on the pill in a matter of days!
Avoid Afrin if you can. It’s horribly addictive.
They warned me about Afrin. Three days and then I have to stop.
It’s supposed to dry up the fluid behind my eardrum. I sure hope it works.
Lancing, doesn’t sound too appealing. But, that fluid poses a infection risk and it’s got to go.
It’s so strange that I never had an ear infection until now. I must have been very lucky.