Compacted earwax affects many people and by removing it incorrectly, you can cause more of a problem. Never try to remove earwax if you have had surgery on your ears, if you have ear pain, discharge that is a different color than earwax, or if you think you might have ruptured your eardrum. If none of these applies to you, then try a few home remedies to loosen compacted earwax.
Use warm olive oil to loosen the wax. Tilt your head to the side and place a couple of drops of warm--not too hot--olive oil in your ear. Let this sit in your ear for at least 10 minutes. This will give the oil time to loosen the wax. Repeat in the other ear if necessary, and clean both ears with a cotton ball. Use this remedy daily until the wax has softened enough to come out. If you do not have any olive oil, you can use mineral oil.
Use hydrogen peroxide the same way you use the olive oil. Let the peroxide sit in the ear canal until you hear the bubbling stop. Then tilt you head over and wipe excess peroxide off with a clean cloth or cotton ball.
After a day or two of using olive oil or hydrogen peroxide, the wax will be softened. Use a rubber syringe to flush the ear with warm water. Pull the back of your ear straight back when flushing the ear with water to straighten out the ear canal. After flushing the ear with warm water using the bulb syringe, tilt your head over and let the water drain out. Use a clean, soft cloth to wipe the ear dry.
After seeing the earwax come out of your ear, use a hairdryer. Place the hairdryer on the lowest setting and allow the ear canals to dry. Make sure to hold the hair dryer several inches from your head.
Do not use a cotton swab, hairpin or anything hard to try to dig out hard earwax. This will only push the wax down further, and can cause severe pain and damage to the ear canal.
If these home remedies do not work after trying them a couple of times, discontinue using them and consult your doctor.