Sucking Ears
“This is my wife Anne” Nick says when I meet him “and she sucks ears for a living.”
“That is without doubt the most interesting way anyone has introduced their partner to me!” I respond. “So come on Anne,” I say, “what’s he on about?”
“We are Ear Suction Hawke’s Bay” she tells me “and we are all about ear and hearing health”.
“The human ear is programmed to produce wax to protect the ear canal and the drum” Anne tells me “and sometimes that wax can get dry, stuck or impacted. That can cause issues like poor balance or vertigo and also infections that can affect the whole body. And obviously it will also create hearing loss. We are the first port of call when anyone is experiencing ear or hearing issues because a simple, painless clearing of the ear wax might be all that is required to send a happy patient on their way” she says.
“I thought you went to a doctor to get an ear syringe for that” I say.
“Once upon a time you did” she says. “But that is now frowned upon as a treatment method. High pressure water into the ear can impact the wax even more and create greater problems. The ACC have recognised this as an issue and now will not recognise ear syringing as a medical procedure”
“How do you do it?” I ask her.
“I use a tiny suction device that gently and quickly removes any wax adhering to the canal wall or ear drum. It only takes a few seconds and the benefits are immediate. If there are any other issues inside the ear I can let the patient know and advise them on who to see about that” she tells me.
Anne is a registered nurse with years of experience in audiology testing. The combination of these two professions is what makes her so good at spotting any issues early and guiding patients on the right course of action.
Nick, her business partner and husband, used to be an accountant so he is pretty good at the business side of things. He sees his role as business development and enjoys working on the creative side of the business. “I am not just a number cruncher!” he assures me. Together they have five ear clinics across Hawke's Bay.
“Who should be coming to see you for a check-up?” I ask.
“Anyone working in a noisy and or dusty environment” Anne says. “In those conditions the ear produces extra wax to protect the ear drum and that can lead to problems. Also older people. Many of them assume their hearing loss is a result of aging but older people produce more wax and I can often fix their hearing loss in a few seconds. And professional people", she continues, "Stress increases the heart rate and that produces more wax. I encourage them to get regular checks as well. Ears are irreplaceable so I encourage everyone to look after them!"
“What is the best thing about sucking ears?” I ask her.
“I can change someone’s life in 2 minutes” she says. “Some people come to me convinced they are going deaf and believe there is nothing anyone can do about it. Often they leave my clinic with their hearing restored and no hearing aid in their future anytime soon. That is a blast when that happens” Anne says.
When I left Anne’s clinic after my treatment I noticed there were a lot more birds singing than when I went in. And I didn’t have the car radio on that loud did I?
Hmmm, I wonder if Anne has anything to do with that?
Poll: If we want to reduce speeding, what do you think actually changes driver behaviour? 🛻🚨🚓
In the Post's article on speeding penalties, the question is asked whether speeding fines are truly about road safety, or are they just a way to boost revenue for the Crown?
What do you think? Should speeding motorists receive speeding fines or demerit points?
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37.2% The sting of a fine (Money talks!)
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62.8% The threat of demerit points (Nobody wants to lose their license!)
Nangs- Nitrous Oxide Sold To Our Kids
🚨 HAWKE'S BAY — OUR KIDS ARE AT RISK. IT'S TIME WE STOOD UP.
You've probably seen the empty canisters — on the footpath, at the park, outside the dairy. They're called nangs (nitrous oxide), and right now, they are flooding our community at a frightening rate. Community leaders, police, and Health NZ have already called it an epidemic right here in Hawke's Bay.
So what ARE nangs?
Nangs are large pressurised canisters of nitrous oxide gas, originally designed for whipped cream dispensers, now being sold at dairies and vape stores, and deliberately marketed to our young people. Each big canister contains roughly 300 hits of the gas. When inhaled, the gas deprives the brain of oxygen and can cause:
⚠️ Loss of consciousness — blacking out for 30 minutes or more
⚠️ Permanent nerve damage — numbness, weakness, difficulty walking
⚠️ Permanent brain damage from oxygen deprivation
⚠️ Vitamin B12 destruction — leading to serious neurological harm
⚠️ Fatal car accidents — Nangs have already contributed to road fatalities
Right here in Hawke's Bay, at least two people have already been admitted to the ED with nerve damage in just the past few months. These are our kids. Our whānau. Our neighbours.
Selling nangs recreationally is illegal in New Zealand — it carries up to 2 years imprisonment or a $500,000 fine. [They bypass the law by getting people to complete declarations of what they are going to use it for, with little or no checks on the truthfulness of the declaration]. Yet some local shops are still selling them. That ends now.
💪 HERE'S WHAT WE'RE ASKING YOU TO DO:
1. Find out which local stores are selling nangs — ask around, keep your eyes open
2. Do NOT spend a single dollar in those stores until they stop selling this product to our young people
3. Share this post so every family in Hawke's Bay knows what's going on
4. Talk to your kids about what nangs look like and why they're dangerous
5. Report retailers selling nangs to the NZ Medicines Enforcement team at Medsafe: 0800 444 472
Our community came together after Cyclone Gabrielle. We can come together again. Retailers — we are watching, and we will vote with our wallets. Stop selling nangs, or lose our business. It's that simple.
❤️ Share this post. Tag your friends. Protect our tamariki.
#HawkesBay #NangsNZ #ProtectOurKids #HastingsCommunity #NapierCommunity #SafeHawkesBay
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