Who knew that obscure knowledge picked up from manga could actually save your life in a pinch? That's exactly what happened recently to a Japanese X (formerly Twitter) user who woke up in the middle of the night to excruciating ear pain, only to realize something was moving inside! Panicked and unsure what to do, a scene from the classic medical manga "Jin" flashed through their mind, offering a bizarre but brilliant solution.
The user, known as @inatsuka_shippo on X, recounted being jolted awake by intense ear pain, clearly feeling something squirming within. Suddenly, a scene from Norika Murakami's "Jin" manga came to mind. They rushed to the kitchen, grabbed some olive oil, and dripped it into their ear. The creature thrashed around, causing agonizing pain and cold sweats, until—to their horror—a small centipede crawled out! The ear canal was likely bitten, as the intense pain didn't subside. Terrified, they immediately headed to the emergency room.
At the ER, doctors confirmed the ear was red and swollen. After receiving painkillers and antibiotic ear drops, the pain finally began to ease. Netizens were horrified, commenting, "A centipede... that's terrifying!" and "Apparently, centipedes are attracted to the smell of scalp oils, so people often get bitten on their face or head while sleeping. But crawling into an ear is next-level horror!"
Other users couldn't help but make pop culture connections: "Is this Ken Kaneki?" and "Was this the torture scene from 'Tokyo Ghoul' when Ken Kaneki awakened?"
While this sounds like a nightmare, insect-in-ear incidents aren't as rare as you'd think. If it ever happens to you, whatever you do, don't try to dig it out with a cotton swab! The safer emergency response, like the user did, is to drip olive oil, salad oil, or baby oil into the ear. The oil cuts off the insect's air supply, forcing it to suffocate and crawl out, minimizing potential damage.
Afterward, the user not only thanked the ER doctor but also expressed gratitude to "Dr. Jin" from the manga for imparting that crucial first-aid knowledge. They probably never imagined that a lesson learned from a comic book would come in handy in such a critical real-life moment!