My son doesn't wear hearing aids but listens to music through his headphones a lot. He's always had a lot of ear wax (even when he was younger and didn't use headphones) and it's always been darker than mine (I cleaned his ears when he was small). I've seen his q-tips in the bathroom waste bin and this is still the case.

Since you've had ear issues, though, and don't indicate that the dark reddish orange wax has been ongoing for years, plus you're having some pain, I'd call the doctor and ask the question, just to be safe.

I wear hearing aids and it's the same with me to, I don't know why it might be something with the wax not getting as much air as people without hearing aids.

I would suggest going to the doctors just to be safe and tell them what is happening good luck.

The best way to keep it away is wash your ears everyday, and also people who wear hearing aids have more of a chance of getting black heads in their ears to keep them away wipe the inside of your ear with a tea tree face wipe.

I think it might just to be to do with the hearing aids because I get pains in my ears it sort of like a really quick but painful stab feeling, usually when you wax is darker it shows you are just a bit under the weather.

Good luck

See your doctor or whoever fitted your hearing aids. I've noticed an increase in the amount of earwax I get since I started wearing hearing aids and my audio said that it was due to having ear moulds in my ears all day.