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I’ve had tinnitus since contracting Covid five years ago but it’s got worse.
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it → publish → Covid
In addition to the background hissing, I now get a crackling sound in one ear.
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I → get → ear
It makes me dizzy and affects my sleep.
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me → make → sleep
My GP and an ear, nose and throat (ENT) consultant say nothing can be done.
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nothing → say → ?
Tinnitus after a respiratory infection such as Covid is common, possibly as a result of inflammation and excess mucus irritating nerves, though we don’t know for sure.
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we → irritate → nerves
Usually this resolves over time, but, in your case, it has become chronic and disruptive.
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it → resolve → case
Tinnitus is often worse at night because the surroundings are quiet, which heightens your awareness of it.
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which → heighten → it
So as a first step, I’d suggest having a soft background sound playing throughout the night.
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I → suggest → night
But it’s important to keep the volume low – you’re not trying to drown out the tinnitus, just distract from it.
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you → ’ → it
If this doesn’t work, try CBTi (cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia), a talking therapy with practical steps, including relaxation techniques, to reprogramme your brain to improve sleep.
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this → work → sleep
You’ll find courses online.
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You → find → courses
Then there’s a specialist type of CBT for tinnitus, which can reduce the distress it causes.
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it → ’ → distress
Essentially, it’s about understanding the cycle of your symptoms, noting how they trigger anxiety and physical tension – and then reducing a tendency to repeatedly monitor the sound.
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they → ’ → sound
The effects of tinnitus can be minimised through distraction techniques such as having a soft background sound playing while sleeping
This is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence if the tinnitus reduces wellbeing.
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tinnitus → minimise → wellbeing
But you will need a GP referral and treatment tends to be available only at specialist clinics.
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treatment → need → clinics
The added crackling sound you describe could be a problem with the Eustachian tube, which connects the ear to the back of the throat.
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which → add → throat
It drains fluid and equalises air pressure.
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It → drain → pressure
Any kind of malfunction (such as the result of a cold) can disrupt these functions, causing crackling or popping sounds, particularly when swallowing, or muffled hearing on that side.
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kind → disrupt → side
There is also a phenomenon called middle ear myoclonus, which causes muscle contractions in the middle ear that can trigger the noises you describe.
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you → be → noises
The muscles here are tiny and alter the tension of the eardrum or muffle loud sounds, for protection.
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muscles → alter → protection
But stress or infection can affect their function.
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stress → affect → function
This can be treated with medication, or Botox administered into the middle ear.
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I think you need an ENT consultant to check the movement of your eardrum during an episode.
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consultant → think → episode
I’m 64 and in good health.
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I → ’m → health
For the last year I haven’t needed to urinate during the night, nor even first thing in the morning.
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Name and address supplied.
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Name → supply → ?
Your description suggests that you are producing more concentrated urine.
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you → suggest → urine
Given that you are otherwise healthy, this could be due perhaps to less fluid intake in the evening or more sweating, possibly as a result of more exercise.
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this → give → exercise
But if you then pass a large amount of darker urine when you eventually go, it might be that you are developing chronic urinary retention.
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you → pass → retention
This is often a sign of high blood pressure (affecting the blood flow to the kidneys, which regulate urine output), kidney issues or diabetes (which can alter bladder sensitivity).
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which → affect → sensitivity
So while not getting up to urinate at night is perfectly compatible with good health, I’d keep a three-day fluid/bladder diary to identify potential triggers: record your fluid intake, what times you empty your bladder, and measure the volume each time (collecting the sample with a measuring jug).
Some water is lost through the skin, even when not sweating – around 400ml a day – but essentially you should see fluid intake match fluid output in a 24-hour time frame.
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intake → get → frame
, see your GP, who will check your blood pressure and do a blood test for kidney function and blood sugar.
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who → see → function
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