I've been noticing I occasionally wake up with a LOT more "sleep" around my eye...

[Musician_guy]

...on the same side as my Tinnitus - it doesn't happen all the time, but some days at random my right eye seems to be almost glued together.

I've been getting no pain or anything - but it makes me wonder...COULD my tinnitus (which has got worse since first lockdown) or just the worsening of it, be due to a slight sinus infection? (I've not noticed any difference in it on the completely random days that my eye is extra sleepy or not...)

[Happyrosie]

I think an ENT person is the one to answer this Musician-guy !! But when you think of the anatomy of the head, it’s just possible that you have a sinus infection and in turn this could affect your T perception.

In your position, what I would do is pop into my optician and ask for advice on the best eye drops, as I am a contact lens and spectacle wearer. If you don’t have an optician ask your pharmacist for eye drops - but the opticians are the best to direct you. Then after a couple of weeks see if anything has made a difference.

Let us know how you get on!

[daverussell in reply to Happyrosie]

Happyrosie my immediate though too, about it being linked to sinus. I don't know about you, but I'm no specialist; spot on about the ENT and optician.

Happyrosie keep up the good work!

[bridgeit]

Hi Musician_guy, well it sounds like something is bunged up around your eyes/sinus from what you're describing.

My understanding is that blocked sinuses can affect/cause tinnitus, especially the temporary variety, i.e. the high-pitched whining that comes and goes when we have a common cold that mysteriously vanishes once the cold is gone. Of course, with chronic tinnitus blocked sinuses might add to the noise, but the underlying tinnitus won't disappear once the sinuses are cleared.

I agree it's worth getting your eyes checked by either your GP or an optician and have a word with the latter regarding sinuses, to see if there's any infection that needs clearing up with antibiotics.

That done, sometimes, the old fashioned remedies are worth trying to see if they result in improvement of symptoms. One that comes high on my list for blocked sinuses and bunged up eyes is steam therapy. It's simple. Bowl of steaming water, towel over head and breathe in deeply through nose, out through mouth for 10 minutes with eyes closed. Add a few pinches of salt to the water for extra disinfecting power. Do this daily each morning. for a couple of weeks, then once a week for maintenance.

Steam is excellent for cleaning out sinuses, skin pores and stimulating/cleansing the oil gland secretion system within the lower eyelids, which is a different eye lubricating system to watery tears.

After each steam session, use a gentle soap to cleanse your face and pay particular attention to the eyes and especially the lower lids. I recommend Sebamed which is a soap that is acidic (ph 5.5) rather than alkaline and, as a result, works to support the skin rather than dry it out. Use a Q-tip or cotton pad to thoroughly cleanse the lower eyelid area and make sure it's thoroughly rinsed. Then use a good moisturizer to keep the skin around the eyes and eyelashes supple. It doesn't have to be expensive, just gentle.

Dependent upon your age, you might find support from viscous eye drops helpful, such as Hycosan Extra, available from good chemists and opticians, but as Happyrosie says, check first if you're a contact lens wearer. As we get older, the oily eye secretions dry up and dry eyes can become irritated, which in turn causes "sleep" to form overnight. With dry or easily infected eyes, you might need to re-think wearing contact lenses if you currently use them.... I gave up wearing them years ago for this very reason.

Hope this is helpful and you find something that works for you.