North Birmingham Times

During the 2018 Winter Olympics, infection and inner ear problems almost prevented gold medalist Lizzy Yarnold from taking home another gold in the 2018 Olympics. 

Competing professionally since 2010, Yarnold previously won gold in the Olympics 2014 and again in 2018, according to Wikipedia. She is the most successful skeleton athlete of any nation.

Shortly after arriving at the 2018 Olympics, she developed a chest infection, which intensified to the point that she was having trouble speaking and breathing. The Sun reported that her issues were caused by a vestibular disorder affecting the inner ear. She also revealed having trouble breathing in a new much colder climate during the events and experiencing vertigo and sinus headaches without congestion.

Yarnold tried many home remedies for sinus headaches in an attempt to dull the symptoms of her condition. After falling to third she was somehow able to overcome her symptoms enough to take home the winning gold medal in 2018.

Vestibular disorders affecting the inner ear are sometimes referred to as Labrynthitis. According to NHS Inform, Labrynthitis is caused by inflammation of part of the inner ear known as the labyrinth. The inflammation comes from an infection. Usually bacterial or in some cases viral.

“It waxes and wanes and comes and goes and then a little bit of nasal congestion will seem to exacerbate it,” Dr. Nicholas C. Hollenkamp at Indianapolis Sinus Center told North Birmingham Times. “It just really bothers them quite a bit, and when it gets worse, they have fluid behind the ears and bigger problems.”

Most bacterial infections clear up within 10 days and are typically caused by a common cold. You should see a sinus inflammation specialist when things do not clear up after that long, things get worse or you have a history of recurrent or chronic sinusitis and sinus allergies.