Okay, you could have presbycusis, an age-related loss of hearing that may be accompanied by tinnitus. In fact, any cause of hearing loss may be associated with tinnitus (although the precise reason for this is not clear). As one common example, excessive buildup of wax in the ear may cause diminished hearing and tinnitus.
Even though you are over the age of 55, your tinnitus could be due to a condition other than presbycusis, especially if you haven't noticed hearing loss, so we have some more questions to help sort out the cause of your tinnitus.
As you probably know, noise can cause a long list of hearing problems -- tinnitus is on that list! Our next questions are about sounds to which you've been exposed.
Have you been exposed to any sounds lately that were so loud it felt uncomfortable? Have you been around loud noises for a prolonged period of time?