Yum! A mucus question

Other people’s mucus is my bread and butter.

Q: I have had some mucus cough in my throat for several months. I can’t seem to get rid of the mucus. I also have a closing in my right ear, and it also feels like I have phlegm or mucus in my chest on the right side.

a dry cough at night

Q:  Over the last 3 months or so, I have developed a dry cough, which occurs only after I fall asleep in the evening. The pattern seems to be that within 2-3 hours of falling asleep, I am awakened by my persistent dry cough. The coughing continues for a few minutes, subsides and I fall back asleep. Two to 3 hrs later, the sequence recurs. I have started using a humidifier at night, since it is a dry cough, and this has reduced the number of incidents somewhat and perhaps even shortened their duration by a minute or so, but I am still experiencing at least two a night and am feeling terribly sleep-deprived. I have no symptoms during the day, have tried various medications including Claritin, Sudafed, Contac, Nyquil, Xanax, Tums (thought maybe it was that reflux thing), and sleeping sitting up. Other than the Sudafed, which worked a bit but made it difficult for me to fall asleep, nothing seems to help.

Over the counter cough medicine doesn’t really work any better than a glass of fruit juice (e.g., orange juice) to quell the cough. Any thoughts on what I might try to get rid of this thing?