Tired of being dizzy!

[Val]

What is the "trigger" for your vertigo?

[pedro]

My first symptoms appeared in '95. My percieved triggers were salty
foods, orange juice, coffee and drops in barometric pressure. Nowadays
(about two vertigo episodes per year) I believe that transition to
summer and winter brings me closer to vertigo. In any case, the time
from trigger exposure to vertigo could have been a couple of hours to a
couple of days.

[Valaree]

Pedro -- barometric pressure?.....Hmmm.....interesting, I'll have to watch for that....I just missed 4 days of work (I am a teacher) b/c I was incapacitated with the dizzy feeling.  What helps you? I sleep with my head at a 45 degree angle & try to catch the trigger asap ---Mine ALWAYS starts in the a.m. as I first rise ---how 'bout you?  Have you had any medical "procedures" like an ENG or an MRI to determine if it is inner ear related?  I will be doing that in a week or so but it is scary to know ahead that they will be inducing vertigo when I just got over it!  Many women think it may be connected to hormones ----dunno 'bout guys. 

 

Thank you so much for responding --- it is a very scary set of conditions that every day I wonder if I will be afflicted with. I hope to gain a deeper understanding by hearing people like you!  I am in So Cal & will go to the House Ear Clinic at USC --where are you?  Is ther good support nearby?

 

Val 

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[judy.n]

Finally, someone posted on this group.
I have vertigo that is a combination of nerve damage, and migraine
associated vertigo (the latter diagnosed at Mass Eye and Ear.) Triggers
are viruses, fatigue, hormonal, certain head movements, visual stimuli,
sinus congestion. You name it. My doctor has a good web site with
videos to explain many vertigo issues:
http://www.meei.harvard.edu/shared/oto/rauch.php

Another good site is maintained by Dr. Hain of Northwestern University:
http://www.dizziness-and-balance.com/index.html

good luck with your evaluation. I have episodes of frank vertigo, also
with a fairly constant sense of imbalance that can get worse.

[russ ogden]

hi all,
  good to see people are posting here. i was begining to think i was the only dizzy person around.  the Dr. diagnosed me with peripheral vestibular dysfunction. i have had it for the last 2 years now. for me its always there, but it used to be worse then it is now. some days are better then others.
Valeree, i had an ENG done and its not to fun. it does make you feel dizzy, but it doesnt last that long. my ENG said the dysfunction is in my left inner ear. MRI came out normal.  the ENG is one of the best diagnostic tests. hope people continue to post.

russ

[Valaree]

cool ---thx for the link --i will check it out!

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[Valaree]

Hello!  So ---I understand that the ENG is slightly uncomfortable but offers lots of info ----but what then?  Once they determined the culprit (your left inner ear---I think it is mine too!) ----> WHAT THEN?  What was done with the info? Have you any useful remedies?  Hate living with uncertainty DAILY! 

 

Please respond! 

Thx,  Val

 

PS -- Anyone have any info on barometric pressure drops being associated with the dizzy disease?

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[judy.n]

Valerie,
I've been treated with vestibular physical therapy with poor results,
unfortunately (for me) I'm currently on a vestibular suppresant
medication: klonopin.
Some people are also diagnosed with some underlying migraine associated
dizziness, and are prescribed migraine suppressant medications. Many
people do benefit from vestibular rehabilitation PT. Also, if any
concern about Meniere's is raised, there are fluid pills and salt
restricted diets.
I had an ENG years ago, and it wasn't too bad. I also had the chair
rotation and tilt test--kind of like a Disney Land ride in the dark.
Judy

[Kitty]

After all the tests, the ENT diagnosed me with Meniere's Disease in my
right ear. My left seems to be fine. The treatment he wanted to try was
diuretics (sp?). Unfortunately, I have been hospitalized in the last
year for potassium deficiency that was causing heart arythmia. So he
asked me to see my PCP for some direction. She prescribed a potassium
sparing drug of the same type, but it actually made the dizziness
worse. I prefer to live drug-free so I opted not to experiment with any
more precriptions. I regulate my diet as best i can :) so that I cut
down on caffeine and sugar. Those seem to lead to triggers for me.
Regular exercise and normal sleep patterns seem to help also. Now that
my arthitis is acting up, well all bets are off. :) Oh well...can only
do what you can do! I hate the uncertainty of it all, but after a while
you begin to see a pattern. Once you can see that, you can start to
adapt. I am in the middle stage of Meniere's, I have gotten past the
part where I am dizzy daily. I have reached a point where I am mostly
stable. Once I reach the next stage, I will be completely disabled. So,
for now...I am pretty happy to be doing what I can. That may not happen
for 30+ years or it could be tomorrow, no one knows. I'll just take it
a day at a time. I do have to take anti-nausea meds almost daily, so I
am not completely without regular medication.

As for barometric pressure. If the pressure changes rapidly, I do feel
a change. I always know when it wants to rain. :) It's alot like having
someone close all the windows at once while your driving down the
highway. I haven't found any studies on it though.

Hope something in this babble helps. :)

[russ ogden]

valeree,
  the eng will help determine what your treatment should be. for me, i was instructed to go to vestibular rehabilitation therapy which helped a bit, but it wasnt a cure. the crumby thing about the inner ear is that there isnt a whole lot they can do to fix it. if you have BPPV, that can be fixed. some inner ear things just eventually go away. some you just have to learn to live with. i've been living with daily dizziness for the last 2 years now. it seems that it is very slowly over time getting better.  the brain can learn to compensate for the deficit in the inner ear. thats what therapy does. for some people it works great, for others not so great. you need to get a diagnosis first. hang in there, i know how tough it is.

russ

[Val]

Hi all -- In general, what I am hearing most people reporting is that
regardless of the tests, diagnosis, triggers, etc.....we 'dizzy folk'
just have to learn to live with it, compensate for it, tolerate it, &
hope for the best. --No cure in sight?? --Simply UNACCEPTABLE &
UNBELIEVABLE in the 21st Century! I think I have had several different
triggers -- that is what makes it so confusing & puzzling & why I
satrted writing to you all.... I am still searching fo an obvious
"pattern" so I can attempt to stablilize, but on occassion, I think
mine is hormone-induced. I have heard about eliminating caffiene &
suagr (& do try--darn!) but my diet is already pretty healthy & "low
salt." At first I stopped drinking alcohol all together, but hey! I am
Italian & I so I am back to a glass of wine in the evening to wind down
after a hard day in the classroom with "tomorrow's geniuses" --all the
while, hoping that I am not initiating & self-inducing a "spell" with
my Merlot! The hard thing is, when my vertigo is "in season" I am very
unrelaible in the educational setting as a teacher --I have already
used up all my "sick days" & am considering taking a job OUT of the
classroom next September ---A VERY tough decision especially since I
was honored with Educator of The Year Award this year in my area! This
is ruling my life! DOES VERTIGO SEEM TO HIT PEOPLE OF ANY CERTAIN
AGE????

[judy.n]

Val,
It depends on what the underlying cause is: migraine associated
vertigo, which is incredibly common can hit at any time, but usually
effects women between 20-50 (although my teenage daughter has it),
Meniere's usually starts around 30, Benign positional vertigo is
usually a disease of older people, but people with damaged inner ears
(after labrinthitis or head trauma) can get it in their 20's, people
with MS get central vertigo at a young age.
So, it's variable.
My ENT is always telling me that we have no way of imaging the inner
ear, and all studies are done on autopsies (at Mass Eye and Ear they
had fliers for you to donate your temporal bones after death--pretty
depressing), so he tells me that all treatments and studies are based
on outcomes because what's really going on inside your ear is a
mystery.
The reality is that there is no cures, and vertigo is
disabiling--even if you don't look sick--and it's incredibly
frustrating. So many people are told they're just anxious or told to
live with it.
The Vestibular Disorders Association site can be helpful: they list
doctors who specialize in vertigo/dizziness (although as of this year,
they also have to be members.)
I share your frustration. It makes it hard for me to work, and my
coworkers just can't grasp why.
Judy

[Kitty]

Val,

A lot of what I have read indicates that Meniere's like I have sets in
during the "prime of life". So that hits everywhere from 20's to 60's.
I knew of a man that didn't have dizziness until his 70's, poor thing,
but had an inner ear disorder all of his life. It depends on the
illness or diorder that causes it and what stage of deterioration you
are at. I was dizzy as anything during the first stage of Meniere's,
but it got better. They can cure this. They can remove my inner ear or
disconnect the nerves, but they won't do that till I'm older anyway. I
would rather hear what I can and live with the dizziness than loose all
sense of balance and hearing too on my right side, for now.

I'm resigned to live ith this, can you tell? :)
Kitty

[Valaree]

Kitty -- I 'hear' ya!  LOL!  Thanks for all the info & support!  I suppose I am resolved to living with it too!

 

---Val

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