I had my first episode ever three months ago and have been experiencing it again since Tuesday night.
The first time it went away on it's own within 12-15 hours This time it's been about 20 hours and I still have it.
Any suggestions?
Vertigo makes you dizzy, hence the nausea. Just a slight turn of the head can create instant nausea and discomfort.
Terry
That's interesting.
My BP has run about 118/76 or so for years and years.
What do you do to get rid of it?
If it's a low BP issue, then all I'd need to do is read some liberal crap on the internet and it would go away!
Terry
I used to get it all the time usually caused my motion Like boats or helicopters
Mine turned out to be an inner ear problem. They put me on antivert and it has all but gone away.
Occasionally I still get a spell when shooting coyotes from the helicopter but it's rare
Yours could be as simple as an inner ear infection
Good luck
I have it on my calendar to call today to schedule my annual physical, so will bring the vertigo thing up as well.
Just a suggestion.
I did put a call in to my physician's medical asst. and am awaiting her call.
A simple fix: Get up slowly when lying down or sitting, and NEVER close your eyes if you feel dizzy or lightheaded. Keep your head up and focus on something.
Closing your eyes is a natural reaction but it increases dizzyness. I find myself explaining this to patients during exams more than any other single thing (I give aggressive, fast acting vasodilators by IV when performing some stress tests, and I've never had a patient "go down" on the treadmill when their blood pressure drops out, because I make them keep their head up, and eyes open).
I don't take any BP meds. In fact, I don't take any meds at all unless you count Vitamin D and Glucosamine.
True vertigo can actually be caused by a number of things. By "true" vertigo is actual rotational vertigo..the world is spinning and you can't tell up from down. Having Bi-lateral Meniere's Disease, I've had a couple hundred episodes of it, so believe me when I say "I can feel your pain".
Vertigo can be caused by several things, so let's start with the easiest:
BPPV - or, Benign Positional Paradoxical Vertigo. Rather than attempt to explain it, here's a link to a .pdf with excellent info: http://www.neuropt.org/docs/vsig-english-pt-fact-sheets/what-is-bppv.pdf?sfvrsn=bc469c90_2
In some cases, an inner ear infection could cause it, but then it could (rare) be a acoustic neuroma, which is a non-cancerous tumor attached to the vestibular nerve. Worst case is you wind up with what I have, but that diagnosis is YTBD.
Best suggestion, go see a capable ENT asap. There are tests that can be done to determine where the issue is.
Gotta ask..have you had ringing in an ear recently? I don't mean some barely perceptible high-pitched sound, but loud enough to become annoying. Ever have a feeling that suddenly the floor just dropped out from under you?
Couple things that can help while you're waiting to see the doc: get salt out of your diet, as in less than 1000 mg. a day. This will help keep excess fluid off of your inner ear. Would also cut waaaay back on caffeine and alcohol, both of which are fairly common triggers for vertigo. Ask your pharmacist about Meclizine, an OTC med that can help with the dizziness. Are you already taking a diuretic?
If the ENT can't help you, look up a Neurotologist, which is a Neurologist that specializes in the inner ear.
I wish ya the best with this, as uncontrolled vertigo can be a life changer. Drop me a PM if I can be of any help.
My best relief comes from sitting on the floor with my back against a solid surface, elbows propped on my knees and hands holding my head perfectly still. Everybody seems to be different in this respect, as some get their best relief laying on their backs, others will lay on one side..common to all seems to be staying in a fixed position until it passes.
Yikes! I can't imagine what you've been going through!
I do not have any noises in my ears other than what comes from normal living and doing things.
I'm pretty sure I have the benign positional version, but it certainly can't hurt to get a professional opinion.
Actually, my wife gave me a print out of that, as she'd had some vertigo in the past as well.
I tried it late yesterday, then immediately had to do a face plant in the toilet.
I'm not fully recovered from the vertigo quite yet, but I'm getting close.
Along with reducing salt, caffeine and alcohol, try and reduce your stress level. Stress is a huge trigger when coupled with the excess salt, etc.
Understand about the vomitorium..I keep a pillow, blanket, face cloth and a bottle of water stored in the cabinet right next to the throne. I sweat like a leaky faucet during an attack, and just having a wet cloth to wipe your face with can be a lifesaver.
