Wellness

[1963girl]

Asking anyone who has suffered this debilitating illness, what do you do, how to cure it?

I suffered a first time attack a month ago. Went to the ER and was diagnosed with "vertigo".

Dr prescribed "Meclezine"25 gram pills taking "1" pill every 6 hours for 7 days. A total of "4" pills in a 24 hour period.

After taking pills for "7" days, I had a mild vertigo attack again, 7 days after first attack.

My mom recommended me getting "BONINE", an anti-motion sickness chewable pill.

Taking 2 a day...much better recovery in 7days. Then I reduced to 1 pill a day and then finally stopped taking pills 7 days ago.

This morning the Vertigo is back! It is mild and I can get up but cannot take stairs, which are in my home and cannot drive.

Help Please!

[discountqueen]

I know this is an older post is old but I just came across it and know others who suffer from vertigo will too. So if I can help even one person find relief then great! Living with BPPV is the worst thing because there is no real cure and once your diagnosed doctors just help you find ways to cope with medication and sometimes if successful PT. However most medical insurances only cover so many PT visits so most of the time your left feeling miserable and nobody understands. I finally found a pillow that does help called simbalance. It stimulates the same head maneuvers done in PT to move the rock crystals around that cause the vertigo in the first place. It really makes a difference in the way you feel when you wake up.

[OkeyDokey]

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[Theoriginallacey]

I have occasional bouts of vertigo, mostly in the last 5 years. I have no idea what brings them on but they usually subside in a few hours or a day. I have a good friend that had it for months several years ago and it was very bad. I think it was brought in by stress and she has bouts of it occasionally now usually she says when she is stressed. She eats incredibly healthy and exercises and has always done so. She watches her salt intake very closely, so I don't think that has an effect in hers. I feel for you. It's debilitating when you can't even lay down to make it go away. For me that's when it gets worse.

[wismiss]

Contessa K: I had my first round of vertigo about a year ago. I was dizzy and could not function, so I went to prompt care. The doctor prescribed an antibiotic for an inner ear infection. I was in Physical Therapy for knee replacement therapy and the PT told me that she thought I had benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, based on my symptoms, but she could not diagnose or help me with it. I had an appointment with my primary care physician the next day and after listening to the symptoms, she also said I had benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. There are calcium crystals in the labyrinth of the inner ear. These are called otoliths. Sometimes an otolith becomes loose and stimulates the scilia (hairlike projections), causing vertigo.

I told her that the PT thought that's what I had and could do a maneuver that usually helps. So, she wrote an order for the PT to do an Epley Maneuver. My PT did the procedure on Friday and by Sunday my vertigo was gone. She told me she had in the past had some people who had taken medication for vertigo for years and after having an Epley Maneuver, that particular session of vertigo was gone. My PT taught me how to do the Epley Maneuver and I wrote the steps down so I would have it for future use.

I would suggest you visit your doctor and ask about a referral to a PT who is qualified to do the Epley Maneuver.

SORRY. I didn't think my first post was posted. I hit the submit button and nothing happened for a long time, so I thought it didn't post.

Anyway, Contessa K, I hope you get some relief.

[anniebear]

I developed BPPV after a fall that involved a head injury and concussion. I was already in PT for something totally unrelated when I had my accident and my therapist suspected BPPV when he found out I'd had a hard knock to my head. He did a very specific test to see if that diagnosis would apply, and I did have the nausea and rapid, involuntary side to side eye movements during his testing that confirmed the diagnosis. As it turned out, he was the one physical therapist at that facility that was trained in doing the maneuvers it takes to fix the problem. I was truly in the right place at the right time! The treatments use very controlled body movements to move the displaced crystals in the inner ear back where they are supposed to be. It took 3 visits for me to be back to normal, and I did have a more mild version of the same thing (without a head injury) several months later. That was treated in the same way and I've had no problems with this since. I do know that once you have had BPPV, you are more prone to getting it again, so this wasn't a total surprise. But it was very reassuring to know it could be treated and how.

The dizziness caused by this condition is debilitating and nothing like just being dizzy. Taking a pill to try to override the symptoms of BPPV without addressing the cause just doesn't fix the problem. The complete balance disruption this disorder causes makes normal life impossible! There are lots of causes of vertigo, this was just my diagnosis and my treatment. The internet is not the place to make a decision about what is causing vertigo, and anyone who has it needs a true medical diagnosis before assuming he or she knows what is the cause. I considered myself very fortunate to have been seeing a therapist who was familiar with the problem and who had been trained in how to work with people who have it. I also considered myself very fortunate to not have some of the other medical issues that can cause vertigo. Please get a medical diagnosis before beginning any sort of treatment for dizziness as the effective treatments are as varied as the causes.

[PatsyCline]

Yes vertigo is awful, so many bad effects, blessings to those having it.