My Adventure with Vertigo - and treatment

If you've ever had vertigo, you'll know what I recently experienced (and today I am still dealing with it - one  week later. Fortunately, it has toned down, and is not as extreme, but at various times during a day it hits. Today's blog is about "Benign Vertigo," my experience, and how they treated it. 

MY VERTIGO ADVENTURE - Last week, I was working on my computer at home and after a couple of hours, tried to stand up and the room was spinning. I was 100% fine before, but getting up triggered it. That entire day, I kept stumbling with severe dizziness. Even laying in bed at night, everything was spinning, so the next day, I went to the local clinic, which sent me to an Emergency Room because they didn't have an EKG and other things.

  I was in a room at the ER from 9:30am to 2:30pm. They gave me an EKG and full blood panel to see if was heart-related (it wasn't) because I'm over 60. Fortunately, I've not had heart issues because I try to stay fit.  Daily Exercise helps!  They also wanted to do a brain scan, to see if there was a blockage, growth, etc. I told them they would find an empty space within. :) 

   Seriously, because I could feel pressure in my left ear and to the left of my left eye,  that told me it was ear and sinuses... so I declined.  The Physician's assistant agreed that it wasn't really needed, but it was a cautionary procedure. I still turned it down. 

They put me on two Meds (See below) that already knocked the Vertigo down by more than 80% by day 2. 

WHAT DOES THE WORLD LOOK LIKE WHEN YOU HAVE VERTIGO? 

IMAGES 

Picture 1: What you see with vertigo if standing outside. (Credit: Houston ENT Clinic)

Picture 2: What the outdoors really looks like. Credit: R.G.)

WHAT IS BENIGN VERTIGO? -Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is a common inner ear disorder  that causes brief, repeated episodes of vertigo, or a feeling of spinning, when you change head position.   Small “crystals” called otoliths that are usually suspended in gelatinous material inside the ear got loose, moving around in the ear canals and causing a sickening spinning feeling. Symptoms include: Dizziness, Loss of balance, Hearing loss, Vision problems Nausea, and vomiting. (Fortunately, I was only dizzy and had loss of balance)

WHAT HAPPENS TO CAUSE IT? BPPV occurs when tiny calcium carbonate crystals, called otoconia, break free and float in the fluid-filled semicircular canals of the inner ear. This confuses the brain about your body's position.

CAUSES - Causes BPPV can occur due to a number of possible reasons, including head trauma, labyrinthitis, migraine, or Ménière disease. However, about half of BPPV cases have no known cause.   You might have an increased risk of developing BPPV if you have a family history of BPPV, or if you've had a head injury or inner ear infection.

TREATMENT AND DURATION -  BPPV can often go away on its own within a few weeks or months. I was prescribed Meclizine - an anti-dizziness med, and methylprednisolone - a steroid. The findings suggest that there is a critical time slot in which steroid treatment could be effective. Patients treated within 24 hours after symptom onset had a better restitution of vestibular function compared with the patients who received treatment after 25 to 72 hours. (Source: PubMed Central : Steroids for Acute Vestibular Neuronitis, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › articles ) PMC6380443)

A medical professional can also perform a canalith repositioning procedure to treat it sooner. During this procedure, the patient performs a series of simple, slow head movements. 

BPPV can affect people of all ages, but it's most common in adults over 50.

SELF-TREATMENT - How do you self-treat benign positional vertigo? Lay on your bed and follow the Epley Manuever outlined below.

HOW DO TO THE EPLEY MANEUVER AT HOME 

 Follow these steps if the problem is with your right ear: 

1.  Start by sitting on a bed. 
2. Turn your head 45 degrees to the right. 
3. Quickly lie back, keeping your head turned. 
4. Your shoulders should now be on the pillow, and your head should be reclined. Wait 30 seconds. 
5. Turn your head 90 degrees to the left, without raising it. Your head will now be looking 45 degrees to the left. 
6. Wait another 30 seconds. 
7. Turn your head and body another 90 degrees to the left, into the bed. Wait another 30 seconds. 
8. Sit up on the left side. 

 Follow these steps if the problem is with your left ear: 

1.  Start by sitting on a bed. Turn your head 45 degrees to the left. 
2. Quickly lie back, keeping your head turned. Your shoulders should now be on the pillow, and your head should be reclined. Wait 30 seconds. 
3. Turn your head 90 degrees to the right, without raising it. Your head will now be looking 45 degrees to the right. Wait another 30 seconds. 
4. Turn your head and body another 90 degrees to the right, into the bed. Wait another 30 seconds. 
5. Sit up on the right side.