In 2011 alone, dizziness and vertigo accounted for 3.9 million visits to emergency rooms and urgent care facilities. It can be extremely difficult to deal with vertigo symptoms if left untreated. If you have a balance disorder and struggle with managing the dizziness and nausea, take control of your body and life, now!

What is Vertigo?

Vertigo is the feeling of spinning,whirling, swaying, and loss of balance. The motion can either feel like you are spinning, or your surroundings are spinning around you. This dizziness is often accompanied by nausea and sometimes headaches.

What Causes Vertigo?

Several things can contribute to dizziness and vertigo. One of those things is a problem in the inner ear. Several inner ear troubles can occur and lead to these dizzy spells.

• Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo: Tiny calcium deposits, or canalith particles, build up in the inner ear (pictured above) and disrupt normal balance and sense of gravity. This can come from an unknown source or may be age-related. Quick change of position with the head often leads to a dizzy spell in this condition.
• Meniere’s Disease is a build up of fluid and pressure in the inner ear. Sometimes ringing in the ear can accompany this kind of vertigo.
• Infection of the inner ear (usually viral) can lead to symptoms of dizziness and loss of balance sense.
• Migraines have some association with otherwise unexplained dizziness spells. Be watchful of common migraine triggers to see if they have an effect on your episodes.
• Head or neck injuries can sometimes cause vertigo if important nerves and blood vessels feeding the head and neck have been compromised.
• Certain medications or reactions to foods and beverages may also have an impact on feelings of dizziness and light-headedness.

Is There a Solution?

Vertigo, once diagnosed properly, can be a relatively simple condition to treat, and in some cases, cure. Though episodes may return throughout life, often times specific types of vertigo can be fixed by appropriate treatment. Since there are several different causes, treatment will depend on the individual case. If the doctor diagnoses you as having vertigo and  sends you to the Physical Therapist, it is very likely that the PT will be able to help reduce symptoms in only a few treatments. Through vestibular rehabilitation, you can reprogram your inner ear’s system of equilibrium and allow the brain to integrate the changes.

Sometimes medications can be prescribed to reduce symptoms and frequency of spells. Sometimes adjustments to lifestyle and diet can help in reducing dizziness.  If you haven’t been diagnosed with vertigo due to inner ear issues, and are still experiencing dizziness, here are some  helpful tips to monitor and manage dizzy spells:

• Keep hydrated
• Watch your blood sugar and salt levels
• Monitor blood pressure
• Make sure you are eating enough quality protein and iron
• Reduce stress
• Try to get more sleep

These tips will at least help you manage or keep track of your symptoms while you seek help for your condition. Be sure to speak to your doctor about your dizzy spells and seek help as soon as they start. If not treated timely, vertigo may get progressively worse, depending on the cause. The solution may be a simple fix and may be quicker than you think.

Our staff has treated many vertigo patients with great success. We use balance training, vestibular rehab, and patient education. We try to help you function better in your every day life. Let us give you the tools you need to conquer your vertigo. The world is so much brighter when it’s not spinning.

If you have been diagnosed by your doctor and are seeking help, our trained Physical Therapists can help in your treatment and vestibular rehabilitation. Don’t wait any longer to seek the help you need. You may be suffering with a condition that could be easily addressed and improved in a short time span. If your dizziness and vertigo are affecting your balance, you need to seek help now. A balance disorder increases your risk of falling and becoming seriously injured. Don’t put yourself at risk any more. Take your health back. Take your balance back. Take your life back.

Call us Today!

Written by Becca Chamberlain, LMT, RYT