Anyone suffer from Vertigo?

[Argus]

I had a vertigo episode where anytime I turned my head, to the left, I would have severe dizziness to the point of throwing up. Luckily it began during the night, I woke and turned to look at my clock and the room spun. Grateful it wasn't at a time where it could have been dangerous (like when driving). I laid on the couch the entire day and it's hard to lay on one side for more than an hour. As soon as I turned my head, I'd get sick. Even with my eyes closed, it wouldn't matter. Standing up was a true adventure. My DW was suggesting a trip to the ER. Honestly, at the time, I couldn't imagine getting into a car, riding, sitting in a waiting room, then describing my symptoms, anything that didn't involve just laying on the couch seemed like an unreachable goal. After 8 or so hours, I managed to do a search online and found a Johns Hopkins site describing the Epley technique. That worked pretty well and got the vertigo under control. But wow, what an experience.

My Dr. figured it may have been triggered by dehydration, which is probably likely. So I drink a lot of water hopefully to control it. But the old saying "hope is not a plan..."

Anyway, given this is my first experience with this, my question to anyone who suffers with vertigo, are there triggers you've noticed that might bring on an episode?

 

[Koolau]

Sounds like cochlear crystals. I have that problem from time to time. It usually resolves within 1 to 3 days but YMMV. Not a bad idea to see a doctor if this is the first time you have experienced this problem as it could be something much worse.

Why Loose Ear Crystals Make You Dizzy and How To Fix Them

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is scary because it hits so suddenly and keeps you from doing normal activities. Learn why this happens and how to put loose ear crystals back in place.

health.clevelandclinic.org

 

[omni550]

There are youtube videos on performing the Epley procedure for vertigo.

Here's one.

omni

 

[Flyfish1]

Most common cause of vertigo is BPPV. You did the right thing trying the Epley maneuver.
Please see a Doc if not improving. No offense to the good Koolau but the crystals are not in the cochlea but rather dislodged from the utricle and end up where they don't belong in one of the semicircular canals.

 

[Argus]

Thank you for the responses. My Dr. is aware about the episode. The Epley technique worked after two maneuvers on both sides.

I'm still interested if anyone has recognized trigger conditions that lead to an episode. That would be good to keep an eye out? Like a head cold, sneezing, water in the ear after swimming, etc...

 

[folivier]

I get vertigo occasionally. Usually it's when I either look straight up or lay down on my right side. Yesterday I had a dentist appointment and due to the position of having my head straight back I had a vertigo attack. Not too bad but off balance. Slept on the sofa last night so I couldn't turn onto my right side.
One suggestion that has had good results for me is to find a Chiropractor who does the Blair Procedure. This has been very effective for my vertigo and I see Dr. Jensen in Riverton, Utah at least once a year.

 

[pacergal]

I have had vertigo in response to ear infections in the past, now also BPPV.
Epley maneuver helps.

 

[Flyfish1]

Without going into boring exhaustive details there are many causes of vertigo. BPPV being the most common is not triggered by a cold, an ear infection, flying, swimming , etc.. It can be a random occurrence or is often seen after a relatively benign head movement event including a sneeze and certainly after more aggressive events like a car accident or head injury. I'll be quiet now....

 

[Goldendoodlebug]

My husband gets severe vertigo, he almost always throws up. Sometime he has to crawl back to bed from the toilet. Episodes usually last a day or two. His last episode, a couple of months ago was 3 days. We went to urgent care, but really there is not much they can do. The episodes do seem to be more frequent and more severs.
He is not aware of a trigger. His Mother also had severe vertigo. Not sure if it was a coincidence or related. He also has pretty bad motion sickness

 

[groesbeck]

My husband gets severe vertigo, he almost always throws up. Sometime he has to crawl back to bed from the toilet. Episodes usually last a day or two. His last episode, a couple of months ago was 3 days. We went to urgent care, but really there is not much they can do. The episodes do seem to be more frequent and more severs.
He is not aware of a trigger. His Mother also had severe vertigo. Not sure if it was a coincidence or related. He also has pretty bad motion sickness

I feel for your husband. I've had vertigo exactly once for like half an hour. Couldn't imagine having it regularly.

 

[wdwwildbill]

I get it if I lay on my back and look up. Something about that position for me. can last 1-2 days and has never been loose crystals. DB has Menieire disease. Would not wish that on anyone. Super severe vertigo that requires ER trip and days to calm down

 

[easysurfer]

I've had bouts time and again in the past. For me, too much sodium is a trigger. Garlic is a big trigger. I make an attempt to limit the amount of sodium I consume and stay away from garlic when I can along with drinking plenty of water.

Vertigo to the point of throwing up is something I wouldn't wish on my worse enemy. Been there before and if there is a hell, that's what hell must be like.

 

[Letj]

Thank you for the responses. My Dr. is aware about the episode. The Epley technique worked after two maneuvers on both sides.

I'm still interested if anyone has recognized trigger conditions that lead to an episode. That would be good to keep an eye out? Like a head cold, sneezing, water in the ear after swimming, etc...

I had two episodes while doing yoga not too long ago, the only time I’ve ever experienced vertigo. I associated it with having just started singulair. I stopped the medicine after the first episode and didn’t experience another episode. I started the meds again about a week later and had the exact thing happen again and so I stopped for good and never had it after that. I went to a vestibular therapist who didn’t seem to think it was caused by singulair and was convinced that he could recreate the vertigo in his office to diagnose with BPPV. Didn’t happen.

 

[ut2sua]

My first episode with vertigo was 25 years ago. There was no exercise technique then, and I thought I would rather die than live with the room spinning around me at super high speed (causing major pain in the brain). The YouTube exercise does work and it does get me back on my feet in no time. Dehydration could be the cause, but I have never tried to confirm it.

 

[Flyfish1]

My husband gets severe vertigo, he almost always throws up. Sometime he has to crawl back to bed from the toilet. Episodes usually last a day or two. His last episode, a couple of months ago was 3 days. We went to urgent care, but really there is not much they can do. The episodes do seem to be more frequent and more severs.
He is not aware of a trigger. His Mother also had severe vertigo. Not sure if it was a coincidence or related. He also has pretty bad motion sickness

Have him see a Neurotologist. Not a Neurologist..

 

[Car-Guy]

First time I ever had it was with my first (and only) Covid shot. One day it was so bad I couldn't stand up. Still have it occasionally but not as bad or as often.

 

[ut2sua]

My husband gets severe vertigo, he almost always throws up. Sometime he has to crawl back to bed from the toilet. Episodes usually last a day or two. His last episode, a couple of months ago was 3 days. We went to urgent care, but really there is not much they can do. The episodes do seem to be more frequent and more severs.
He is not aware of a trigger. His Mother also had severe vertigo. Not sure if it was a coincidence or related. He also has pretty bad motion sickness

I have the same issue which is now under control thanks to the YouTube Vertigo Exercise. Have your husband tried the exercise if he has not done so. Basically, there is some solid substance that entered the ear canal causing the brain to interprets it as the world is moving around you. The exercise is a way to get those solid substance out of the canal (the world will spin badly when you practice the exercise, so may need someone to hold on to). Sleeping position could be a cause since it may allow these substance to enter the canal. I am not a physician so my knowledge is at the elementary level here.

 

[Koolau]

Most common cause of vertigo is BPPV. You did the right thing trying the Epley maneuver.
Please see a Doc if not improving. No offense to the good Koolau but the crystals are not in the cochlea but rather dislodged from the utricle and end up where they don't belong in one of the semicircular canals.

Sorry about that. I'm a hack when it comes to medical stuff.

 

[Koolau]

Thank you for the responses. My Dr. is aware about the episode. The Epley technique worked after two maneuvers on both sides.

I'm still interested if anyone has recognized trigger conditions that lead to an episode. That would be good to keep an eye out? Like a head cold, sneezing, water in the ear after swimming, etc...

It's happened several times to me and I can't think of a thing that correlates. I'll be looking for answers here.

My doc gave me a script for a common nausea med which helped a fair amount.

 

[Flyfish1]

I have the same issue which is now under control thanks to the YouTube Vertigo Exercise. Have your husband tried the exercise if he has not done so. Basically, there is some solid substance that entered the ear canal causing the brain to interprets it as the world is moving around you. The exercise is a way to get those solid substance out of the canal (the world will spin badly when you practice the exercise, so may need someone to hold on to). Sleeping position could be a cause since it may allow these substance to enter the canal. I am not a physician so my knowledge is at the elementary level here.

Sorry about that. I'm a hack when it comes to medical stuff.

No worries, I enjoy your posts! I'm a retired ENT so I know this stuff...
Which is why I'm trying hard not to comment on everything posted

 

[folivier]

I take Singulair nightly (for allergies) and other than vivid dreams haven't been able to correlate it affecting my vertigo. Mine is definitely due to head/neck positioning. But yeah the first attack 1 year after retiring was horrible. Then I was off balance and couldn't look straight up without losing balance. Until I saw my Blair Procedure chiropractor. After 1 treatment he had me walking straight and able to function fully without losing balance. It's worth a try for you with vertigo issues.

 

[homestead]

My Vertigo started when I hit my head on a wood beam when I was climbing up a ladder. The Epley maneuver always fixed it for me when it would flare up every couple years. After I started taking Vitamin D it hasn't come back.

 

[mistermike40]

I occasionally get fairly mild BPPV, probably due to an ear infection decades ago. Sometimes it requires the Epley maneuver to correct, usually it goes away in a day or so on its own. The first episode I had was about 30 years ago, at 3:00 in the morning... I had no idea what was going on (I was asleep and it felt like I was rolling and falling out of bed).

For me it hasn't gotten any worse or more frequent. My sister has it much worse, sometimes she has to be hospitalized for a day or two.

 

[ksr]

It happened to me once last summer. It came on very suddenly as I stood up from the couch. I was dizzy and felt nauseous for the rest of the day. I was Ok the next day.

I am almost certain it was brought on by dehydration. When we looked back on the 24 hours leading up to the episode, we realized I had spent a lot of time walking around on a very hot sunny day without water. Then we stopped at a brewery and I sat outside drinking a beer. Normally if I have an alcoholic drink I also drink water but I didn’t that time.

I have been more careful about staying hydrated since then, and thankfully no more episodes.

 

[Route246]

I had an attack about 14 years ago when I was sitting in a meeting at work and the whiteboard started spinning very slowly. Had no idea what it was but scared the heck out of me. Excused myself and went to my desk and sat there with my eyes closed which helped. I called my wife, told her to pick me up and I would meet her in the parking lot. I managed to stumble my way down to her car and she drove me home. I sat reclined in the seat and kept my eyes closed. Normal motion driving in the car did NOT make it worse. Luckily I don't get motion sickness or it could have gotten ugly. I feel for anyone who does. I managed to deal with it because my wife used to get it occasionally and she would lay down and tell me the room was spinning. No diagnosis for hers and it usually passed in a few hours.

Mine was a little different. Epley maneuver did not work at all, just made the spinning worse. I took a very hot shower sitting in a shower chair we happened to have from when my late mother needed it. Hot water and steam made it feel better but it was still there. I spent the next 24 hours in bed and had no appetite but otherwise felt fine except for the spinning. At some point my brain started compensating and the spinning was still present but it bothered me less and less. ENT doctor told me this was normal for my condition, more on that later. After about 48 hours I felt better but still had residual spinning.

I made an appointment with ENT and he asked some basic questions and asked me to walk a straight line as he watched my balance and gait. Did this more than a few times. He examined my ears, asked me more questions and then had a smile on his face. He told me that even though I was asymptomatic that I had an ear infection, a type that causes no pain but causes balance and vertigo. He said he could tell by my answers to his questions, my pace and gait (perfectly normal) and something he saw in my ear (not sure, probably evidence of infection). By that time I was mostly OK but I told him I have feelings of vertigo if I think about it or walk in large rooms (stores, etc.) with overhead lights. He smiled again and told me that those feelings will probably never go away but that my brain would remove them from consciousness until I thought about it. Basically, he told me I have a permanent residual vertigo condition caused by that infection but that it was benign and he said my brain is doing a good job to mask it out of my consciousness.

The best news is he said once the infection is done I would not be at any higher risk of another infection than what randomly happened to me this time. In other words, he said don't worry about it, these infections generally are opportunistic and probably won't come back unless I get extremely unlucky. I asked him about air travel and he said no problem as long as I feel up to it. He almost promised me that this was a one-off and it was highly likely not to be a problem for me moving forward.

Like others here, I would not wish this on anyone. The spinning room is an amazing feeling. Occasionally a room will spin if I jerk my head or if I'm extremely tired but it feels like my brain is able to tune it out or at least make it benign in terms of my consciousness.

Scary stuff but I am blessed that it has not happened again. Even if it does I know to rest, lay down, take hot showers and let the infection pass. Doctor's orders. Peace.