# dizziness and/or vertigo



## Cole Slaw (Mar 16, 2015)

Have you had, or do you currently suffer from, any dizziness disorders? I was recently diagnosed with vestibular neuritis, and it's quite unpleasant. Ended up in ER with a bad attack three weeks ago. I'm taking high dose Valtrex in case it's viral.

Anyone else with experiences like this?


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## NancyNGA (Mar 16, 2015)

Cole slaw, I've had 3 episodes of vertigo in the last 3 years, but I'm pretty sure mine is the BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo) kind, caused by crystals dislodged in the ear canal.  In this case you need to get those crystals moved to a different position to make it go away. 

 I really sympathize, and agree it's *quite* unpleasant. Nothing like I'd ever experienced before.  I'd rather have an injury or the flu, honest. 

 Does the vestibular neuritis have a tendency to recur, or is it a one time thing?


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## Ameriscot (Mar 16, 2015)

My husband had labyrinthitis years ago which we feared might be permanent, but it slowly got better and was completely gone after about 2 years.


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## Debby (Mar 16, 2015)

I had a dreadful attack of vertigo about two or three weeks ago that literally 'flattened' me!  Mine seems to be a genetic predisposition to Meniere's Disease (runs in our family as my aunt had it, my mom has it mildly and my daughter also has it)  I've only had two attacks in ten years but when I get it, I can 'proudly' say, that no one in my family gets it as bad as I do!  I'm so proud.....well actually no, because like some here have said, it's absolutely awful.

In reading up on it, I discovered that some folks live with it constantly and it completely ruins their lives!  You don't know when it will happen so driving becomes an issue, going shopping, holidays ruined......  I can live with an attack every ten years compared to what some of those folks deal with.


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## Jackie22 (Mar 16, 2015)

Some allergy meds will affect me with vertigo....if I take Benadryl two days in a row it will.


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## Mrs. Robinson (Mar 16, 2015)

Debby said:


> I had a dreadful attack of vertigo about two or three weeks ago that literally 'flattened' me!  Mine seems to be a genetic predisposition to Meniere's Disease (runs in our family as my aunt had it, my mom has it mildly and my daughter also has it)  I've only had two attacks in ten years but when I get it, I can 'proudly' say, that no one in my family gets it as bad as I do!  I'm so proud.....well actually no, because like some here have said, it's absolutely awful.
> 
> In reading up on it, I discovered that some folks live with it constantly and it completely ruins their lives!  You don't know when it will happen so driving becomes an issue, going shopping, holidays ruined......  I can live with an attack every ten years compared to what some of those folks deal with.



A very close friend of ours has just been diagnosed with Meniere`s. Poor guy is really suffering. He vomits uncontrollably during an episode and he`s having two or more episodes a week. He works at the school where my husband sometimes helps out and my husband is getting called in constantly to cover for him. Problem is,husband already has a fulltime job, so he`s working some really,really long days. There is a teacher who works at the school who also had Meniere`s several years ago and had a surgery that really,really helped her,so K looked into it but they said they don`t like to do it anymore. And yes,I can totally see people saying that it ruins their lives!


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## NancyNGA (Mar 16, 2015)

Debby said:


> I had a dreadful attack of vertigo about two or three weeks ago that literally 'flattened' me!



I know exactly what you mean, Debby.  The first episode I rose up from bed and it was like someone shoved me back flat on the bed.  Then the spinning started.  No one who hadn't experienced it would believe me.  They kept saying, yes, they had dizzy spells all the time, too.   Not the same....


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## Ameriscot (Mar 16, 2015)

When my husband had his vertigo we went to a funeral and he saw his uncle who had meniere's and was using a cane.  He was worried that was what would happen to him but the doctor assured him it wasn't meniere's. 

When he still had the vertigo we took a ferry across the Irish Sea to Belfast and at a certain part the water gets very rough.  I was feeling queasy and he said 'that's what I feel like all the time'.


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## Cookie (Mar 16, 2015)

I had a bad attack of vertigo last August - it was very bad then, but has since slowly got better. My doctor thought it was viral, but there's no real way of knowing for sure. I saw a neurologist, who recommended I do the Epley Manoever exercise (found on Utube) which I do at home twice a day.  It's slowly getting better. I still have to use a cane when I go out because I'm swaying and not completely steady.  It's a real bummer, to be sure, but at least I don't have to grab furniture when I walk across a room anymore.


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## Ameriscot (Mar 16, 2015)

I've been amazed at the number of people who suffer from vertigo occasionally.  When I've mentioned my hubby's problem many have said they have it as well or a relative or friend has it.


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## Cole Slaw (Mar 17, 2015)

NancyNGA said:


> Cole slaw, I've had 3 episodes of vertigo in the last 3 years, but I'm pretty sure mine is the BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo) kind, caused by crystals dislodged in the ear canal.  In this case you need to get those crystals moved to a different position to make it go away.
> 
> I really sympathize, and agree it's *quite* unpleasant. Nothing like I'd ever experienced before.  I'd rather have an injury or the flu, honest.
> 
> Does the vestibular neuritis have a tendency to recur, or is it a one time thing?



It tends to reoccur and/or can cause permanent damage. One doctor in Mass is having a 90% success rate with the anti-virals, so that's why i'm trying that.


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## Cole Slaw (Mar 17, 2015)

Ameriscot said:


> My husband had labyrinthitis years ago which we feared might be permanent, but it slowly got better and was completely gone after about 2 years.



That's great to hear!


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## Cole Slaw (Mar 17, 2015)

Ameriscot said:


> I've been amazed at the number of people who suffer from vertigo occasionally.  When I've mentioned my hubby's problem many have said they have it as well or a relative or friend has it.



Yeah, i've been surprised as well as to how many people are having this type of thing. It's really horrid. I can't imagine why the human body evolved to be so weak in the inner ears.


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## Debby (Mar 18, 2015)

Cookie said:


> I had a bad attack of vertigo last August - it was very bad then, but has since slowly got better. My doctor thought it was viral, but there's no real way of knowing for sure. I saw a neurologist, who recommended I do the Epley Manoever exercise (found on Utube) which I do at home twice a day.  It's slowly getting better. I still have to use a cane when I go out because I'm swaying and not completely steady.  It's a real bummer, to be sure, but at least I don't have to grab furniture when I walk across a room anymore.




Gosh, your episode affected you a lot longer than mine did.  I was flattened for about three or four days, then started to be able to walk a little holding onto the walls but bent right over and looking only at the floor for about three days and after that was finally upright and walking unaided but weak as a kitten for about a week.  Since then I've been good.  My doctor did indicate that it can be a genetic failing.  In my case, my mom, my aunt, me and my daughter all have had episodes).

I'm glad that you're doing better now but so sorry that it's taken you this long!  Sucks to be you eh?


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## Ameriscot (Mar 18, 2015)

Cole Slaw said:


> That's great to hear!



He had to retire because of it!  5 years before he wanted to.  But he's fine.


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## Ameriscot (Mar 18, 2015)

Cole Slaw said:


> Yeah, i've been surprised as well as to how many people are having this type of thing. It's really horrid. I can't imagine why the human body evolved to be so weak in the inner ears.



I've never had it and it sounds awful.  I always had ear trouble as a child - ear infections, burst ear drum, and my ears don't do well with adjusting to air pressure on planes.


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## Cookie (Mar 18, 2015)

Debby said:


> Gosh, your episode affected you a lot longer than mine did.  I was flattened for about three or four days, then started to be able to walk a little holding onto the walls but bent right over and looking only at the floor for about three days and after that was finally upright and walking unaided but weak as a kitten for about a week.  Since then I've been good.
> 
> I'm glad that you're doing better now but so sorry that it's taken you this long!  Sucks to be you eh?



Thanks, Debbie, I wish I was started on the exercises earlier, but my doctor thought it was viral and I needed to wait it out. Still don't know for sure what's going on, but should eventually ease.  Movement and walking help.


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## Cole Slaw (Mar 19, 2015)

Hi all,

For those of you who believe that it's viral, this is a very interesting article. I took it to my ENT and he started me on the regimen immediately. I feel that it is helping!

http://www.mm3admin.co.za/documents/docmanager/6e64f7e1-715e-4fd6-8315-424683839664/00056616.pdf

Also, Dr. Gacek believes that if you "wait it out" without anti-virals, long term damage can occur.


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## NancyNGA (Mar 19, 2015)

Thanks for posting this, Cole Slaw.  A tough read, and I don't claim to understand it, but I think I get the gist of it.  Something to think about 
because the 3rd episode for me was definitely different from the first two.


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## Cookie (Mar 19, 2015)

Thanks Cole Slaw, I will try to read this when my brain is fresh and will mention to my GP.


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## Cole Slaw (Mar 19, 2015)

The Cliff Notes are basically that he feels Meniere's Disease, Vestibular Neuritis and BPPV are viral in nature. Thus, he prescribes high dose anti-virals (Valtrex) for 3 weeks, followed by a medium dose for 3 weeks, followed by a maintenance dose indefinitely. Valtrex has almost no serious side effects (headaches for <10% of the population and other side effects are <1% of population), so it's a safe drug to take long-term.

His success rate is in the ~90% range for patients who have failed to respond to all other treatments (the most serious patients).

Of course, some doctors who make a living with more radical approaches (e.g. surgery) will not like this.

I've been taking it about a week now and have found some relief. The most relief is supposed to come after 3-4 weeks, so i'll keep you all posted on my results.


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## oakapple (Mar 21, 2015)

Ameriscot said:


> I've never had it and it sounds awful.  I always had ear trouble as a child - ear infections, burst ear drum, and my ears don't do well with adjusting to air pressure on planes.


I am same as you Ameriscot, but luckily do not have any vertigo. however Mr Oakapple gets this about once a year, sometimes after flying sometimes it just happens.It takes a week and then stops usually.


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## Ameriscot (Mar 21, 2015)

oakapple said:


> I am same as you Ameriscot, but luckily do not have any vertigo. however Mr Oakapple gets this about once a year, sometimes after flying sometimes it just happens.It takes a week and then stops usually.



I'm doing a lot better with the air pressure on planes, maybe because we fly so much my ears have adjusted.  On some flights though it is extremely painful when we start to descend.  Don't know what they do right, but on Emirates airlines sometimes I'm not even aware we are descending.  

My DH's vertigo (labyrinthitis) was suspected to be a small stroke.  MRI showed no damage.  And he recovered thankfully.  Being a very active man he was not happy with this condition! But funnily he found that hiking on rough terrain was easiest.


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## d0ug (Mar 21, 2015)

Another thing to consider with vertigo, ringing in the ears is osteoarthritis of the skull. There is small passages through the skull where the nerves pass through and when you get osteoarthritis those passages get obstructed and the nerve signal  get blocked. This can cause many problems in hearing, dry eyes, dry mouth and balance.


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