Dizziness Got You Down?
Your mother may have referred to it as a spell. Today you just say you’re dizzy. For a short period of time, you feel faint, weak, confused, tired, clumsy, nauseated, off-balance, or any combination of these.
Unless you’ve been dancing up a storm, or just stepped off an amusement park ride, the sensation of dizziness is anything but pleasant. It can be frustrating and upsetting because just when you thought you were through with it , it recurs. You don’t know what brings it on or how to stop it. It slows you down and it may get worse if it’s not treated. You may even begin to believe you’re imagining things.
According to the Vestibular Disorders Association, dizziness is the second most common complaint heard in doctors offices after lower back pain. There are as many causes to dizziness as there are symptoms. While the cause is not always easy to pinpoint, it’s best not to ignore the symptoms. They can cause you to fall, bump into things or otherwise hurt yourself. A bad fall can cause a host of other problems and injuries. In a few worst case scenarios, depending on where you are when the symptoms occur, you could lose your job and your income, or injure others if you’re operating a machine or driving.
Some people suffer with dizziness for years without seeking a solution, sometimes because they think that nothing can be done for them. They just chalk it up to aging. The first step in controlling or eliminating dizziness is to describe your symptoms to your primary care physician. Organic causes for dizziness include various inner ear dysfunctions, high or low blood pressure, heart, brain, metabolic or neurological disorders, infections or diseases. Some medications or combinations of medications can cause dizziness in certain people as well. Psychiatric illness can also cause dizziness. Your physician may be able to treat your dizziness directly in any number of ways or they may refer to a specialist. If your diagnosis is vertigo or spinning, however, you may need to consult an Otolaryngologist (an ear, nose, and throat specialist or ENT) or a Neurologist.
With vertigo, you may have the sensation of movement, or rocking or you may feel as if you or the room you are in is spinning. You may also have ringing in your ears and/or feel lightheaded or woozy. There are several types of vertigo, the most prevalent being Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). While this is often one of the easiest forms of dizziness/vertigo to diagnose, it is often the most debilitating. Neurologists and ENTs have found that BPPV is usually successfully treated with physical therapy. The treatment is performed at an outpatient physical therapy facility. The physical therapist performs a four-minute process which repositions crystals in the inner ear. One of these procedures may resolve BPPV altogether! Usually, you will need to visit the physical therapist for a few of these procedures and a set of specific follow-up exercises that you can do at home.
Physical therapy is also successful in treating other types of vertigo. Patients perform habituation exercises, repeating frequent tasks in a controlled environment, to re-train the neurological system. They gradually learn to perform regular tasks without experiencing the symptoms of dizziness, until they reach the point where they can manage this function or movement optimally in their daily routines.
If symptoms of chronic dizziness are slowing you down, be confident that help is available. You can get this under control. Describe your symptoms to your physician to determine the cause of your dizziness. Consult an ENT or Neurologist if necessary and ask them to refer you for physical therapy if appropriate. Save that dizzy feeling for the dance floors and amusement parks!
For more information, please contact Riverside Rehabilitation at 1-800-514-3878 or visit: www.riversiderehab.com.
