As the title of this article suggests, I have not been having the easiest of weeks. I have been trying my damnedest to recover from a terrible cold that was just teeming with all types of sinus and ear infections, I have been working to build my compensation skills back up to where they once were. I have not been this dizzy in a long time, and to make matters worse, I decided to spend a four day weekend lounging on a floating dock of all places. As you might imagine, that does not bode well for a stabilized vestibular system.
On top of everything, I am attempting a new form of physio therapy that is called IMS which stands for Intramuscular Stimulation. The idea is to have a professional stick needles into muscle and nerve centers that are tight or knotted and need stimulation in order to release. Let me tell you this is one of the most painful things I have ever had to do. Every time they stick the needle in, its like that muscle group (and several others on down the line of your body) instantly cramp. The jury is still out on whether or not this is going to prove useful in my fight against dizziness.
Its times like these that it is easy for me to forget to focus on the things that are good in my life, like my husband, my family and everything else that we have to be thankful for. That’s why I am writing this article; to remind myself that things are always on the way up. I am using this article to remember that it is always important to try new things and hope that they will help you grow as a person. It is also important to remember that rarely in life do we have the opportunity to truly relax which is what I got to do over that four day long weekend. So though I am dizzy and uncomfortable now, I hope to learn to be grateful for the opportunity to overcome my vestibular issues once again.
Thanks for listening. Peace, love and happiness to you all.
My Vestibular Diaries 
I have BPPV as well…first hit me when I was about 63…middle of the night, eyes rolling, heart pounding, extreme nausea and so dizzy I could not move anything but my right hand to find the phone on the nighttable and dial 911…I am less than 5 minutes from a firehall so the ambulance and firefighters were right there…kicked in the door of my 3 level condo…administered two bags of gravol intravenously and took me to Foothills Hospital where I was seen immediately…and still dizzy, I was released to go home…I managed to stay upright long enough by myself to get a taxi and get home…up my stairs to find money to pay the driver and then go to bed. I have never had an episode this bad again, but I have what you call a “drop” type episode every few months that can last for a day or several weeks. Nothing incapacitating as the first episode. I did the trip to physio at LifeMark, they explained what was happening, taught me the Eppley maneuver, which I have done during the worst episodes and it helps a great deal. I now take Betahistine at the first sign of an episode…it always happens when I roll over in bed…what I do instantly to avoid a panic attack is keep my mind busy by subtracting 7 from 300 and within less than a minute I am just fine. My episodes “usually” only happen when rolling over in bed, so I bought an Obusforme pillow to stabilize my neck better…I have cervical spondylosis. Yoga and physio did not help me other than a bit of relaxation and physio. I don’t have much stress in my life now that I am retired and it still happens…the statistics with this are such that you may have one episode and never have another, or you may have it for the rest of your life. I think mine will be forever, so I just keep on going…and know what to do when it hits…the Betahistine calms your stomach immediately and increases the pressure in your ear canal. I know how terrifying this can be, but for me, because it is over so fast and is not debillitating, I can live with it. I hope you find something that works really well for you, because there are no easy answers. I would be more than happy to talk to you about this any time if it gives you any comfort…you can email me and I will give you my phone numbers.
Thank you so much for reaching out and sharing your experience. I know what you mean about the fear and the panic. It is a tough thing to deal with when your world is quilt literally spinning out of control.
For me, I have not yet been given a firm diagnosis. All we know is that I have extreme vestibular loss that presents itself in different ways that mimic BPPV, Labyrinthitis, A-Typical Migraines, etc…
Unfortunately Betahistine and the Eppley maneuver do not give me relief when I have the worst of my ‘drop’ attacks. I don’t know how much of this blog you have read, but I experience attacks at anytime anywhere. I am still searching for what is going to help/work for me.
It would be really great to grab your email if you are comfortable with that. It is nice to talk to someone who understands.
my email is baxterb@shaw.ca