BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo), your experiences.

[Littlehero'smommy]

I had a similar attack about 5 years ago after spinning DS around in the front yard, went into the gargage and immediately fell to the ground from the spinning. I thought I was dying. Went to the Dr and he said it was vertigo and sent me on my way, it only lasted a few hours. On Tuesday night as I was putting DS to bed I felt dizzy all of the sudden, went straight to bed and woke up dizzy. I had a OB/GYN appt so I called my Mom to take me and had them check everything they could. I was not nauseous at all, the rest of the day, just dizzy, off balance, made an appointment with reg Dr on Thursday. Right before bed on Thursday the nausea hit, hard. DH had to help me walk. Woke up no change, it was horrible and I was scared. DH had already left for work so Mom came to take DS to Daycare and me to the Dr. By the time of my appointment the symptoms had diminished a little. He told me I had BPPV, did the Epley Maneuver and gave me instructions to do it at home. After missing 2 days of work for the first time in 8 years I went in on Friday for a few hours, but even today (my 39th b-day) I still don't feel 100%. How often do your attacks happen? Do you know what triggers them? Can you tell it is going to happen before they start? My DH wants to go to Six Flags in a few weeks, but I have already told him I am not riding anything. It was such a scary experience I don't want to take a chance on it happening again if I can prevent it. Your thoughts??? Thanks!

 

[TimeforMe]

It sucks, doesn't it? I've had it so bad that I literally couldn't walk without falling down and could not stop vomiting. I had to be taken to the hospital in an ambulance where they finally gave me some shots to stop the vomiting.

Since then I've had vertigo off and on. I've been to more doctors than you can imagine and no one has really "diagnosed" it. I initially thought it was Meniere's disease which is a inner ear disorder/infection. Nothing really can be done about it, unfortunately.

I, however, had a gut feeling it was related to sinuses/allergies. A friend of mine told me to try Claritin D--it had to be the D, however, not just regular Claritin. This has been a godsend and literally changed my life. I have to say that sadly today I am feeling dizzy again. I am hoping it is temporary (maybe because of the heat?) and that I will feel better tomorrow.

Do you have allergies?

 

[grinningghost]

Not to frighten you, but this sounds like how my MS started. If it keeps happening and you're not getting 100% relief, ask to be referred to a neurologist. They may be able to help you more. Hopefully it's all just benign, but I imagine even with BPV, the best remedy is still to try and work through it.

Sounds totally insane, I know, but trust me, if you can put on your best sense of humor and try it, even during your dizziness, most off-balance days, it does start to work. Good luck.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Yup, I've had experience with this. It does happen to people during allergy season because of a buildup of fluid in the inner ear, that's why medications like claritin work - they dry up the excess fluid lessening the symptoms. They always recommended dimetapp for me. It helped a bit sometimes but not others. Meclizine never helped me either.

The only time I've ever been taken in an ambulance to a hospital was one time shortly after the birth of my twins when the fluid was shifting in my body. I was driving in the rain one day and felt like I was going to pass out. When I walked I felt like I was going to fall over. At the doctors they called an ambulance. They even did a CT scan to rule out brain tumor (which can be a cause of dizziness/vertigo as well). That was scary but they could find no obvious cause.

The last time it happened was a few years ago after I rode Cyclone at Coney Island. The coaster is old and very bumpy and rickety. My head shook so much it must have loosened up some little sand-like particles in my inner ear and let fluid in. Later that day it felt like my head was going to explode. I actually scoped out a hospital it was so bad - and I'm not one to go to hospitals for no reason (I'm a nurse and work in one, LOL). I had three months of horrible ear infections and vertigo after that. Luckily it hasn't happened since but I've accepted the fact that I think it will come and go. FWIW, I've ridden everything at WDW since then and had no problems. On occasion I get a bit dizzy even when I'm sitting, but nothing like the two other periods I've had when it was really bad.

Good luck. Do you have a lot of pollen in your area? If so, a good rain should knock it down and hopefully you'll be feeling better. Drink lots of fluids to stay hydrated and maybe try the claritin/dimetapp to see if it helps. I would also again see your doctor to make sure you don't have an ear infection. When it's happened to me twice I had two different doctors tell me my ears looked fine only later to find out they were indeed infected.

 

[Littlehero'smommy]

My DH has MS so when he got home on Wednesday he was having me do all these different things his Dr has him do when he goes for his appointments. He was scared when I started feeling bad. His MS started off with dizziness also and didn't stop, he couldn't stand on one foot or walk one foot in front of the other without falling. I could walk after I got up, just didn't feel well doing it. My boss has Meniere's disease and with persistance (he went to Vanderbilt Univ) his life is back to normal as normal can be. The Vanderbilt doctor gave him the diagnosis, finally, and he does a low sodium diet and takes 2 different medications. He says that as long as he takes his meds 30 minutes before entering a large auditorium or venue he doesn't have any issues from being there. He went through years of misdiagnosis though.

I normally don't have issues with allergies, but thanks for the info on the Claritin-D, I will get some of that to have on hand. We live in an allergy prone area for sure. He did give me the meclizine to take.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

he does a low sodium diet

Again, has to do with fluid. Sodium causes fluid retention.

Darn those Nathan's dogs.

 

[minkydog]

I have had vertigo off & on for the past 5 years, ever since I took a certain medication. It will hit me out of the blue, but most often it starts if I spin or look up or down suddenly. 3-D movies can cause it, roller coasters definitely set me off, and sometimes even looking in my purse will do it. If it's really bad, I go to bed with my friend Meclizine and sleep it off. No way would I get on a simulator or thrill ride at WDW. It would totally ruin my trip.

 

[YourMajesty]

Expect everyone to always be confused and each Dr will tell you something different. I get it every fews years since I was a teenager. I had an MRI last year and everything was fine. It's not my brain...it's my ear (left side). I guess some people are more prone to it than others. My ENT gave me valium for attacks but I haven't needed it. I also have allergies and think they are involved. It's a very frustrating problem and can take a while to completly resolve!

 

[lemondog]

My mom has attacks as bad as the one you describe, and she was dx with Meneire's Disease.

I have BPPV but mine is never quite that severe. It only is bad if I turn my head in a certain position, but not all the time. Thankfully! So all it takes for me to end an episode is turn my head a different way. Mine definitely acts up worse during allergy season, but I have not had an episode now in several years. Seems like I had one at least once a year or once every other year all throughout my 20s. I hope you feel better soon!

 

[dis4me]

My dgm suffered from vertigo after a long car ride from Fl one year. She swears by ginger capsles. Not sure what she actually takes though. I know one year she came down she couldn't get out of bed until we got her ginger from the vitamin store.

 

[2angelsinheaven]

Found this thread, suffered from a bad spot of BPPV about 5 years ago and it's started up again since Wednesday, bad enough that I've felt like I was going to pass out due to the spinning. It's been non stop since whenever I get up or down from laying down or bend over. Yuck! I need to get some meclizine, but haven't gone to the store yet, ugh. Anyone had any luck with other OTC meds?

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Yes, my primary care has recommended dimetapp when I've had episodes, figuring if there's fluid causing the problem, it will help dry it up. Hope you feel better soon, I hate it when that happens.

P.S. I absolutely loved your photos on the low light thread!

 

[shortbun]

I have it. It was very scary at first. A neurologist told me it was probably MS but had not shown up on the scan yet. I took meclazine but it just made me sleep all the time. I have noticed it more when I'm in a situation where I'm moving my head a lot. Grocery shopping, antique stores both give me vertigo. I also get it after red wine, cheese, things with tanin, caffeine. Unpleasant but often preventable. Violent theme park rides do it too. I can't do roller coasters or simulators anymore, whaaaaa! Most of this was obvious as to cause. Some of it came from journaling.

 

[lewdyan1]

I was diagnosed with BPPV the non reactive type. That means I have one of the canals in my left ear that doesn't work, nothing can be done to correct it, but there are exercises that can greatly reduce the symptoms of vertigo. They are called Brandt-Daroff Exercises. If done correctly for two weeks, there is a 95% success rate. If you want more info, please send me a PM.

 

[princesspumpkin]

Yup, I've had experience with this. FWIW, I've ridden everything at WDW since then and had no problems.

I have it as well. You mean to tell me that you've ridden Mission Space without any problem? I did it in June, and was about to call a code on myself (i'm a nurse too )

 

[Pea-n-Me]

LOL, princesspumpkin. Yes, I've ridden MS a few times, but in fact, in Feb when the rest of my family rode it, I sat outside, had a coffee and enjoyed the scenery.

 

[Poohnatic]

My doc just told me it was BPV. My first encounter with it was in early 2001. I woke up in the middle of the night with the room spinning, extremely naseuous and it was a struggle to get from my side of the bed to the bathroom.

My DH had to drive me to work for a few days ,because my boss was on vacation. Yes, I worked with a major flare thatt lasted for 3 weeks.

Meclizine didn't work for me, the MRI came up with nothing and the doctor could not explain why I have it.

The symptoms manifest now when I'm tired. I get the 'bed spins' when I lay down. Also, I cannot tilt my head up too far w/o bringing on symptoms. Made things interesting at the old job when I had to change lighbulbs-a had to do it without looking at the fixtures.

Suzanne