Suffering from vertigo can make doing the most basic tasks, like standing up and walking, feel difficult. Those with vertigo often feel like their surroundings are spinning around them, although everything is completely still. The constant dizziness caused by vertigo might make you give up activities in your life that you once enjoyed. 

Some might experience minor effects of vertigo that can be an inconvenience, but others find it unbearable to make even slight movements. It can also be difficult for those dealing with dizziness to find an adequate vertigo treatment or get a diagnosis. Vertigo can sometimes be brushed off, even by those in the medical field, which can cause those suffering from it to put off getting the care they need. If you have vertigo episodes, you deserve to be taken seriously to find the root cause of it and begin your vertigo treatment journey. 

While many people, at some point, will deal with vertigo or dizzy spells, most people are not educated on the issue. Vertigo is commonly described differently by patients, so it is important to ask each person, “What does vertigo feel like to you?” True vertigo has the sensation of spinning and can be so intense that people panic and they have vomitting. If the spinning does not go away, a trip to the ER is necessary to one rehydrate and two be given meds to calm everything down. Then finding a healthcare professional trained to diagnose and treat things like BPPV is the next step. 

There can be multiple causes for vertigo, and many of them on their own are not signs of a more serious underlying condition. Depending on the cause, vertigo may only last for a few days and may go away on its own. For others, vertigo can last for months or years without the proper treatment for dizziness. Although living with vertigo can be difficult, it is typically curable through several methods. 

Symptoms of Dizziness and Vertigo

While vertigo is an intense sensation of spinning, other common vestibular complaints are floating, walking in sand, walking on a bounce house, unsteadiness, feeling drunk, foggy, feeling like your head isn’t connected to your body, and many other descriptions. These descriptions do tell a doctor a lot about the underlying mechanism. 

Some of the symptoms that can go hand-in-hand with vertigo and other vestibular complaints  are:

  • Abnormal eye movements 
  • Double vision
  • Headaches
  • Nausea 
  • Vomiting 
  • Ringing in the ears

What Causes Vertigo or Dizziness?

There are several health complications that unrelated to the inner ear that could be causing the feeling of vertigo. Some causes of vertigo are straightforward like BPPV. Dizziness can be a bit trickier because it can be triggered by anxiety disorders, low blood sugar, anemia, and some medications. Motion sickness can cause feelings of dizziness, anxiety and nausea. The most common causes of vertigo include the following:

  • Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) BPPV is the most common cause of vertigo. As an inner ear disorder, BPPV can cause vertigo by moving the head slightly in a different direction. BPPV is caused when calcium crystals are broken off and get stuck in the semicircular canals where balance is controlled.
  • Vestibular neuronitis – Vestibular neuronitis is an inflammation of the vestibular nerve that helps control balance. A viral infection typically causes it. 
  • Labyrinthitis – Labyrinthitis is an inflammation of the inner ear that affects the vestibular nerves. Like vestibular neuronitis, it’s most often caused by a viral infection. 
  • Ménière’s disease – Fluid build-up in the inner ear seen in people with Ménière’s disease can cause vertigo, as the fluid may block signals from the brain and disturb the body’s balance. 

Carolina Brain Center Can Provide Vestibular Treatments

Whether or not vertigo or another vestibular issue can be cured depends on what the cause is. The same treatment will also depend on what’s causing your issue. In some cases, vertigo and other symptoms may only be treated to make dealing with it easier, but it can’t be entirely cured. 

Most vertigo treatments are relatively simple. Exercises that can be done in a doctor’s office and at home are practical for many who have vertigo. Some may need vestibular blocking agents, such as medication like antihistamines, to treat it.

For other vestibular disorders and symptoms, the treatments will be very specifically tied to exam result findings.   

If you are in need of treatments for dizziness or suspect that you have vertigo, request a consultation today to learn more about how the Carolina Brain Center may be able to help.

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