Feeling dizzy, off-balance, or like you or the room is spinning? Chances are you have a vestibular problem, which at least in part, resides as a problem in the inner ear. Often these symptoms are provoked by a change in head position.
The origins of dizziness and vertigo type symptoms can be from a central or peripheral origin. It is best to rule out central origins as they imply more disease states.
Fortunately, the most common reason for symptoms of dizziness and such, provoked by head movement, is called benign proximal positional vertigo. As the first word in the name implies, this is a totally “benign” situation in that you do not have a disease. But for someone with this condition, it can feel really scary. Fortunately the treatment is usually very simple and can be as simple as utilizing a maneuver called the Epley maneuver.
There are exercises designed to teach your body how to get used to knowing where you are in space so you don’t get dizzy or have spinning anymore. These exercises may be in the categories of adaptation, substitution, and habituation,- and usually involve teaching your ears, eyes, and body to coordinate more efficiently.
Often I have found that those persons with vestibular symptoms also have cervical alignment, mobility, or stability problems,- so I often assess and address these issues.
And the whole body is feeding into the balance systems of our body,- so proper activation of these centers is important. For example, it is not uncommon for women who have recently given birth to have symptoms related to feeling off-balance, dizziness, vertigo, etc,- probably in part from a lack of organization in the torso and core (which was stretched and strained during pregnancy and/ or delivery), and so the whole system is having a hard time re-organizing itself. This is very addressable.
It can be very dis-orienting to feel like your body will fall or it can’t figure out how to orient itself in its environment. But there is almost always something one can do to improve or resolve a vestibular situation. And there are many health professionals who can’t get you back on track,- literally and figuratively. 🙂