Help Me!
28F. This all started on 4/12/26 after I had my music extremely loud in my left ear with Beats Solo headphones. The next day I woke up with ear pain and dizziness.
Since then, the dizziness/off-balance feeling has been terrifying. I feel unsteady walking, can’t walk in a straight line sometimes, and going uphill is the worst. Mornings are usually the worst too. It’s less “room spinning” and more like I’m off balance/drunk/on a boat.
I saw an ENT who didn’t see an ear infection or anything obvious in my ear. He did the BPPV maneuver but said he didn’t see crystals/nystagmus. He ordered an MRI and vestibular/balance testing. MRI came back clear, but my balance test isn’t until mid-June.
This has honestly become debilitating. I barely go outside anymore, I’ve been ordering Uber Eats constantly because walking around feels awful, and I mostly lay down all day even though I know that probably makes things worse. I’m also a parent, which makes this even harder mentally. I feel depressed and scared because I just want my normal life back.
I also just got my wisdom tooth removed on that same side because I started spiraling thinking maybe it was pressing on a nerve or somehow connected to the ear pain/dizziness. I know that probably sounds crazy but at this point my mind goes everywhere trying to figure this out. Has anyone experienced something similar after loud noise/headphones? Did vestibular therapy or balance testing end up helping you get answers?