r/BPPV

Hi there,

3 years ago I had several brief attacks ( several, each time I was looking up or rolling) lasting a few seconds, of spinning and nystagmus. Went to ENT,did the Eply couple of times and I was pretty much fine. Since then though, I developed other mild issues, like occasional walking on mattress sensation, or some sort of occasional mal de debarquemant, I often feel unsteady and brain fog, anxiety, but never the same spinning as 3 years ago. In the last month though I started having the spinning sensation when moving the head, rolling in bed, laying down mostly, but only lasting 2 seconds, and very slow nystagmus. Can this be the crystals? Or it must be something else?

I had my first ever bppv attack 10 days ago rolling over in bed. It was so severe that I vomited several times. I’ve never experienced anything like it or even had a migraine so it was an uneasy experience to say the least. Since then I’ve had major brain fog and have been lightheaded. I had a good day on day 8 where I thought I was coming good but yesterday I had a horrible headache in the back of my head, almost like pressure and heat at once, and a bit of nausea. Is this sounding normal or should I be going to ED?

Hello everyone. I'm a 27F and started having low frequency migraines november 2025. Right after starting with the migraines, positional vertigo episodes appeared in my life. The vertigo usually appears a couple of days after a headache which I always have during the placebo week of my nuvaring (contraception). It's literally text book.

This is my timeline:

11/19 migraine with aura

1/20 vppb horizontal canal / confirmed nystagmus

3/24 migraine with aura

4/6 vppb posterior canal / confirmed nystagmus

5/2 headache

5/7 vppb horizontal canal / confirmed nystagmus

6/1 headache

6/4 vppb horizontal canal / confirmed nystagmus

6/28 headache

7/2 headache

4/7 (today!) vppb horizontal canal / confirmed nystagmus

On one of my visits to the ER for BPPV, a doctor told me people with migraines were more prone to get BPPV. That made me realized everytime I had a migraine, I had BPPV after. I started a week ago a preventative treatment for migraines with venlafaxine (I was on sertraline before) but I guess it's too soon to tell.

fyi vitamin D levels are super good, so that's not my cause.

Anyone else who's had this frequent episodes and was able to manage them or find the root cause? I'm tired of having this every month.

I don’t really know where to post about this but I’m gathering opinions because honestly what just happened to me was terrifying and never happened before. I’m 20 and assigned female at birth (ftm but not on hrt) and was having a completely normal day. I woke up, used the restroom, did my thing all day, and then sat down at my desk to draw on my iPad for a little bit. Everything was fine until suddenly the room starts spinning worse than it ever has before, so fast that it felt nauseating. I felt heavy and thank god I was sitting down because all of a sudden I just couldn’t keep myself up and my head just fell forward on the desk

I couldn’t move for a few seconds because I just felt so weighted and everything was so fast and I was so scared that I closed my eyes and started crying and then it just….stopped?? I felt a little dizzy but decided to stand up and move to my bed because it feels safer in case something happens again. But I’ve just felt a bit dizzy and off balance and kind of nauseous since then and it’s really scary!!! I’ve never had something like that happen to me before and I don’t really know what to think, do, or who to talk to and I’m not even entirely sure if it was vertigo I was experiencing

This happened maybe….20 minutes ago at the time of posting this? And I’m just lost and still a little nervous and scared because I really don’t want to have to experience something like that again

I experienced vertigo for the first time in 2023 out of nowhere. I lost balanced, kept throwing up and couldn’t even walk nor hear from my left ear I went to the ER not knowing what was going on. I then was told it was vertigo I lost my hearing permanently from my left ear etc etc I just want to know if there’s anyone that did not get hearing aids? I hope I’m not the only one. I can’t hear much from my left ear but my right is fine. I can function good I just feel worried I’m doing something bad by ignoring my hearing loss, I just don’t want to wear a hearing aid :( also I never had episodes again. There is times when I feel a lot of tension and can feel light headed but it’s not like the episodes I had before. Is there people that completely ignored their hearing loss and kept living normal?

Hi Everyone,
I was diagnosed with Vestibular Dysfunction back in 2022, shortly after having Covid. I was then diagnosed with Vestibular migraine in 2024.

My symptoms have always been a kind of drunk feeling where I feel like my head and ears have a slight pressure. The worst part is having a nystagmus/oscallopsia. It is so hard to describe the feeling, it’s almost like my eyes lag behind every time I move my head left to right (the action when you’re crossing a road for example). When I walk or run my vision bounces, again making it almost impossible to concentrate on a target.

I don’t have vertigo/nausea/falling over or anything like that. I get stages where I feel like I have a constant headache for weeks, but it’s more a pressure band particularly over my eyes. I sometimes even get bouncy vision when I’m eating something crunchy or looking in the mirror.

I was wondering if anyone else has these specific symptoms? I am and have previously done VRT and VOR exercise which have helped, and I was on propanalol which I believe helped but definitely added to the fatigue. I’m in a particularly rough patch at the moment where you’re constantly thinking about the symptoms - waking up in the morning and the first thought is “am I still dizzy” which I know just adds to it, but it’s so hard to not think it. I’m hoping the VRT kicks in again as I was almost symptom free a good few times over the past few years.

Any tips/vitamins/supplements that helped anyone would be much appreciated (I’m UK based).

Sorry for the moan but feels good to write it down!

Cheers.

Hi everyone
I’m trying to understand whether this sounds like normal recovery after BPPV or whether I should be concerned.
This is my third episode in about a year, and it felt very similar to my previous episodes.

Initial symptoms:
Brief vertigo (less than a minute) triggered by looking up and changing head position.
Rolling in bed also triggered vertigo initially.
No continuous spinning.
I performed the Epley maneuver (I initially thought it was my right side because that’s been affected before). During the maneuver I had dizziness and what looked like nystagmus, but it seemed to become less intense with each repetition.

Now it’s Day 3 (around 48–72 hours after onset):
I can roll onto either side in bed without triggering vertigo.
I can sleep in any position.
I no longer have true room-spinning vertigo.
When I look up, I sometimes feel a strange “internal” sensation, almost like my vision or head is moving slightly, but the room itself isn’t spinning.
I have a heavy-headed feeling.
When I get up from bed, I briefly feel as if I’m falling backward.
While walking, I have mild imbalance but I’m able to walk normally.

Has anyone experienced this kind of recovery after BPPV?
Does this sound like residual dizziness after a successful Epley, or could it mean that there are still crystals left in the canal?

I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who’s had a similar recovery.

Hi yall, could use some advice right now.

About 3 weeks ago I started getting lightheaded at moments, tiny super momentary dizziness, almost imperceptible.
I was also dealing with a lot of stuffiness, lots of pleghm and sneezing for two weeks, and the last week non stop coughing. I wasn’t sure if it was a cold or a virus or what. I also just bought a house and the past three weeks has been just a lot of paperwork etc. we closed today.

Anyway, 2 days ago I woke up with some vertigo. It went away after a few seconds.
Yesterday again when I woke up, I had it more on one side of my head when I turned than the other. Went away again rather quickly and I could trigger it with certain movements sometimes. When I leaned down and stayed there and moved my head it became a roller coaster. Then when walking and looking up. It calmed and I was able to go about most of my day.

Today.. absolute shit. Woke up and getting out of bed I had to catch myself. It got worse with these waves when I walked or even stood still, even giving me nausea. It’s calmed a bit but instead of lightheadedness I feel… heavyheadedness.. like visually I can focus, not double vision but I don’t know how else to explain it. Today I also closed on my home but don’t feel like a massive stress. Although I know it’s. A huge shift.

three years ago I had debilitating vertigo for a month and residual dizziness for about 3 more. Awful times. Last time it wasn’t a gradual ramping up of symptoms thought that’s what worries me. No nausea either. When I stay still sitting down it feels okay. Symptoms get much better, like 85% better. Also blood pressure is pretty normal. I also use the pool a lot but I don’t think I’ve had ear infections yet.

Wondering if it’s stress, bppv or vestibular neuritis based on symptoms? Thanks for taking the time to read this

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Hi everyone,

About a month ago, i had a vertigo episode. Since then, over the last few weeks, i had some residual dizzyness.

Thankfully, that seems to be slowly disappearing.

However, a few days ago, i started to experience this " walking on a boat / trampoline " sensation. Funny enough, this only happens whenever i walk inside my home. I absolutely hate this feeling and find it stressful.

Has anyone here experienced this sensation before? If so, does it eventually go away? I am thinking of seeing a specislist physio about this.

Hello everyone,

Posting again on here. I had two attacks last week, the second attack being triggered by the first attack not being fixed (but I think it’s fixed now as barely any residual dizziness and nothing with epley). My experience with BPPV was awful. Throwing up both times when I tried epley or even just sitting up in bed. The dizziness terrifying me. But even now after my attacks I’m so scared they’re going to come back. I keep giving myself panic attacks every time I feel a bit of dizziness thinking it’s come back. For example, last night I rolled onto my back started feeling a bit dizzy and couldn’t sleep for an hour because I was so scared. But I believe it’s just residual dizziness. How do I stop feeling so worried about having another attack? I’m buying vitamin D supplements today as I believe I’m deficient and hoping that helps.

About a week ago I suddenly developed vertigo after tilting my head to the right. I’d never experienced anything like it before, so I had no idea what was happening. The room was spinning, I felt very nauseous, and I lay down on the floor and tried drinking some water, it was a heat wave / super hot day so I thought it might be heat exhaustion.

Eventually I went to sleep, and by the next morning the nausea had mostly gone.

Now, a week later, I’m still left with some residual lightheadedness, feeling “off,” and very mild nausea. Has anyone else experienced this after BPPV? How long did it take to fully recover, and did anything help?

This will legit feel like I am trolling,but I suffer right now .I know this girl for months and I will not deny that I was not interested ,but yeah I had some thoughts about her when I saw her and that's it. After my first vertigo attack ,and it was brutal (still recovering) ,after seeing her (we just said hello to each other ) I fell in love...I can not really justify it based on my previous romantic experiences,and while I know love works in crazy ways, I trully believe it has something to do with the vertigo attack.

Did a little research and its called misattribution of arousal. That basically means my brain took a shortcut and mislabeled the physical panic of the vertigo attack as romantic electricity.

I still struggle to recover from the balance issues I am now also crazy in love and obsessed for no reason draining me even more..Wonder if anyone else experienced such a thing..

Very severe rare case

I have long Covid and ME so I have nervous system over hyper activity to things

I had what I think was bppv in February I was tossing my head left to right all night on my pillow as I couldn’t sleep. Woke up with my head on the left and turned my head to the center then sort of turned it to the right and the right side of my room started to turn and my eyes were going with it (nystagmus) there was no panic or anything weirdly enough. I then sat up and it continued and then stopped lasted around 1 minute.

As soon as it stopped I was hit with sensory overload nausea couldn’t even move my eyes or look at a screen, derealisation, constant weirdness of the room. Tried to rest in bed closing my eyes my eyes would be rolling around and going crazy, my sleep completely stopped like no sleep at all. Laying down on my right or left side or even central or propped up didn’t matter I felt motion and movement in my head but weirdly no room spinning anymore more like I was moving instead now

I tried testing to see if I could get any room spinning but no position triggered it

A few times I tried to sleep and my brain would try to drop and I would get a fast head spin rush and wake up this happened 3 times and then my brain just stopped even trying.

Tried sleeping pills and they didn’t even work My gp kept telling me it would settle I went to the hospital brain scan was normal. I was literally getting micro minutes of sleep my brain would literally refuse to sleep this went on for a month the motion settled into a more of a brain motion feeling pattern which was the exact same thing as the original room rotation but like not the room doing it it was like me my brain was turning around if I laid on my right side I would feel like I was turning and then the same if I laid on my left side and even laying down or propped up was this turning sensation so everyone thought this can’t be bppv still as it’s happening in all positions

I was bedbound February and March and April

I still couldn’t sleep I was surviving on micro minutes of sleep and my gp was trying different meds and tried Daridorexant which made the motion react so badly it turn into fast spinning ( I’ve come to find out this drug works on the sleep wake transition) which is why my brain won’t drop into sleep this transition seems to trigger this spin head thing and my brain refuses to sleep

After this it was like my brain had been shocked again with a vertigo attack from this drug causing fast spinning my eyes were going everywhere and the sleep deprivation was so bad I ended up hospitalized a few days after taking that med that caused worsening spinning in my head. They had to put me on a benzo as I was so agitated and my heart rate was high I was going psychotic from no sleep from all of this

Anyway the benzo calmed my brain down, and gave me some light sleep. No one knows what to do with me I’m on this benzo which I don’t want to be on, it’s losing its effectiveness. I’m still experiencing sensory overload and still bedridden even writing this is hard using my eyes etc . Started to feel the motion feeling coming through too. My brain hasn’t slept normal since the vertigo attack happened to me in February. The benzo is only giving some partial light sleep to keep me going at this point

I really am at a lost with all of this it’s effected my mental health so bad I’ve even tried to … my life because of the suffering.

There is something going on with the vestibular system and sensory system where my brain refuses to drop into sleep because it thinks I’m moving or spinning or something I don’t know. It’s treating it as a threat I think

The problem I have is i have long Covid and ME and nervous system hyper excitability so I can’t do normal exercises and stuff as it makes my condition worst but it’s like the vertigo attack as triggered a sort of on going motion spinning in my head and sensory over load and my brain refuses to sleep cause of it .

Or I still have active bppv but I’m thinking this is unlikely.

The problem is I can’t sleep so me doing more like using my eyes makes everything worst. If I could sleep I wouldn’t have a problem

Please I need your wisdom to what is going on

I can’t function, I was already housebound due to my long Covid but now Bedbound in a dark room and having to rest my brain eyes and have nausea I’m suffering terribly

I’m so sleep deprived even with the benzo because my brain just won’t go into normal sleep. When the vertigo attack happened and the motion afterwards etc I wasn’t panicked or anxious I just let it be but it didn’t matter cause my brain wouldn’t cross over to sleep. This is a huge serious problem

I was diagnosed at 16 with vertigo and it’s been hell since. There’s some days it’ll last 2 days and I have no idea what I can do to help it. I normally just sleep it off even if that means sleeping for almost two whole days! Before my period is when it’s the worse, my hormones outta wack and it sends me spinning but I’ll have days where I can function and it’ll go away or days where I’m debilitated. Some days I can drive while experiencing it perfectly fine, in fact I enjoy being outside when it’s happening I feel better when I am rather than inside. Could it be a diet thing? I don’t eat terribly. I drink a lot of water too. I’m kinda just at whits end.

Really anxious about this test because I don’t know if I can do it without getting sick or feeling horrible weeks after. Anyone mind sharing their experience with this exam and final diagnoses on what was causing your dizziness?

I had my first BPPV attack last week, couldn’t sit up in bed without throwing up. It was the scariest thing I had ever experienced, like being on a 1000mph teacup ride. It eventually went away after a few days but forward a week later and I had another intense attack. All I did was bend down to stroke the dog.. I did the epley but the spinning was so intense it made me have a panic attack and throw up again. I managed to get a doctors appointment the same day, and they did some manoeuvres on me but nothing happened? No dizziness or sickness at all? They think that I fixed it myself when I did the epley in the morning but I’m genuinely terrified it’s going to come back I’m scared to move my head up or down at all. I’ve been doing the brandt daroff exercises twice a day since so I’m hoping that prevents it but I feel like I am just living in anxiety rn. Has anyone else experienced a recurring attack this quick? I’m thinking maybe I didn’t properly cure it last week and bending down triggered it again.

Started about 4 weeks ago. As soon as I got up from my bed raising myself on my side and as my legs swung down, I felt the whole room spin and had to grab the bed. Almost immediately checked my sugars as I am a T2 (6.7) and BP (120/85) - all fine. I regularly take multi vitamin supplements and my D, Iron and Magnesium should all be good.

Funnily enough, when it had started it all went away in 2 hours - and the rest of the day was fine. The same thing happened a few more days. Since I have experienced crystals dislodging and doing the Epley maneuver fixed it - I tried to do the drop test - no dizziness. Its a bit strange that out of the 10 times I did this test over a period of 4 days, once or twice I did feel dizzy - completed the maneuver whenever the dizziness kicked in on the drop tests - but that hasn't helped - which makes me think it isn't the crystals that are dislodged.

Went to my GP and he's ruled out any ear infections. Sent me for a brain CT which is clear. He is out of ideas and has put me on chlorpromazine 25mg thrice a day. I read that its addictive (and rightly so, I felt a few great bursts of happiness) and have taken it once after breakfast. It has reduced the severity of dizziness, but its still there. Now its there all the time. When I bend forward to brush my teeth. Trying to sit and get up from the toilet. Bending over to pick up a ball when playing with the kids - its just always there. I am M/43/120kg/187cm

I was diagnosed today at 24 years old. Doctor said its a bit on the younger end. Really scared this is my life now. When did your symptoms go away when you get an episode? Its been less than 24 hours and its so so scary. Did the maneuver today but still feel like the world is spinning so I dont think it helped. They said I can come back anytime.

Any tips/tricks/words of encouragement?

I have vestibular migraines either caused by or the cause of BPPV. A doc recommended Meclizine and I took it last night and slept like 12 hours!

I’m still feeling it today like 18 hours later, which is a total wash. It was a prescribed form of Mec, 12.5 mg. I’m pretty sensitive to medications.

It did help the intense dizziness but doesn’t feel worth the trade of losing a whole day.

Should I still do my exercises? Is there a drug out there that doesn’t make me feel like I’m dopey for an entire day? Like OTC Mec or even just Benedryl?

Hello I’m in desperate need of help ! I’ve had a major BPPV attack 2 months ago and I got treated for it at the ER. I also have a vestibular therapist and I have been doing vestibular habituation therapy. I also have been on betaserc 24 mg for 2 weeks now. this morning when I woke up after tilting my head up and down, left and right , I was extremely dizzy but no room spinning. but suddenly I had room spinning while eating breakfast and I bent down and I had vertigo lol. before this vertigo attack, I also had 2 other vertigo attacks. why does my vertigo keep recurring over these 2 months after my major attack even with VRT and betaserc ? I really don’t understand and also I’m a young adult I don’t think it’s age issues. Also, could it be vestibular migraines even though my vertigo is triggered by positions ? I suspect I might have VM because I have childhood vertigo, photophobia and motion sickness. please help 😭😭. also should I see a new vestibular therapist or neurologist ?