r/VestibularDysfunction

Tomorrow will be exactly 4 weeks since I was in a car accident on July 22. I didn’t black out and I actually didn’t feel much pain immediately afterward. A few days later, around July 27, I started getting headaches, lightheadedness and vision issues. I got checked out on July 28 and was diagnosed with a mild concussion.

Since then I’ve definitely improved a lot. The headaches and some of the other symptoms have gotten much better, and I feel way better than I did during the first couple of weeks. The main thing worrying me now is that my vision still doesn’t feel completely normal. I also get random spells of lightheadedness/vertigo and fatigue.

Tomorrow is the 4-week mark and I’m starting to worry that this means I now have post-concussion syndrome and that these symptoms could last for months. I know everyone recovers differently, but it’s hard not to think about it when I’m still not back to normal.

I’ve been going to a physio that I was referred to by the hospital for about 3 weeks, but most of my appointments have basically been chiropractic treatment. There hasn’t been much focus on my vision, balance, vestibular system or other concussion-specific rehab. I’m wondering if I should find a physiotherapist or another professional who specifically specializes in concussion/vestibular rehabilitation.

I also haven’t been able to return to work yet. I’m a painter, so I’m on my feet, moving around, climbing ladders and need my vision and balance to feel normal. I really want to get back to work and start doing normal physical activities again, but I don’t feel 100% safe doing that yet.

For anyone who was still experiencing vision problems, dizziness or lightheadedness around the 4-week mark: did you continue improving after that? Did concussion/vestibular therapy make a difference? And at what point did you decide to see a different specialist?

I’m getting pretty worried about this turning into something that lasts for months, so I’d really appreciate hearing from people who’ve been through something similarj.

I have been having vague sensations of dizziness and floating for about two months now. It is usually when I am walking or moving, just a general sense of not being grounded to my surroundings. It is also accompanied by some sensations of tingling in the scalp and sometimes in both arms. All of It has been causing me a lot of anxiety and worry.

I have had actual BPPV before with vertigo where the world would spin when I would roll over in bed, etc...... this is very different then that felt. Laying in bed causes me no problems.

I have had a rough 12 months of pretty severe anxiety and stress (my wife passed away last year, and I have been working and trying to raise four kids by myself) Share this as background that might be helpful. In April I had some health scares that eventually resolved. In the first week of June I was diagnosed with a Hiatal hernia and GERD, which had caused a chronic cough. the first episode of dizziness was shortly after.

I had been on wellbutrin for a few years but for some unknown reason decided to stop taking it in April right before all these health problems surfaced. I have just recently in the past week started back up on the medication.

With all that background info I fully understand that it all point to anxiety driven. But of course having anxiety causes me to continue to worry that something else is wrong with me. So I guess I am just here to see what others may have to say about it.

Hello everyone.

I am currently awaiting my ENT referral and my GPs highly suspect meniers disease. I am on betahistine 16mg three times daily.

However, I have noticed that occasionally my hearing drops out on the right side?

I can be in the middle of a conversation with someone, or tilting my head to the side when at work to see something better, or even just doing my vestibular rehab exercises and it's like someone has found the volume knob and twisted it down,so my hearing just sort of vanishes for a few seconds....I usually get ear fullness at the same time,but sometimes not?

I am generally very good at taking my meds, but occasionally I can be late due to my job (vet surgeon) and I've noticed the incidence increases with this.

Does this happen to anyone else?

Thanks guys ☺️

Hi everyone, I am a 23M writing about my experience and current symptoms. I wanted to make a post because I am desperate for help, as I feel like my life has been taken away from me.

On June 15, I suddenly experienced severe spinning vertigo. It started while I was in bed and lasted roughly 20–60 minutes. I vomited three times and went to the hospital that night. Blood tests were normal. I went to sleep about three hours after the episode, but when I woke up the next day, I didn’t feel normal.

The actual spinning never happened again.

For the first couple of weeks, I was very unsteady and felt like I was physically leaning to one side when walking. I lost my appetite and some weight, had an eye twitch for about a week, and occasionally experienced tingling/pins and needles in my hands and feet. I also became extremely anxious about what was happening.

One strange thing (that might not be related, but started at the same time) was pain on the upper left side of my nose and sometimes an upper toothache, especially when biting down.

Over the following weeks, some things objectively improved. My appetite returned, the eye twitch disappeared, and, most importantly, the physical leaning gradually improved. However, the strange visual/internal sensation has basically remained.

I had a non-contrast CT of my head, which showed a normal brain but some sinus mucosal thickening involving the maxillary/ethmoid/sphenoid sinuses.

After a few weeks, I scheduled an appointment to have all my vestibular systems checked.

They tested:

• VNG/Oculomotor function
• Smooth pursuit/tracking
• Saccades
• Optokinetic nystagmus
• Positional testing
• Calorics
• vHIT
• cVEMP/oVEMP
• Computerised dynamic posturography
• Functional gait

My peripheral vestibular function was normal. There was no evidence of BPPV. Calorics were symmetrical, VOR gains were normal in every semicircular canal, VEMPs were normal, and there were no significant catch-up saccades.

Importantly, my smooth pursuit/tracking was objectively normal, as were my saccades and other oculomotor tests.

My posturography was also extremely good, and my Functional Gait Assessment was also good.

Despite all of that being normal, my biggest remaining problem feels like it's in my eyes/visual processing.

If a car drives past horizontally and I follow it with my eyes, tracking it feels extremely strange/off. The same thing happens watching people walk past me. The world itself does NOT move, bounce or spin. My eyes appear to follow the object correctly. It's the sensation while following it that feels wrong.

As soon as I stop tracking the object, that particular sensation disappears.

I can also sometimes feel internally wobbly/floaty/spacey, even though the environment is completely stationary. Face-to-face conversations can sometimes feel visually strange. Reading sometimes feels more effortful than it used to.

Busy environments can make me feel worse. For example, I recently went to a theatre, and the foyer/hall was packed with people moving around, which made me feel terrible. However, I can also sometimes feel bad walking somewhere with few people, so it isn't exclusively about crowds.

At other times, I can walk around my house relatively normally. Driving is manageable. Showering is fine. I can go into grocery stores without getting dizzy. Scrolling on my phone doesn't really bother me.

I also had an eye exam with an optometrist shortly after the original event and was told everything looked normal.

I've been given vestibular rehabilitation exercises involving walking while moving my head and VOR-cancellation exercises. Interestingly, these exercises don't reproduce my main tracking symptom. Watching an actual car/person move horizontally is much more likely to produce it.

At this point, I'm considering seeing a neurologist and potentially having a brain MRI because I want to rule out a central/neurological explanation. I am also considering a chiropractor assessment to rule out any neck-related issues. I am an anxious person, but the symptoms don't really feel like anxiety.

Has anyone experienced something similar?

I have IV metastatic breast cancer. The petrous bone in my ear has lesions. This has resulted in imbalance and constant dizziness for over a year. This has greatly effected my quality of life more then any other issue related to the cancer. Has anyone else experienced this? Is there any treatment options? So far I have done vestibular PT and meclizine.

Hello! I had vestibular neuritis about 4 weeks ago and since that day my dizziness slowly disappeared but my appetite and thirst gradually declined. At the moment I can't feel any hunger or thirst even after doing exercise. Is this common or could there be something else that had happened?

Much appreciated!

Hi all. I had a sinus infection March/ April after I had Eustachian tube dysfunction. With the ETD I was light headed all the time, until the doctor told me to do the valsava maneuver. It worked! But then two weeks later I got a horrible sinus Infection, then giving me a bilateral ear infection. After those antibiotics I felt better for a day. One day. And the symptoms came back as dizziness, lightheadedness, and terribly loud tinnitus. Got diagnosed with vestibular neuritis by a doctor and physio. ENT denied my referral. This is late April early May. I’m seeing a physio, on beta blockers. I feel good for a week. Then boom back to my original symptoms but worse. Physio kind of helps. Months go by. July. I notice black squiggles in my eyes when I eye track, very bad headaches accompany too. My doctor suggests vestibular migraines as well. I try migraine meds and the pain stops but my symptoms persist. It is now August, and I have been unable to ride my bike, hike, run, or just exist without that lightheadedness. I live at elevation, and have my whole life, but when I went to lower elevation for a few days my symptoms stopped. I come back to higher elevation and they come back. I am now on amitriptyline, recommended by a neurologist. I have been on for 2 1/2 weeks and have noticed slight change. Currently waiting for an MRI. Has anyone else experienced this from a sinus infection?? I know someone who has been as well, and had to go back to his home country shortening his working holiday visa. Truly heartbreaking. If anyone else is experiencing this please share your thoughts or what has worked for you. Thank you. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Hey everybody! I was recently seen by an ENT for ear issues (fullness) that comes and goes. If I take Benadryl, it subsides within 2-4 hours. My ENT thinks I’m having VM’s. I do not have a headache, it truly just feel like my ear is full and affects my speech and balance at times. It is MUCH worse if I’m at work, and sometimes when cleaning my house. The ENT said that Benadryl helps because it is a sedative. I go for MRI and VNG soon. My question is, is these the same symptoms you have with your VM’s because I’m not 100% sure this is my issue. Also, I receive regular Botox on my for head, 11’s and crows feet. I know some have mentioned that Botox helps, I have noticed no difference.

I have been dizzy 24/7 for about 6 weeks, almost 7. I have been to the er 4 times for this, seen my primary multiple times, seen a cardiologist and chiropractor (my eyes track completely fine) and had many tests done. It is more of a off balance feel like i am gonna pass out and fall over. It seems to be worse if im rocking in my chair or looking at my computer screens ( I work from home.) I am so terrified I will be like this forever. I had a couple good days in there but not a lot. How do i overcome this? Im also on lexparo and just recently seroquel as well for extreme anxiety and OCD

I am in my second week since my grand debut episode, waiting for an MRI tomorrow morning.

For a few days I’ve been doing the exercises that the ENT prescribed - I think VOR1 and balance exercises (I’m still learning the terminology). I have no problem doing them 2, 3 or even more times per day. I am also playing with a tennis ball in the gym trying to bounce and catch it off the floor.

Does anyone know if there’s a chance of overdoing the exercises and making things worse? Thank you!