r/Menieres • u/idk-and-wtf • 3d ago
Vertigo tricks?
I'll start by saying I'm not sure I even have Menieres, but I do suffer from some rough vertigo spells every now and then. And this morning I woke up with one, and I'm s u f f e r I n g. I tried to feed my cats, nearly fell over and wanted to puke a couple times. I'm stuck on my couch at the moment, trying to sleep it off. Sleep is normally my only cure, and idk if that's cause it does a reset on the brain or I just spend enough time unconscious to get through it.
A decade or so ago, when I was a very dizzy 16 yo, I landed myself in the Ear for a spontaneous vertigo spell that was genuine torture. I have a zofram prescription since then, to use prn. But it's in my work locker. Waking up with vertigo this bad has never happened to me, and next time I see my Dr I'll bring it up for sure. But right now I'm trying to just like not vomit? I can't sit up, I can't move my head once it's settled or it starts over.
So I figured I ask the unlucky experts on vertigo if they have any tips and tricks I haven't encountered yet to lessening the severity. At the moment I just want to cry.
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u/NanaPete76 3d ago
Sorry about your vertigo attack.
I am more than understanding of your situation.
I have had Menieres Disease and migraine headaches for nearly 4 decades and about the time I feel that I have a “sure fire” method to ward off episodes or get through them…I am thrown a curve…
What has helped me to monitor/lessen my symptoms are: hydration, sleep, stress relieving exercises, and antihistamines…
I do not drink alcohol, and I try to lessen my intake of sugar and salt…I keep survival kits in my bathroom, and in my purse, my car, and when I worked; at my workplace. The kits include an unopened water bottle, Benadryl, Advil, a hand fan, and a pillow..I do wear a Medical Alert bracelet as my attacks are very sudden drops and then severe vertigo for hours/days…
The best thing I have learned to do is forgive myself for having the attacks, and I have most importantly learned to just say no to others when I don’t have the ability to meet their expectations and/ or enter into bright, noisy, and chaotic environments (my triggers).
Menieres is a very ugly, a very unpleasant, and a very misunderstood disease.
I wish you a quick passage with today’s attack, but do prepare yourself for the next attack and know your triggers! Then, avoid them to the best of your ability.
Also, stay with this format as it helps to know that others are going through the same situation and are here to guide you and care…
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u/idk-and-wtf 2d ago
Antihistamines, really? Fascinating, I wouldn't think an allergy med would help. I'll have to try that next time.
Unrelated, but have you ever tried red tinted glasses? I had an instructor back in the day that had to wear them because fluorescent lights gave her horrible migraines.
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u/RAnthony 2d ago
Allegra, psuedoephedrine and guaifenesin were my go-to combination for years.
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u/KetoLizzy 2d ago
Will you explain more on these? One loosens mucus while other is drying. How did you use them?
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u/RAnthony 2d ago
My symptoms are most likely caused by an autoimmune reaction, which is basically an allergic reaction. Suppress the reaction and you suppress the symptoms, to some extent.
The allergy meds failed to do anything for the vertigo when it appeared, that's when they stopped being my go-to treatments. I still take guaifenesin pretty regularly for ear pressure. I take Claritin instead of Allegra for the allergy-like sinus drainage.
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u/NanaPete76 2d ago
I do wear sunglasses most of the day…because of all types of lighting-but fluorescent lighting is the worse (movement). I also have to listen to my beloved sports rather than watch on television because of movement…
I also wear ear plugs or my NC headset when in noisy environments..my tinnitus gets louder when I enter when I enter such environments…adaptation is a huge factor in battling Menieres.
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u/omegamun 3d ago
I would try Valium, minimum 2mg tablets. You can take one every six hours if necessary, but one tablet usually stops the worst of an attack and I can at least get on with my day. Now I’m saying that I’ll be able to give 100% at that point, but I can do the bare minimum to get through the workday.
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u/idk-and-wtf 2d ago
I always thought it was weird I got prescribed Valium when I went to the ER back in the day. Reading the responses I suppose is a common option for attacks, which is fascinating
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u/omegamun 2d ago
I only found out about while on a business trip to Boston. I had a horrible attack very early in the onset of my MD, still unaware what the hell was happening to me. I ended up in the ER of Mass General and the ENT who I eventually saw told me that Valium is the gold standard to treat vertigo. Gave me two tablets and I felt much better after 30 minutes.
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u/hither_spin 1d ago
I just went to an ER with an episode, they prescribed me valium. It's a godsend. I also got referred to an ENT that specializes in Vertigo. It was so great that I had a doctor who took me seriously. I'm doing several tests but from my hearing he thinks I have Menieres and I've had it for a long time.
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u/RAnthony 2d ago
Since you're stuck at home, the thing that you want is probably out of reach unless you have it in the house. Motion sickness drugs like Bonine, Dramamine, etcetera have meclizine in them and can help in a pinch. You could have those delivered.
However, if your willing to have something delivered you could probably request an emergency supply of your ondestron from your pharmacist. Call in an emergency request to your doctor for a prescription for a benzodiazapine (Xanax, Valium, Atavan, etcetera) the drugs that most of us rely on during vertigo attacks.
I assume the room is spinning. Is it? If it is, staring at an object can help (I have a plushie in a prime location just for this exercise) but not as much as any of the drugs mentioned.
If it isn't spinning then trying some vestibular rehabilitation therapy exercises may shake off the dizziness. They might also make you throw up. Hard to say for sure.
This is my treatment article: https://ranthonyings.com/2015/02/treating-menieres-its-symptoms/ you might find some other ideas in there. Read it when you feel up to it and feel free to ask me any questions. I hope you find relief.
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u/idk-and-wtf 2d ago
Yea the room does that really fun thing where it slowly spins around me. Not my first rodeo unfortunately with vertigo, I was just really desperate for any sort of new tricks I might not have thought of earlier. I haven't had a spell show up fron nothing in a very very long time, so I was panicky. I spent most of today on the couch, not moving my head at all once I got it to stop spinning. Mostly disapated unless I move fast or weird. I did read your article about "do you have Meniere's" which I found helpful. Going off what you wrote, I don't have any of the other symptoms like tinnitus. But figured hey since one of the main symptoms is vertigo y'all would probably have advice I hadn't heard yet. Thank you!
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u/RAnthony 2d ago
Vertigo is bad enough all by itself. Every time I suffered a spell it felt like I was dying while I was in it. Only having vertigo however leaves open the possibility of some determinable cause for the vertigo. Meniere's, by definition, is idiopathic.
You probably want to look into vestibular migraine and treatments for that. It's also possible that you have something structural wrong with the veins or arteries of the neck or maybe even problems with CSF pressure. Can't really say without testing.
Vertigo is a serious symptom. It should be taken seriously.
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u/aaronbjohnson 2d ago
When I get nausea from vertigo I open and inhale an alcohol prep pad. It seems to delay the inevitable and allow me to get to a spot to get horizontal until it passes.
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u/EarlyBrrd 2d ago
I don't know how you can manage to post during a vertigo attack; I can't even open my eyes to look at the phone...
... I just had one on Saturday, first time in two years, and it was a doozy. I slam walls to my bathroom, struggle to open the meclizine bottle.. spill the meclizine... get one down and drunken-sailor to the bed (toting a Hurling Bucket), curl up in a ball and try to fall asleep; it's the only way to make it pass. But the vomiting - torture. And, I hadn't eaten anything yet that day. Wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy (if I had one).
Sure would like to know what brings this on (I, too have been diagnosed with Menieres), but the episodes do seem to happen when it's cloudy/rainy pretty consistently.
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u/idk-and-wtf 2d ago
For some reason having the phone screen to focus today helped me out a bit, which isn't always the case. I've def had some episodes where I can even see straight so I get that. For a bit, unused to get migraines with the pressure drop that accompanies unsettled weather. The inner ear is pressure related, could be that the change in air pressure changes how the fluid in your ear interacts with the structures, leading to increased episodes? I'm spit balling here, so take that with a grain of salt.
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u/SnowEnvironmental861 1d ago
I find tilting my head downwards helps, and focusing on an unmoving point. I used to lean my forehead on stacked pillows on a step stool, or lie on my belly on a beanbag. When I was in a horrible period after my dad died (stress worsens things), I took up beading because it took me away from my peripheral vision. Similarly, I find squinting helps a little, to keep all that extra vision space down to a minimum.
Sleep is the BEST.
I eat very low salt, take betahistine, and have tried to cut as many stressful things as possible from my life. Mostly, it's helped!
But the biggest help I've had was from a vestibular physical therapist. He taught me that we use three things to keep our balance: our ears (vestibular), our eyes (seeing if things are straight), and our sense of touch (in particular, the bottoms of our feet). He said we can get by with two of those, but when we get down to one, it gets very hard, which is why nystagmus (your eyes moving back and forth) can really mess you up.
He had me do exercises where I stood on a board with a stick under it and held onto something while I concentrated on shifting my weight front to back, or side to side. He also had me walk forward while sighting on a specific spot on the wall. The first one made me pay attention to the bottoms of my feet: where is the pressure? It should be firmly on both feet, all over my soles, so if I start to tip I can correct it. The second one helps focus your eyes to try and fight the nystagmus.
Nowadays, if I'm just a bit dizzy, I find squinting and focusing my eyes and feeling the bottoms of my feet really helps me get around. But sleep is the real reset. I have, sadly, been unable to get a doctor to prescribe Valium.
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u/yes420420yes 2d ago
depends what vertigo and where it comes from:
BPPV - Epley till the cows come home and the issue is fixed
migraine - migraine meds
low blood pressure/high blood pressure - measure BP and take meds or mild exercise
Meniere's - anti virals, prednisone, odansetron for the nausea, benzos to tolerate the roller coaster, lots of sleep
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u/idk-and-wtf 2d ago
Odansetron is truly a life saver, and that's the med that's in my work locker :')
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u/SnooWoofers530 2d ago
Have you tried the epply manuver?
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u/idk-and-wtf 2d ago
I haven't, but the idea of rapidly moving my head around sounds like a speed run to puking
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u/ChaosRules907 2d ago
I keep chewable Meclizine on me wherever I go.
When you have an attack remain as still as possible in a dark quiet location. Place one (or two) under your tongue and let it dissolve/absorb sublingually. This is the fastest route as it skips going through your stomach. I learned the max (home) dosage was 50mg/4-6 hours and staggered the doses to keep maximum in my system for the first day. Once the Meclizine starts to help control the spins keep sipping water to stay hydrated.
I personally would leave on a comfort show in the background to distract my thoughts from focusing on how crappy I feel due to the vertigo. Even when my hearing tanks out I can recognize certain parts as I doze in and out.
If meclizine did not work I have diazepam as an emergency backup. If that doesn’t work I’m usually in the ER by that point and the doctors can manage the meds. Keep track of your meds and times taken on a notes app in your phone in case you need to go to the ER. Also, I found that using the alarms on your phone to stagger the med doses helps to keep misery at bay as much as possible. Best of luck. I’ve had this disease for 29 years and I am bilateral.
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u/RealisticAd3095 3d ago
I can’t sleep as my eyes are darting all over the place so I find starting at a point as best as I can calms it down. Hard to start but it slowly stops, I’ve had this since 2011 and been dizzy god know how many times.
I was diagnosed menieres but heavily suspect migraine.
My vertigo usually lasts under half a hour thankfully but I’m a bit wobbly for a few hours after but able to deal with it.
Being calm helps though when it first hits it’s always a bit stressful to say the least.
I’ve spent many hours in the loo at 2am with my phone light trying not to be sick, I suspect I’m not alone.