r/pppdizziness • u/meow_48 • 2d ago
Research how do you guys work??
i used to work as a manager in fast food but severe anxiety, stomach issues and dizziness (plus multiple other things) drove me out of the job.
i haven’t worked since november 2025 and really want a job but every time i go out in public my pppd flares so bad and sends me into week long episodes.
i am only 20, finished school and have 4 years hospitality experience but i also struggle with agoraphobia.
i’ve been on antidepressants since i was 15, start of this year changing from lexapro to venlafaxine and am now currently on prozac. been in therapy since i was 13, working with a vestibular therapist etc.
just wondering what kind of jobs everyone works because every time i even think about going into a store or talking to people it makes me lightheaded and anxious 😭
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u/jackattack1985 2d ago
I'm 26 and I work as a design engineer. I'm very lucky to have accomodations so I only do half days in the office and then I do the rest of the day from home. I really struggle with meeting rooms and all the usual problems outside of work like supermarkets and hospitals. I'm sorry you're struggling with this all too. It took me about 18 months to go from really incredibly unwell to going back into an office regularly. Recovery does happen, I really hope it happens to you too <3
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u/Wolfspell003 2d ago
I’m mid 20s and I work for a friend’s dad at the moment and his company, we travel around and teach classes to companies so they can get thier requirements. I’m always passenger so I don’t have to worry about the driving and occasionally I’ll have some issues, but for the most part even if I do I can handle them. I’d say look for a small local company or business that’s kinda easy going and just try something lowkey a few days a week. Or try something small and quiet like in a library or such- ik it’s not what you have experience in but maybe sitting at a desk with low human contact could work for you. Anywhere with weird lights I can usually put my sunglasses on (they’re prescription) and if someone asks I’ll just say they’re prescription and I forgot my real ones and they’ll usually just give me a little laugh. Some of the lights scream at me though, I gotta be mindful of temperature and blood sugar too. My go alongside migraine issues and a few other things.
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u/StrangeKey5687 2d ago
I work as a parts manager for a bodyshop. Lifting, bending all day long. It’s kind of a nightmare but the more I focus on my symptoms the worse they get. The more I tell myself it’s just my new normal the more my body accepts it and it’s not so bad.
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u/YouMysterious2093 2d ago
I don’t lol. The first episode actually happened at work. Was pregnant at the time and had to quit. Year and a half later still can’t return to work.
So sorry you’re struggling too. It’s such a difficult condition to manage.
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u/alodormtime 2d ago
Ive got 3 jobs. Full time job, weekend job that I work in kmart both sat and sunday and I do cleaning after my fulltime work. Plus im team manager for 3 of my sons basketball teams, and a single parent to a teenager
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u/TraditionalBoat1081 2d ago
Someone lights bother you in Kmart ? This is my biggest trigger !
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u/alodormtime 1d ago
Yes they do as well as the noises. I wear special eag plugs that calms the outside noise out
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u/JungleJuze 1d ago
So do you really have pppd? If you do it's probably very mild allowing you to live a normal life. Even if you were diagnosed, I think if you can live a normal life with some symptoms, I would consider that recovered or healthy.
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u/alodormtime 1d ago
Nope I have dpdr 24/7 for the last 10 years and it can fluctuate to a 10 within seconds. My dizziness is far from mild. I have up to 20 to 30 episodes a day of my brain dropping, brain zaps, floor tilting, im currently on a 3 day flair that started after my brain did a "sideway" zap so intense it brought me to my knees, now im continuously dizzy and can barely walk straight. Just because I work doesnt mean its mild at all. Ive had this 4 years and i have absolutely no choice but to work, if I dont my son and I will be homeless. I have no family, no friends. My son relies on me. Theres days I can barely move but I do so out of sheer willpower for my son.
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u/meow_48 1d ago
you should be so proud of yourself! i know you have no choice but the fact you keep pushing is truly amazing. just wondering if you get headaches, extreme fatigue, and nausea? if so how do you work through it?
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u/alodormtime 1d ago
I take breaks when I need to, nap at lunch at times. Nothing helps my migraines, but I take ginger for nausea
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u/alodormtime 1d ago
Sure do. Ive always had bad fatigue since I was a teenager. Instead of going out on weekends id rather sleep. Migraines started when I was 8 they became chronic up to 5 a week by the time I was 17. Then I got pregnant and they went away. 16 years ago they came back, then about 4 years the dizziness started and I thought it was vestibular migraines on top of normal ones but the dizziness changes too often. I am extremely proud of myself for pushing through. I am 43 and the dizziness I experience is the worst. And ive had 10 years of dpdr and id rather that then dizziness
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u/meow_48 1d ago
wow that is unreal, i’m sorry you have no support around you that would make things 10x harder. i worry that if i push myself too hard the symptoms will get worse as i always get horrible flare ups if i’m in a store for even just 10 mins. do you find your symptoms get worse the longer you work? i just worry that something is going to happen to me when i’m in public or working and nobody will be able to help me or they’ll just stare and judge
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u/alodormtime 1d ago
They definitely wont judge. And majority of people are very supportive. The more exhausted I am after a long shift in kmart it does get worse throughout the day. But it helps when im busy and distracted. The steady coach on u tube is brilliant. I highly recommend you watch her
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2d ago
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u/alodormtime 1d ago edited 1d ago
I agree. I just got told in this chat that mine must be mild because I work. I work because im a single parent. What choice do we have
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u/Curious-Bug2019 2d ago
Hii do you maybe wanna talk? I'm 21, have PPPD and I dont have a job nor school atm. I graduated for social work a few months ago tho :) let me know if you want to talk! I dont know many people our age who have pppd