Millions of Americans get affected by vertigo. It brings a false sensation that the world is spinning around you, even when you're not moving, lying down, or sitting still. Apart from the dizzy spells and spinning sensations, you may experience nausea, vomiting, and trouble walking or keeping your balance.
The duration of vertigo episodes varies, some may last for a short time, or they can come and go for days or weeks. However long it lasts, vertigo makes sticking to your daily activities difficult—and even dangerous with the risk of losing balance and falling.
Because of the inconvenience and debilitating symptoms vertigo brings, there has been a lot of pursuit in finding the most effective vertigo relief. However, results vary per patient, and what works for others may not work for you, or vice versa. Patients can explore several ways to get relief from vertigo to find the one most suited to their needs.
With the technological advancement we are experiencing nowadays, some inventions and gadgets are introduced with the potential to improve a person's quality of life. For vertigo patients, experts have designed biofeedback headphones to help vertigo patients cope during an episode.
The approved product makes the vertigo trainer capable of accurately assessing a person's balance which aims to guide the patient. Through the biofeedback headphones, the patient will receive instructions for exercises with different difficulty levels, such as standing with eyes open and closed and walking on the spot with eyes open and closed. These exercises help make sure the patient maintains their balance and equilibrium.
It is a breakthrough that can help with different types of vertigo, especially vestibular vertigo. The headphones are designed with a built-in accelerometer and rotational sensors, which can tell when the users are not standing straight or when leaning and can set off alerts.
These alerts get sent to the users through acoustic signals. Gestures also control the device, automatically switching on as soon as the patient reaches for the headphones.
The Epley maneuver is generally considered safe for vertigo patients and is designed to move the crystals in the inner ear that may be causing dizziness. But take extra precaution as improperly performing the Epley maneuver may result in further displacement of the calcium crystals—and more severe vertigo symptoms.
When done correctly, it can be an excellent option to relieve your vertigo, mainly when your episodes result from BPPV or Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. Through specific head movements, your inner ear's crystals that shifted out of place can be removed, fixed, or returned to their correct spot.
For proper execution, you may watch YouTube videos demonstrating this maneuver or ask a professional to guide you while performing the exercise.
Some healthcare professionals may recommend inner ear injections when vertigo episodes are so severe. The injections usually contain steroids or other anti-inflammatory medications to help reduce swelling and inflammation in the inner ear.
In other vertigo cases, surgery may be necessary to correct a problem in the inner ear causing vertigo symptoms. However, surgery is usually the last resort. Doctors also recommend it when other non-invasive options have failed. Sometimes, cases of vertigo attacks that result from Meniere's Disease require surgery to combat severe vertigo. The process usually involves decompressing the endolymphatic sac or cutting off the vestibular nerve.
This safe and gentle method of chiropractic care has also been shown to provide vertigo relief. Upper cervical care focuses on maintaining alignment and balance and correcting misalignments of the upper cervical spine made up of your top two bones, the atlas, and the axis.
These bones may be linked to the vestibular system and brainstem problems. If you think upper cervical care may be right for you, you can reach out to a board-certified vertigo chiropractor. Narrow your search by choosing someone closest to your home or workplace for ease of continuity of adjustment sessions necessary. Upper cervical care is a safe, natural, and gentle chiropractic technique that potentially brings long-term relief from vertigo.
When your upper cervical bones move out of their proper alignment, your whole spine will compensate and follows the alignment set from the top. However, when the incorrect bone alignment stays for a long time, it will eventually bring additional pressure and stress to your brainstem, the part responsible for pain processing of the brain, and the surrounding nerves, muscles, and tissues.
Misalignments can obstruct blood flow, send wrong signals to the brain, and trigger pain, discomfort, and confusion in your brain's perceptions. Vertigo and other symptoms can manifest when the brain continuously receives wrong messages.
Correcting any misalignment in the spine is critical to alleviating symptoms of vertigo, and only a trained and certified upper cervical doctor can apply safe corrections and adjustments.
Different options are available for vertigo relief—and what works best for you may depend on the underlying cause of your symptoms. So if you're interested in exploring biofeedback headphones or other methods, such as upper cervical care, we encourage you to reach out to a qualified healthcare professional to help you determine which option is right for you.
With proper care, many people eventually experience the resolution of their vertigo symptoms—so don't hesitate to reach out for help if vertigo is already affecting your quality of life. Locate a nearby vertigo chiropractic doctor using the Upper Cervical Awareness doctors directory.
to schedule a consultation today.
The content and materials provided in this web site are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to supplement or comprise a medical diagnosis or other professional opinion, or to be used in lieu of a consultation with a physician or competent health care professional for medical diagnosis and/or treatment. All content and materials including research papers, case studies and testimonials summarizing patients' responses to care are intended for educational purposes only and do not imply a guarantee of benefit. Individual results may vary, depending upon several factors including age of the patient, severity of the condition, severity of the spinal injury, and duration of time the condition has been present.
