Vertigo

[StayAtHomeMom]

I remember seeing some people post on here about their vertigo. My son came home last night and and was feeling off. He couldn't walk straight, clumsy to no end. The world was spinning and moving. Eyesight was blurry.  Nauseous. Bright light from the TV was bothering him. Best way he felt was sitting kind of curled up against the back of the couch keeping is eyes downward. If he moved his eyes or head it got worse. 

I gave him some motion sickness mediation last night. Didn't seem to help much. He really didn't want to go to the ER so I have been waiting it out. This morning he is walking funny still but he says all of the other symptoms are gone. He says he feels like a Spinda though (it is a Pokémon). 

My question is when you have vertigo is it normal to come and go in about 12-24 hours? Does his experience sound similar to anyone else. I highly suspect my son has POTS, he sees my specialist on Thursday to confirm. So I try not to run him to the ER over every little thing. But this is a bit disconcerting watching my son go through this. I mean I have lived it but I feel so helpless watching my son go through it and can't help. 

[WinterSown]

Yep, that's it. That is a perfect description of the sensations of classic vertigo. He may also have experiences of other movement outside his body, it doesn't have to be the spins. Things may seem off or distorted. Take your son to his pediatrician or your primary and ask them to please do a Dix Hallpike Maneuver, which is a simple, non-invasive test that any doctor can do in their office. It only takes a a few short minutes and the doctor can tell quickly if there is a significant problem.  Mine is managed with PT and low-dose valium; 2mg pills but I bite them in half. I don't know what you have in your medicine cabinet but Bonine is wonderful for getting rid of the foggy fuzzy sensations in your head. My PT sessions started out in a darkened room with the DPT rotating my head to reposition some crystals in my ear that were out of place; it took a few visits but that was a great help. Also, he has been helping me with balance and core strength so if I trip I can usually keep myself from falling. It's like a miracle. Vertigo is serious because of the loss of perception, the nausea and danger of having balance and gait problems. It can be corrected. I feel so sad for your  son, vertigo is very unpleasant at any age and I hope he feels much better soon.

 

[StayAtHomeMom]

Can a chiropractor do the maneuver as well? We are due to see the Chiro in the morning.

And honestly every doctor I have taken him to locally has been a joke. He is technically pediatric even thought he is 5'10 and 180lbs. And most of the doctors he has seen has just dismissed any of his issues. His PCP is great but he is super hard to get in and see. 

My son has always been pretty clutzy. At a young age it was due to his poor eyesight. Then he got glasses so things were better for a little while then he started growing. And his feet always grow before the rest of him so he is used to banging in to things when he walks. 

He thinks his walking this morning is more funny than anything. He is just happy the rest of his symptoms are gone. Honestly I think his symptoms last night were kind of freaking him out. Walking a little crooked today is a cinch after last night. 

[MeganMN]

The chiropractor should be able to do the Epley maneuver. It can be helpful for vertigo. 

 

[StayAtHomeMom]

Ok. I will have to talk to him about it tomorrow. 

[bkweavers]

You can try the chiropractor but honestly, it never helped my daughter's dizziness/vertigo. She had POTS and the dizziness was daily.( I don't say that to scare you because it may not be the case for your son. )Before her diagnosis of POTS, she was checked out by an ENT and the dizziness was not due to vestibular or inner ear. It was and is a symptom of POTS.  Does he have other symptoms besides the dizziness? 

Brenda

[StayAtHomeMom]

3 hours ago, bkweavers said:

You can try the chiropractor but honestly, it never helped my daughter's dizziness/vertigo. She had POTS and the dizziness was daily.( I don't say that to scare you because it may not be the case for your son. )Before her diagnosis of POTS, she was checked out by an ENT and the dizziness was not due to vestibular or inner ear. It was and is a symptom of POTS.  Does he have other symptoms besides the dizziness? 

Brenda

Yes. He sees my POTS specialist Thursday to start his testing. His HR changes an average of 70 points laying to standing. He usually is about 70 laying and standing up and still has it go to 140. His other symptoms are fatigue, chest pain, heavy limbs, chronic headaches, GI issues... typical POTS stuff. The only reason I am not 100% sure he has it as well is because his BP will sometimes plummet when he stands. Not always but his symptoms really get bad when it does. 

[DizzyGirls]

How is your son doing?  My daughters have had vertigo for 10 years.  Both seem to be caused by dysautonomia.  The Epley manuevers and related ones don't help at all, instead they make it worse.  My daughter passed out while PCP was trying to do the Epley on her.  He couldn't figure out why she wasn't responding to it!  Their vertigo isn't inner ear based, it's autonomic.  My oldest daughter's is most likely a mix of migraine related vertigo and autonomic.  My daughter has the same reaction your son does when standing.  Her BP tends to drop.  She's on Metoprolol right now and her POTS is much better.  Vertigo is still very bad right now, however, but she has after-effects of multiple spinal fusion last year and it does affect the vertigo.  I hope your son gets better soon.  Vertigo is so extremely debilitating.  If he hasn't tried something like meclizine to calm it down, he might give it a try.  Benedryl works for some people too, just makes you sleepier!

[StayAtHomeMom]

3 hours ago, DizzyGirls said:

How is your son doing?  My daughters have had vertigo for 10 years.  Both seem to be caused by dysautonomia.  The Epley manuevers and related ones don't help at all, instead they make it worse.  My daughter passed out while PCP was trying to do the Epley on her.  He couldn't figure out why she wasn't responding to it!  Their vertigo isn't inner ear based, it's autonomic.  My oldest daughter's is most likely a mix of migraine related vertigo and autonomic.  My daughter has the same reaction your son does when standing.  Her BP tends to drop.  She's on Metoprolol right now and her POTS is much better.  Vertigo is still very bad right now, however, but she has after-effects of multiple spinal fusion last year and it does affect the vertigo.  I hope your son gets better soon.  Vertigo is so extremely debilitating.  If he hasn't tried something like meclizine to calm it down, he might give it a try.  Benedryl works for some people too, just makes you sleepier!

I gave him some dramamine. It didn't really help so he went to sleep. Next morning he was fine except he was still walking funny. Monday I had the Chiro check him out. He said he isn't showing signs anymore. He might have fixed it by himself because that night he would sit a certain way that it didn't bother him and may have adjusted everything back. He sees my specialist tomorrow to test him for POTS. I figure I will just add it to the list of his symptoms. Dizziness isn't anything new for him. He suffers a lot of things in silence because I am over protective. But he said usually the dizziness isn't bad. It is mostly lightheadness from what he describes though. I will be posting an update soon about him though.