If Vertigo Is Your Problem, Physiotherapy Is Your Answer

Do you suffer from vertigo? If so, you are all too familiar with rooms that feel like they are spinning, a dizzy head, and an upset stomach. The vast majority of the people in your life probably don’t have a grid for how intense and life-altering vertigo can be. Does any of this sound familiar? A lot of people who have vertigo suffer in silence. They don’t ask for help or seek medical attention for their condition because they do not know help exists. Some people do not even know the name of what it is they are dealing with. Do you have vertigo?

Signs and Symptoms of Vertigo

Only a medical professional can diagnose vertigo. However, if you suffer from the following symptoms, there’s a chance you may have it:

• Feeling unbalanced or like you are swaying back and forth, tilting to one side, or being pulled in one direction
• Headache
• Sweating
• Nausea
• Hearing loss
• Tinnitus
• Nystagmus

If you have any of these symptoms, visit a physician and discuss possible causes. If vertigo is your problem, your solution may be physiotherapy.

Wait…Physiotherapists Treat Vertigo?

If you are surprised that physiotherapists treat vertigo, you are not alone. Plenty of people are unaware of this. They mistakenly think physiotherapy is only for people with back and neck pain. This is not the case. Physiotherapy can help relieve dozens of health problems, vertigo being one of them.

Physiotherapists treat vertigo and other inner-ear problems by administering vestibular rehabilitation. In vestibular rehab sessions, a physiotherapist “will develop an individualized treatment plan that will include exercises to be performed both in the therapy department and at home and that combine specific head and body movements with eye exercises. Many times, treatment may also include increasing activities and exercise in order to strengthen muscles and increase tolerance for certain stimuli,” states the article Dizziness/Vestibular Problems: Introduction. These sessions, combined with several weeks’ worth of home-program participation, can result in the most amazing gift for vertigo sufferers: a world and body that feels more balanced and normal.

Vestibular rehab should be a first-line therapy for people dealing with vertigo. This physiotherapist-lead treatment is proven to reduce the symptoms mentioned earlier. According to the Vestibular Disorders Association, “Evidence has shown that vestibular rehabilitation can be effective in improving symptoms related to many vestibular (inner ear/balance) disorders.”

Vestibular problems like vertigo can seriously diminish your quality of life. If you have vertigo or another vestibular disturbance, do not go one more day without contacting a physiotherapist to set up an evaluation. It could be the difference between a solid, balanced world and one that is constantly spinning. Which will you choose?