BPPV = Bad Vertigo

This is how I feel when I have vertigo!

BPPV: Notes From My Spinning Head The past few weeks have been challenging for me. I have something called BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo). Essentially, this condition is about the vestibular aspect of the brain’s balance system. From the Mayo Clinic website:

• “Inside the ear is a tiny organ called the vestibular labyrinth. It includes three loop-shaped structures (semicircular canals) that contain fluid and fine, hairlike sensors that monitor your head's rotation.

Other structures (otolith organs) in your ear monitor your head's movements — up and down, right and left, back and forth — and your head's position related to gravity. These otolith organs contain crystals that make you sensitive to gravity.

For many reasons, these crystals can become dislodged. When they become dislodged, they can move into one of the semicircular canals — especially while you're lying down. This causes the semicircular canal to become sensitive to head position changes it would normally not respond to, which is what makes you feel dizzy.

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo occurs most often in people age 50 and older, but can occur at any age. BPPV is also more common in women than in men. A head injury or any other disorder of the balance organs of your ear may make you more susceptible to BPPV.” There are solutions to setting these crystals back into place. One is called the Epley Maneuver. It’s a process of a pattern of movements of the head: lying down quickly, head rotations at certain angles, rolling over and holding the head in a specific way, then sitting up. Having a physical therapist do it is great—-but it’s also possible to do it at home. I will tell you right now that, although it’s not difficult to do, the maneuver makes me feel extremely dizzy and nauseous. I have to muster a lot of courage to do it myself. And I tend to wait until the vertigo is pretty bad to do it.

I have learned that once someone has BPPV, it comes back. And it’s unpredictable. One minute I’m fine, dancing and jumping around, the next, my head is spinning, the floor is wavy, and my eyes are jumping from side to side. It’s a bit frightening, not knowing when it will hit, dreading the Epley Maneuver, waiting to see if it worked or if I will have to repeat it multiple times until the crystals are back in place.

So I am living with it, carrying on with my life, teaching my classes, running on the good days and allowing myself to rest more (BPPV is exhausting!). I celebrate the long stretches of time when I am symptom-free. I don’t give it too much energy. It’s yet another “new normal” reset, waking each morning and carefully leaving the cocoon of my bed, hoping my first steps are steady and that my head is not spinning like a Tilt-a-Whirl as I make my way downstairs to the kitchen to brew the morning coffee.

Do you have BPPV? I'd love to have you share your experience.