Dizziness is best described as a feeling that you are disoriented or uncoordinated, & about to faint or pass out. Some patients might even feel as if their surroundings are moving or spinning out of control. Dizziness can sometimes also be accompanied by Vertigo & nausea. It’s important to remember that dizziness isn’t a medical condition on its own, rather always a symptom of some underlying condition.
Some of the most common causes of dizziness include:
- Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, also known as BPPV
- Hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar
- Hypotension, or low blood pressure
- Some medications
- Inner ear issues
- Issues with circulation
- Some conditions like anemia, migraines, or anxiety
- Stroke
- Motion sickness
- Head injuries
- Some viral and bacterial infections including the common cold
- Anxiety
- Dehydration
- Heatstroke
- Exercise-related exertion
How to treat Dizziness?
To treat vertigo, your doctor will focus on treating the underlying issue that’s causing your dizziness in the first place. Your doctor will conduct certain tests on you to find out the actual cause of your dizziness. These might include blood tests, MRI scans, full-body scans, & certain vertigo tests like the Dix-Hallpike test, the ENG & the VNG test, the caloric tests, the rotary chair test, & other tests.
Once your doctor has zeroed in on the actual cause of your dizziness, they will give you adequate treatment for the same. If your dizziness is caused by Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV), then your dizziness treatment might consist of certain vertigo exercises like the Epley Maneuver, & certain vertigo medications.
- The Epley Maneuver: The Epley Maneuver is a well-known vertigo exercise recommended as the first line of treatment for vertigo & dizziness patients. You can either perform the Epley Maneuver by yourself at home or have a trained vertigo expert do it on you in their office.To perform the Epley Maneuver for vertigo treatment, follow the instructions below:
-Sit on a flat surface, place a pillow behind you, & stretch your legs outward. -Turn your head 45 degrees to the right side.
-Quickly recline your head on the pillow with your head still tilted. Maintain this position for at least 30 seconds.
-Now slowly turn your head to the left side, making a full 90-degree angle, without lifting your neck.
-Turn to your left side by engaging your whole body. You should be completely on your left side by now.
-Return slowly to your original starting position, sitting up straight & looking forward.
To get optimal benefits from the Epley Maneuver, repeat the exercises three times in a row, about thrice every day in a week.
- Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy: Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy helps vertigo patients feel more balanced & coordinated. It is a set of specially designed vertigo exercises that helps the patient’s bodies compensate for the losses in the vestibular system by employing other senses in their place. Usually, a doctor will give you a specially designed plan to help control your dizziness & vertigo.
- Dizziness medications: Dizziness medications that your doctor will prescribe you to treat dizziness, actually focus on treating the underlying cause of your dizziness.
These dizziness & vertigo medications include:–Water Pills: Water Pills are also known as diuretics, and are prescribed to patients suffering from Meniere’s Disease. It is an inner ear disorder that is caused by excess amounts of fluid inside the ear, which lead to pressure inside the ear, dizziness, nausea, earache, & a ringing or buzzing sound in the ears, called tinnitus.
–Vertigo medications: Your doctor might also prescribe you some vertigo medications to help control your vertigo & dizziness symptoms. These medicines include the Vertin tablet, Stemetil tablet, the Stugeron-Forte tablet, the meclizine tablet, & some other medications depending on your exact symptoms & the underlying illness that is causing your symptoms. To treat generalized dizziness & vertigo symptoms, your doctor might also prescribe you antihistamines & anticholinergics. In certain cases, your doctor might also prescribe you anti-anxiety & anti-dizziness medications to control your symptoms.
If your doctor suspects that your dizziness is being caused by a viral or bacterial infection, they may prescribe you certain antibiotics or anti-viral medications, along with plenty of rest, fluid intake, & rest.
Home remedies for dizziness
In some cases, dizziness can also be treated with certain home remedies. These home remedies are helpful in reducing the intensity of your dizziness & vertigo symptoms, although they don’t help treat your condition permanently.
Some well-known & helpful home remedies for dizziness & vertigo treatment are:
- Drinking enough water: A lack of hydration is actually one of the most common causes of dizziness & vertigo. It also happens more often than we think it does. It’s after all, very easy for people to forget to drink enough water throughout the day, so dehydration-induced vertigo is not very uncommon. The next time you feel dizzy and can’t remember when you had your last drink of water, it’s time to chug a glass of freshwater to help with the dizziness & vertigo symptoms.
- Ginger: Ginger helps treat symptoms of dizziness & vertigo, nausea, vomiting, & motion sickness in people suffering from one of these conditions. Ginger is also helpful in relieving the dizziness & vertigo symptoms in pregnant women, including nausea. You can take ginger in multiple forms; by putting a small amount in everyday food, milk, tea, & even water, or by taking certain supplements & pills containing ginger as their active ingredient. However, you should always consult your doctor before beginning any new supplement, as it can react with any of your existing medications.
- Vitamin C: People with Meniere’s Disease have been shown to benefit from adding vitamin C to their diet. You can try introducing foods rich in vitamin C in your everyday diet like oranges, grapefruits, strawberries, bell peppers, to name a few.
- Vitamin E: Vitamin E helps maintain the elasticity of your blood vessels. This helps treat poor circulation & issues arising out of that. Some foods rich in vitamin E include wheat germ, seeds, nuts, kiwis, spinach, among others.
- Vitamin D: A lack of Vitamin D in your body can worsen or exacerbate the symptoms of vertigo & dizziness. Try to include more food items rich in vitamin D like fortified milk, egg yolk, canned tuna, etc.
- Iron: A lack of iron causes the level of hemoglobin in your blood to drop, causing conditions like anemia. Anemia can lead to a low number of red blood cells in your body, causing less oxygen & blood to be supplied throughout the body. This can sometimes cause dizziness & other symptoms of vertigo. Including more food items rich in iron in your diet can help with that. Examples include red meat, spinach, green leafy vegetables, pomegranate seeds, poultry, beans, among others.
Along with these Vertigo medications & home remedies, certain lifestyle changes can also help you get relieved from vertigo & dizziness symptoms.
These include:
- Indulging in stress-reducing activities like walking, jogging, yoga, meditation, etc. to help calm you down & give rise to positive thoughts & happiness hormones.
- Reducing the intake of caffeine & alcohol, as these can affect certain sensory receptors in our body causing dizziness & vertigo-like symptoms.
- Getting proper sleep, as a lack of sleep can make your brain groggy & unable to retain crucial information about maintaining balance & coordination, leading to increased dizziness & vertigo attacks.
- Knowing & avoiding triggers. You can maintain a diary that helps you see what causes your dizziness & vertigo attacks. If it’s a specific situation, the position of the head, movement, sound, or sight, you should try to avoid it as best you can.