Vertigo
This
article is written from a layman’s' perspective.
Always check with your doctor with any vertigo symptoms
(dizziness).
The first time I experienced Vertigo symptoms was
right after I had a nasty bout with bronchitis. I had
already missed one week of work because of it. On the day
I planned on returning to work; I got up when my alarm
went off and promptly hit the floor.
I didn't fall to the floor because my legs
were weak. I didn't even feel "bad". But I was as dizzy
as you could get. Scared out of my wits - I'd never
experienced any thing like this before in my life - I
crawled my way to the living room and climbed into a
chair. The dizziness remained. I made coffee, thinking
the Vertigo symptoms would go away. They didn't and I
decided to go to the emergency room.
At the emergency room, (as visions of brain
tumors and the like presented themselves in my mind) the
doctor seemed quite confident as to what my problem was.
He asked me a series of questions, ran some tests, did
some blood work and gave me some Antivert. He concluded
that because of the Bronchitis, I had gotten the Vertigo,
and that this was common. Vertigo is also common in the
elderly - and it's usually chronic.
He sent me home with my prescription of Antivert.
I was out of work for another week, basically chained to
my couch or bed. I couldn't do anything else. I could not
sit in front of my computer, or watch TV - everything had
a tendency to bounce around. I was miserable. The
Antivert that was prescribed to me made me incredibly
drowsy and I slept a lot. After 3 days, I felt better and
not quite so dizzy, but I still was unable to drive at
this point, and it took another few days to feel
normal.
The best way for me to describe my Vertigo symptoms is
this. Don't laugh. It's exactly how I felt.
Have you ever gotten so drunk to the point to
where you got the spins? The room starts spinning and
twirling taking you for the ride. It only goes away when
you lay down and lay completely still. Only with Vertigo
symptoms, it doesn't go away.
My mother is prone to Vertigo, she usually
gets the Transderm Scop motion sickness patch. She says
it doesn't make her drowsy and vertigo symptoms go away
within 24 hours. I've never tried the patch, I've always
taken Antivert, prescribed by a doctor or you can also
buy generic Antivert over the counter at any drugstore.
Look for Meclizine on the box, or the brand
Bonine.
My understanding of one of the causes of Vertigo
is an imbalance of the crystals in the ear, which make
sense, at least for me since I only get Vertigo after
I've been sick with Bronchitis.
If you are experiencing vertigo symptoms,
contact your doctor immediately.