I just want to stop falling over :(

[NonworkingAnkle]

I posted before about falling over.

It happened again today. Left ankle gave out with no warning on the stairs at my dentist. Went over forward with my right foot, fell to the floor.

Managed to get upright after signing safety forms for dentist and drive slowly home.

Foot up, iced with crutches (which I didn't have chance to return from when I fell down our own stairs, sigh) I am in so much pain.

I am sick of being in pain, of falling over and dropping things with no notice.

Doctors said to just have to get used to it :(

Luckily neurologist ruled out anything bad last month.

I have thyroid issues, bowel problems, sleep apnoea and always exhausted.

But this falling over is really upsetting me. I take care on the stairs, I hold on to the bannister and go slowly and I still fall.

I never use to be like this :( Clumsy yes but never falling over and twisting my ankle regularly.

Sprained my left ankle three weeks ago, which just stopped hurting. Now this.

What can I do !

[MitziK]

Poor you. Have you started physio for your first injury? Sounds like it's still weak - it would be an idea to look into it, as the exercises they teach can help you balance better.

I spent a long time on wobble boards in physio - they are great at strengthening your stabilising muscles and teaching you to be more 'balanced', as does yoga.

[NonworkingAnkle]

I was given a print out with exercises on it from the doctor, which I do. But do not help, I am still falling.

Plus I am having the same issue with my hand grip, which is why I drop things with out warning.

[JaneEyre07]

Seconding what the PP said. I had a head injury many years ago, and my balance was one of my worst symptoms. I had physio once a week and it made a massive difference. I could barely walk down stairs at one point and was having to go down on my backside like a toddler.

The first time I went they asked me to close my eyes and walk 5 steps forward. Took me around 6 months to master that............

[NonworkingAnkle]

I struggle to stay upright on flat surfaces...most of my falls are when I am walking on the flat.

Wobble boards were suggested previously but my DH said I had no chance of staying upright on a wobble board. I have hearing issues and general poor balance.

But I didn't fall more than once every 3 years or so. Now I am falling several times a week, with a serious fall at least once a month. I am spending more times with crutches or a stick,than I am without

[JaneEyre07]

Also have you checked with your GP that this isn't a side effect of any meds you're taking?

[NonworkingAnkle]

The neurologist suggested up my meds for thyroid and physio. The GP gave me that sheet of exercises.

Can the GP refer me to physio ? I can't afford to pay privately.

[InspectorClouseauMNdivision]

I have hearing issues and general poor balance.

This can be connected tbh

[NonworkingAnkle]

JaneEyre07
Good point. I will ask them to check meds side effects. It could be the thyroid meds.

[NonworkingAnkle]

InspectorClouseauMNdivision
I guessed my deafness and hard of hearing was related to my poor balance. I am use to walking into doors, tables and tripping all the time. I am use to that and have found that all my life.

But this last 6 months of frequently falling to the floor, dropping cups and plates of food. Has scared me and made me so fed up.

[MrsCasares]

You should be referred to the falls clinic. Ask your gp to do this, and refer you for physio too.

[Tomtontom]

Have you been seen by an ENT Consultant? You need to eliminate an inner ear imbalance.

Is it your balance that goes and then you hurt your ankle, or is it an ankle weakness causing you to lose your balance?

[ColeHawlins]

I say this all the time on these threads, but if you have bowel issues and balance/neuro issues, look into conditions causing malabsorption bad enough to cause b12 deficiency or similar.

B12 isn't on a standard blood panel and is too rarely checked for.

I myself had Coeliac, and resultant B12 neuropathy, but was checked for MS multiple times (and given the all clear) before this was correctly diagnosed. It's apparently a common story, so consider various gastric ailments.

Also, if you're a vegan, that's enough to cause certain deficiencies in its own.

[Singlenotsingle]

I don't mean to scare you, but have you considered MS?

[Ninjasan]

Please check this: www.nhs.uk/conditions/foot-drop/

Have you got any problems with your back? I had foot drop and it was horrible.

[Bufferingkisses]

Have you been checked for meniers disease? I would ask for a referral to ent/balance clinic in your position.

[MitziK]

It takes more than a couple of weeks to fix, I'm afraid.

Grip strength, though - have you had recent blood tests to look for inflammation markers like CRP and ESR? If you have and they're OK (ie, not suggesting an autoimmune/inflammatory thing like RA), there are exercises you can do for that as well - the different grip trainers used by weighttrainers and guitarists, the vibrating weighted balls, that kind of thing. Strengthening your arm muscles helps, as your fingers are controlled from further down (the tendons running along the back of your hands to your wrists join your arm muscles), as does flexibility/dexterity exercises;

Think of your thumb as T, your fingers as 1, 2, 3, 4.

Start slowly and put them together T1, T2, T3, T4 five times.

Then T4, T3,T2,T1.

T1,3,4,2
T2,4,3,1
T1,4,2,3

etc, etc. Roll and stretch your fingers and wrists. Do 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star' flicks. Type, play keyboard, play guitar, anything that requires both grip and dexterity. Expect to be crap, but you will get better.


[I'm a musician with Psoriatic Arthritis, EDS and the ability to fall over on a perfectly flat piece of pavement since I broke my neck in an accident over twenty years ago. All of these things help.]

[Bringbackthestripes]

I am another one that thinks you need to see if you have had B12 checked. Symptoms can start long before your levels drop to abnormal. It is also worth checking vitamin D as both B12 & Vit D deficiencies are common in patients with thyroid issues.

[MitziK]

Sorry, thread update whilst I was typing.

Since when is your DH an expert? The whole point is that you're crap on a wobble board. That's why you need to use one. The GP can refer you for physio, you can do wobble board exercises holding on to a rail at first (they usually have a portable rail a bit like a ballet barre exactly for that reason) and they have different levels of wobbliness to improve on.

By the end of my physio, I was playing catch on a board with two guys who had both hurt their ankles on motorbikes. It was fun - and even before that, it was reassuring to see them struggle as much as I had in earlier sessions, because it proved just how much I had improved in the time.

[ColeHawlins]

It is also worth checking vitamin D as both B12 & Vit D deficiencies are common in patients with thyroid issues.

Yes ', and they all affect each other.

[NonworkingAnkle]

I do have Malasorbtion issues and they top up my iron, b12, vit d and anything else that dropped yearly.

I will ask for an up to date blood test to check that.

Not a vegan. No back problems.

Ankle gives way without warning. No pain when it gives way, until I twist or fall onto the floor. But like someone has cut the strings to my ankle without warning.

Same with my grip. Most of the time, I lift something. But somethings my grip fails and I drop whatever I was picking up. In closing a cup of tea recently...that wasn't fun.

[NonworkingAnkle]

I will get wobble board and do grip exercises as suggested.

[NonworkingAnkle]

I assume I don't have to worry about actual neurological problems, as I saw a neurologist last month and he said I was fine.

[ColeHawlins]

If you have a degree of peripheral neuropathy, neurologists generally won't pick that up, as they're looking for CNS disorders.

[MitziK]

Oooh, just thought of something. If you can't rely upon your ears to tell you you're balanced, that means that presumably you're using your eyes - like a ballerina 'spots' to be able to pirouette without falling over.

Have you had your eyes tested recently?

[Someoneonlyyouknow]

I think you need to go back to your GP. Physio to improve your core muscles would help your balance but the weakness in ankle and grip need to be investigated. I have spent time on a wobble board and my balance definitely improved but also had exercises to do at home, including standing on one leg for a minute (I do it while I am brushing my teeth). Exercise like yoga or Pilates can also improve core strength.