Vertigo - anyone got any tips?

[Tootletum]

My husband has been in bed for nearly three days with it. Every time he gets up, he throws up. He's rung the GP who prescribed some anti emetics, but he still says it's too bad to get up. He doesn't want to eat. I guess I'm wondering if anyone has any experience and knows how long this can go on for, or what I can do to help. I'm trying not to worry about the blurred vision he gets periodically, the Internet seems a bit funny on that one!

He need two diff types of meds, one antipsychotic and one anti sickness. I'm sure someone medical will come along and tell u correct names, I've forgotten them,

Keep him in bed till u get them otherwise he might get a few bruises

Don't worry it will pass, feels horrendous but it will pass

Once the episode is done he needs to prioritise sleep and minimise stress to prevent further episodes

But if he had his meds he keeps them and when next episode arrives if he takes them on time he will only be dizzy for a half hour max

Xx

Thank you. He's not had a single day off in six months. We just came back from two weeks holiday and basically seems like he's completely crashed out. I'm now worried his work will let him go if he can't get back to work. Fuck. How do I look after three kids and do my own full time job and look after him.

Walking it off works for me - it’s very difficult and you have to push yourself byond limits but it does sort it. Meds are vertigon sea sickness tablets, as a preventative I and also take sinus tablets when my nose is very blocked as my vertigo comes from blocked ear/nose. He needs to drink plenty of still water and eat lightly. If he can even make it round the room leaning on the wall and build up, it’s horrible but worth it. Avoid rollercoasters btw they really set me off.

Hmm well he decided to get out of bed yesterday and have a bath, and threw up everywhere. That was before I got the anti psychotic he was prescribed though, which should have helped. He's got no hearing issues, guess it could be some other cause. He's never had anything like this wrong with him, and I'm not sure how he'll cope if it keeps recurring. Climbing is his life, it 100% depends on balance and I'm not confident enough to do trad leads on the nicer routes, so we can't go. Maybe sport climbing will be OK.

I had this after I returned from a 2 week holiday last year. I was taken to hospital in an ambulance as i was so bad. At the time i didn't have a clue what was wrong. It was all very frightening. I stayed in hospital all day so they could see the meds were working but it took weeks of taking tablets to feel better and then i still had the odd dizzy day.
I was prescribed Prochlorperazine.
I hope your husband feels better soon.

I had this years ago. Took a few days in bed, then a week or two of not driving as was then ok so long as I didn’t move my head quickly. Then fine but occasionally when I had a cold. Not had it for a long time now. Had no hearing issues. GP said labrynthitis. Try the Epley Manoeuvre it helped.

Have a google for Epley Manoeuvres , I had a very short lived episode, giddy AF all one day, had to crawl to bed with the sick bowl and felt my eyes were flicking like a crazy cartoon thing
A little less tragic in the morning...enough to focus and sit up, so I googled and did them three or four times over the course of the day and I could feel the giddiness leaving right from the first time.

DS1 had labrynthitis a while back and it took him ages to get right! He had all sorts prescribed too, but really all that worked for him was lying still and trying to increase the amount of time he was up and about before giving up for the day

Yes my husband got it from taking high dose steroids, try these exercises they really do help
www.google.com/search?q=benign+parosymal+vertigo+exercises&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwiLl5bp8anrAhVLahQKHYf0DwwQ2-cCegQIABAB&oq=benign+parosymal+vertigo+exercises&gs_lcp=ChJtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1pbWcQAzIICAAQCBANEB46BAgAEA06BggAEA0QHlCQEFjUImC4JGgAcAB4AIABdIgB9waSAQM4LjKYAQCgAQHAAQE&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-img&ei=yno-X4uKI8vUUYfpv2A&bih=1280&biw=800&prmd=sivn

www.menieres.org.uk/information-and-support/symptoms-and-conditions/mal-de-debarquement
Can be triggered by travel.

@DanceDanceDance80 thanks yes that is what he was prescribed. The doc was so vague though, apparently hasn't said how long to take them for. He said it was either labyrinthitis (which seems odd with no hearing issues) or the BPPV thing. God I'm a bit crap at illness, immediately jump to worst case conclusions. Also, bloody knackered now.

I was told labyrinthitis too but was never confimed officially. Was then told i had ear infections which mysteriously didn't show up on any blood tests. I took 3 tablets every 24 hours for about 3 weeks and then just when i needed them, if i felt dizzy etc. How long has he been taking them so far?

@Benjispruce2

www.menieres.org.uk/information-and-support/symptoms-and-conditions/mal-de-debarquement Can be triggered by travel.

oh my....I think i have a form of that...

we have a narrow boat and when we first had it on returning home I'd feel as if everything was swaying about and it would resolve after a banging migraine

and now, I don't have it on returning home, but almost always I will wake up the first morning with a lurking migraine and have to chase it off with a morning of paracetamols and ibuprofens! And an afternoon nap!

I have always been a dreadful traveller .(only forward facing, no reading, keep watch on the horizon or ahead) and a giddy type person though. And awful awful queasiness when you get that moving but not moving thing as something goes by at a different speed!

Valium.

Sorry if I sound flippant, but am a veteran of this. I know docs do not prescribe it much anymore but it really works.

Stemetil and Serc are good too.

Do not look up or down too much, steady movements, hold onto things. I had a fall on the stairs and ended up in A+E. They diagnosed vertigo and gave me a valium. AAAAGH, was great.

Three months of Stemetil (for the nausea) and Serc for the vertigo sorted it. Until I developed Menieres Disease. That is easing off now, but have to be very careful about moving my head up or down, left and right quickly. In my case it is a hearing thing.

Yes that's it

Prochlorperazine and serc is what I take

But I didn't know about Valium.... might ask for it from gp and see if that helps me

Serc worked really well for me too. Also called Betahistine as the generic form. I had really bad labyrinthitis but no actual problems with my ears like ache or hearing loss.
Key is to rest and not overdo it. I got trapped in a cycle of trying to resume normal (at the time very full on) life. Relapsing and then going back to soon.

Blood tests wouldn’t necessarily flag up an ear infection. They’re mostly viral aren’t they? I had no hearing issues or pain in labrynthitis but a very slight discomfort when I pulled the corresponding ear lobe.

@DanceDanceDance80 OK that is reassuring, he's only been on it two days and I saw some random stuff on the Internet about not taking it more than 3 days!

Google aelf epley manoeuvre... Its horrid... But fixes mine. I have to do it quite a few times normally...

Betahistine was prescribed for my elderly relative. Up to 3 times a day . Seems to work. Doctor seems to have only prescribed for the nausea.

I had this a few years ago, caused by labyrinthitis.

It recurs, either when I've been doing too much travelling, or when I'm stressed or over-tired. I have to really listen to my body, and when it comes on I just have to take to my bed and block everything out.

It hasn't affected my balance from day to day at all.

I get BPPV which is anything but benign...
Stemetil for the nausea & doing the Brandt-Daroff exercises to reset the ear crystals.

I had this during lockdown quite severely. BPPV and it has come back on and off for the last 20 years. I find it happens when I am stressed. Vomiting, can’t eat due to nausea and room spinning when lying down.
The thing that has helped is yoga and anti-gravity yoga which is a less acrobatic cirque de soleil hammock yoga. Flipping my head up and down helps - moves the crystals around in the inner ear. So during lockdown no gyms and no yoga classes. BPPV came back.
I did go to A and E during lockdown and then managed to get a private consultation. The specialist did an epley and also tapped the area behind the ear repeatedly. I was told not to sleep lying down, propped up as much as possible for at least 2 weeks afterwards. Always keep upright. And not drop your head forward. Or I would be back for another procedure. Felt a lot better. It took about 14 days for the sensation to completely subside. It was a lot milder. Ordinarily he said it would take 4 weeks without an epley for the symptoms to go away. That is a long time to feel so bad.
If you are so busy and he is so unwell then find a specialist for your DH who can give you more expert help. GP’s and A&E don’t really have the detailed expertise. Or do an epley at home - but he will hate it as it feels like you are falling and then keep the head up as instructed.
I also got weird vision issues. It’s from the inbalance in the inner ear and affects your visual acuity.
Good luck. It was £300 for a telephone consult and then £160 for the 20 minute physical appt with another consultant which fixed it. Luckily my DH has private health cover through work.

I was also given stemetil/prochlorperazine to combat the nausea. Had to stop taking it 24 hours before the epley so I could tell the doctor exactly how I felt.