Home Remedy for Vertigo

Home remedy for vertigo is to stop your world spinning on the wrong axis.

Simply one of the very worst of conditions can sometimes be well managed with Brandt-Daroff exercises.

So what causes vertigo? It's a disturbance of the flow of fluid in two small organs in the inner ears. When calcium crystals block one canal, say in the right semicircular canal, then the other gives divergent information to the brain; the result is nausea and sometimes vomiting, not unlike sea sickness and a world that spins.

The standard treatment is known as the Epley manoeuvres; a series of exercises done by a skilled practitioner. There are six canals and determining which is the offending beast is vital to the success of the process. But once the acute phase is over this simple modus operandus may help prevent it returning.

Don't take stugeron; it does not help and in fact one of its side effects is nausea in ten percent of cases. It may actually make things worse.

Eighty percent of the time, your spinning world is caused by an inner ear condition known as benign paroxysmal positional vertigo; the treatment of choice is the Epley manoeuvres.

The other twenty percent is caused by an inner ear infection, multiple sclerosis or Meniere's disease; or a stroke. These are serious conditions so a diagnosis is paramount.

So a careful history and examination is vital before starting the treatment. Your chiropractor will take your blood pressure, examine the cranial nerves and reflexes and ask about progressive deafness; and look for signs of an upper respiratory infection. 

Two features give the diagnosis; it's paroxysmal. There is sudden onset for no obvious reason and a strange flicking of the eyes known as nystagmus begins. It is these uncontrolled movements of the eyes that make the world appear to spin.

A very clever neurologist called Dr Epley worked out a complex treatment procedure to displace the naughty crystals from where they are blocking one canal; and shifting them to a sort of rubbish bin called the utricle.

Don't lie in bed despite the awfulness of getting up and moving about; just lying down worsens the problem. Do be careful because you may fall; you will look like a drunken sailor as you make your way to the bathroom.

A recent patient came in with umpteen thorns in her body; walking in the garden she'd fallen into a rose bush. Use a stick and balance with your hands against the wall and on the furniture.

Vertigo usually affects the older person; someone who also may be suffering from brittle-bone disease. A fall can mean a broken hip.

Keep a bucket near you; nausea is common; and you may vomit too.

This home remedy for vertigo that I will describe shortly is not for you when you are in the acute phase, throwing up and falling about. Then it's time for a consultation with a skilled practitioner who has learnt the Epley manoeuvres; often doctors and chiropractors may not have a clue unless they have been on a specialised course.

Medical doctors will want to prescribe Stugeron which doesn't help and may worsen the condition; nausea is one of the side effects in ten percent of people.

And your chiropractor may want to adjust your cervical spine. In my book it's absolutely contraindicated until the acute phase is completely over; even if you have a sore neck. Investigations by two esteemed researchers found that dizziness is one of the conditions where DCs need to tread very carefully.

Confusingly in a small group of people, the vertigo may actually be caused by a subluxation in the neck affecting the blood flow to the brain.

In this group a very careful adjustment of the neck may be the only treatment that will fix your vertigo; however I personally would only do that once all other avenues have been exhausted.

I do occasionally adjust the cervical spine of the patient with vertigo but never in conjunction with the Epleys; an acute episode of vomiting may occur. Stroke chiropractic is a very rare phenomenon but the dizzy patient is one of those considered at risk.

Best home remedy for vertigo

Home remedy for vertigo may work for you to ameliorate the nausea and a world doing crazy things.

the Brandt Daroff habituation exercises.

1. The exercises start from the sitting position; in the middle of a bed, with no pillow at either end; and with your legs dangling over the side.
2. Close your eyes.
3. Turn your head to the left; if you start to feel bilious, wait for it pass.
4. Slowly lie down on your right side, allowing your head to dangle down to the bed, still with your head rotated to the left. You may well begin to feel the vertigo start; just wait for it to pass, or at least thirty seconds.
   
5. Once the world stops its crazy dance, keeping your head turned to the left, sit upright again. Wait for the spinning to stop, if it starts. In fact, in principle, with each change of position, if you begin to feel dizzy, just wait for it to pass before starting the next move.
6. Now slowly bring your head to the centre, stop a moment, eyes still closed and then turn your head to the right. In fact what you are doing is rotating the two horizontal semicircular canals in the inner ears. If one is blocked, you'll start to feel giddy and you may be aware that your eyes are starting to dart about in an uncontrolled manner. 
7. Now with your head turned right, slowly lie down on your left side, allowing your head to dangle, keeping your head in the same position. Lift your legs onto the bed. Stop, wait at least 30 s or until the vertigo stops. 
8. One side is almost always worse than the other.
   
9. Now slowly sit upright again, keeping your head to the right.
   
10. Repeat the routine five times in total. Do it at least twice a day.
11. Don't lie down again for at least a couple hours.
    

Start these home remedy for vertigo exercises slowly in the beginning. In the acute phase they may cause a real upset; don't be concerned.

• If it's really bad, then use a pillow at each end in the beginning.
  
• To be effective this routine must produce some effect. If there's no nausea or giddy feeling then, instead of going down slowly, do it suddenly and fast.
• Once you can do the routine easily and with little effect, do it with your eyes open.
  

Another home remedy for vertigo

Routinely when you stand up, wait a moment and then slowly turn around in a circle.

Then take a step to the left; and then to the right.

You can also do this with your head slightly tilted to the side.

A caution when doing this home remedy for vertigo

During the Brandt Daroff exercises your head tends to flop around as you drop to the side and your neck goes into lateral flexion.

If you suffer from neck problems and particularly a cervical facet syndrome, then this routine can increase your pain.

Ask your chiropractor for advice.

Likewise if you have a lower back problem; ask someone to raise your legs as you flop on your side, trying to keep your body straight. Otherwise, next thing you may be needing chiropractic help for sciatica pain.

Chiropractic help

Chiropractic help might be for you, but manipulation is to be used last after the other exercises like Brandt Daroff and Epleys have been exhausted unsuccessfully.

Small doses of vertigo are not uncommon as we get older; a sudden spinning of the world as we turn our heads in odd positions or looking to see the time on the bedside clock. It usually passes in a few seconds.

But if it turns into a full-blooded spell it is a horrible, nasty condition. Don't panic, this too will pass. If it is really bad, do not start this home remedy for vertigo but get professional help. My advice is not to take pills; and not let your chiropractor adjust your neck initially. Find someone who can do the Epley exercises with you. They are safer and more effective.

How long does vertigo last ?

For years sometimes, if you don't follow the right treatment and these home remedy for vertigo exercises.

I'm in the midst of treating a 60 year old lady with a particularly nasty episode of vertigo dizziness. You can get a lot more detailed information about the disease at this page. She is the inspiration for this blog. Yesterday I gave her this home remedy for vertigo; in a week's time I will give an update on how she is progressing.

But back to the question you may be asking; how long does vertigo last? Her attack started two weeks ago. For a day she did nothing, not liking doctors of any ilk but when she fell into a rosebush in the garden and started vomiting, her husband insisted.

They went to a medical doctor who examined her and ruled out a stroke, diagnosing, correctly I believe Benign Positional Paroxysmal Vertigo; commonly called BPPV. But obviously not familiar with the research about the condition, she prescribed Stugeron; it didn't help in the slightest. So, that was one week with no improvement; in fact if anything slightly worse.

Then desperate, she consulted her local chiropractor since she also had a sore neck and had heard the problem might be in her vertebrae; me. Fortunately he had been around the block and did not adjust her cervical spine. I had colleague, now long deceased who adjusted a dizzy patient who then had a stroke; once bitten, twice shy.

Stroke chiropractic is rare, about one in six million manipulations of the neck but it's the dizzy patient who is at risk. It's always safer to start with the Epley exercises and this home remedy for vertigo until there is no longer any nystagmus; then if the neck is still painful, one might consider adjusting the cervical spine. Cautiously and not in the direction of the positive Hallpike Dix test.

That's the test your chiropractor will use for diagnosing BPPV.

Having given probably several hundred thousand cervical manipulations with any serious incident, I will never forget the dizzy patient who I adjusted and gave the Epley exercises at the same consultation. She vomited continuously for three hours; it wasn't pleasant and fortunately the episode passed when I was about to call in the help of a neurologist.

She recovered completely but never consulted me again for obvious reasons. In her book I screwed up; and she was right. I never do the Epleys and adjust the neck on the same consultation.

Never.

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