1. Dizziness is normal.
Not true. Dizziness is never normal and you should not accept dizziness as part of your life. I would advise anyone experiencing dizziness to talk to their physician or vestibular physical therapist about their dizziness and steps they can take to improve it.
2. Vertigo is a medical diagnosis.
How many times have I heard people tell me they went to the physician or emergency room and were diagnosed with vertigo? Too many to count!
Vertigo is a symptom, not a medical disorder. All vertigo means is that you feel like you or the room is spinning when it is still. There are about 15-20 distinct medical disorders which can cause symptoms of vertigo. Your physician or physician of vestibular physical therapist needs to provide you with a diagnosis because each diagnosis has a different treatment.
3. There’s nothing I can do to improve my dizziness.
Vestibular Rehabilitation is a highly effective treatment option for many dizziness disorders which originate from the inner ear or brain. There are many other treatments physicians can also do to help dizziness of all kinds
4. If I stay still and rest the dizziness will go away.
Another popular belief that is not true. While movement, especially of the head and body, can make you feel worse the body needs movement to heal itself. Your vestibular physical therapist should guide you and find the right amount of challenge, where you can work through your program and still be able to live your life.
5. I’ve tried PT before and it didn’t work for me so I don’t believe it will work.
Many of my patients have had “vestibular rehabilitation” that was done incorrectly.
As someone with over 17 years of experience in this area of physical therapy practice, and a published researcher in vestibular rehabilitation, you can trust my skills and training in this area. Additionally, I’m the chair of the Vestibular Rehabilitation Special Interest Group of the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy. This is an organization of about 1,800 vestibular physical therapists across the United States.
Thank you for reading my blog!