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Everyday dizziness while walking, standing and feeling unbalanced on my feet.

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michelemuffin
michelemuffin

I have dizziness everyday while walking, standing as well as feeling off balance, unsteady on my feet like I am gonna fall over. I have had my ears checked by an ENT doctor in 2014 and he said I had menieres disease so he treated it as that but medicine didn't help so went to another ENT doctor in 2015 who said I don't have menieres disease but have hearing loss in both ears and did a test on my vestibular function which he said was normal so he referred me to a neurologist and I went and had an MRI done which was normal as well. I have had blood work done in November last year and my white blood count was a little high but not concerning and everything else was normal....no diabetes. Also had a stress test done on heart and was normal. I am at my wits end with this cause I don't know what's going on. I plan to see an eye doctor soon. Oh and I was diagnosed with anxiety 4 months ago but this dizziness and off balance feeling has been going on for 2 years now. I am on blood pressure medicine too. don't know what else to do. Does anyone have these same symptons ?

6 likes, 224 replies

224 Replies

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  • ddc142
    ddc142 michelemuffin

    Posted

    I have been following forums like this for over 1 year now dealing with similar issues. The worst part is that no one ever has real solutions. I have found anomalies where individuals have found that wisdom teeth or malnutrition causing similar symptoms, but in general, no anxiety medicine, physical therapy, or any other treatments seem to help with these balance issues. I will tell my story and hopefully it can help others.

    I was a VERY healthy 34 year old male running about 30 miles a week and lifting weights a few times a week. I first noticed eye issues about 1 month after my mother passed away and at the same time I found out my wife was pregnant. At this point I went to the doctor and anxiety immediately became the expected cause and the doctors didnt really take any followups seriously, though they did order EVERY imaging and blood tests available (included multiple MRIs of brain and spinal cord and inner ear, and blood tests for MG, multiple trips to Neuro, Neuro-Opthamologist, ENT, and GP). The symptoms seem to be related to my cranial nerves, most importantly my vestibular system. There was also swallow issues and occipital headaches (short sharp pains in the back of my head). The vestibular (balance) issues caused many other issues including anxiety, sore legs from overcompensating and sore neck muscles all the way to behind my ears (this is probably the "brain fog" people refer to). It also felt like neurological symptoms which I now believe are related to balance. When your brain is working hard to compensate for poor balance, all other tasks get much harder. Imagine how slow your phone gets if you leave a large app running in the background. It got very bad and nothing worked including therapy, which is known to be very productive for dealing with anxiety.

    The solution for me was an upper cervical chiropractor. BUYER BEWARE: These people have VERY poor business practices and very large egos without following through with proper scientific research. I personally believe that the issues are actually associated with pressure on the spinal cord that can not be seen on an MRI because it only occurs through certain motions (I have found very specific triggers to my symptoms). By making an adjustment on the C1 Vertebrae, they pull this pressure off the spinal cord. They claim that this can heal many different ailments and I believe it can only cure THIS ailment (which can cause a wide variety of issues, i.e. high blood pressure from the stress of these symptoms). The cost is expensive (as high as $2k) and they give you some crazy rehab schedule (twice a week for 2-3 months which has no scientific validity). They are not covered by any insurance. The thing that counts though is that it works, for many people, not just me (read the testimonials of these chiropractors and you will find stories similar to yours). There is a website (upcspinedotcom) that has a very real story of one of the worst cases, not associated with any particular business. The adjustment is not a cracking motion but instead they lay you down in a way that your head and shoulder support your weight and gently push behind your ear at a certain angle to use your own weight to move the C1 vertebrae. They do pre- and post-xrays to see if the adjustment occured (which I am not sure how accurate that is) I have only had one adjustment so far (my first follow up is today) but the last two weeks I have slowly had very vast improvements in almost all my issues. I don't believe this is an immediate cure (despite some anecdotal evidence) , there will be 4-6 weeks of healing, and you may still have some bad days during that process, but no day in my first two weeks was unmanagable like the days I have experienced over the past year. I hope to be back at 30 miles a week very soon and winning races. 

    While I remain very skeptical and dispassionate towards the practitioners of this field, it likely can help most of the people on this forum. I hope they find a way to do proper research so that someday soon insurance can cover this type of treatment.

    • guy18404
      guy18404 ddc142

      Posted

      I had the same thing. 35 year old healthy male. But turns out all it really was anxiety and I suspect it is for you as well. Your symptoms started after major life changes like mine did. I believe the chiro adjustments made you relax and immediately feel better. Placebo effect is a real thing. Most of the people on here have anxiety issues which causes balance issues 24/7, weird vision problems like delayed catch up to what you are looking at, etc. I recommend everyone start with CBT therapy. Sounds like a joke, but it solved all my problems and I’m back to being normal after being bed ridden for 2 years. Anxiety and it’s brother, panic disorder are a real pain in the arse and need to be addressed before you do what I did which is spend thousands of dollars on mri, blood tests, ent doctors, etc. all of which found nothing. 
    • ddc142
      ddc142 guy18404

      Posted

      Guy,

      Thanks for the reply, and for coming back to the forums after recovering from the issues. Either not many people recover, or they don't bother coming back after they do to share what works with others suffering. I actually haven't thrown away the cause as anxiety and still go to therapy. My wife is a clinical psychologist and is actually trained in CBT therapy. The thing is, I have had some type of generalized anxiety most of my adult life and never saw any physiological issues. As a scientist, I suspect that the anxiety causes stress and tension in my muscles which can in turn effect the nerves. Its too specific to the cranial nerves and the symptoms from person to person are too alike for there not to be something physical happening. Also, typically psychosomatic symptoms occur as a result of specific anxieties (for example aghoraphobes experience symptoms only once they try to leave the house). I am not sure if the chiro is placebo or not, but MANY people have seen the same effect from the treatment. (and hey if a placebo effect can cure me in a few weeks while therapy takes six months, Ill take it) You are the first person that I have come across that has seen complete resolution of these symptoms through therapy. I am going to call my provider this week an switch to a cbt trained therapist because, if theres something I can do to help the issue, I will. Thanks again for sharing your success in treating these issues.

    • guy18404
      guy18404 ddc142

      Posted

      By all means if chiro works for you that’s awesome! I just want people to treat anxiety seriously because I laughed when the head neuron told me I had anxiety and that’s it. He said I couldn’t get an mri from him because he bet his life nothing was there. I found another doc to order my mri and sure enough UCLA doctor was right! Anyway I tried anxiety pills and had eveRy terrible side effect possible. I then stopped them and stuck with CBT and I’m honestly cured. Before CBT therapy, the floor felt like I was on a moon bounce. I used to go on walks and look at trees and plants and think they were from another planet. Anxiety causes weird issues and differently in everyone. I highly recommend therapy and whatever  Else that works for you. For me therapy and the book called Stop Panic on Amazon was a game changer. That book taught me about my condition and gave me confidence that I had what millions of other people suffer from. 
    • asis48059
      asis48059 guy18404

      Posted

      Hey there everyone hope everyone is doing great! From 2.5 years I am facing few symptoms :

      1) fear from everything 

      2) off balance 

      3) dizziness 

      4) spinning sensation 

      5) cold sweats again and again 

      6) stomach issues like gas and diarrhoea 

      7) tirey feeling 

      8) heavy head, heavy eyes and stiff back 

      9) blury vision 

      10) concentration problem 

      11) shortness of breath 

      12) weakness in legs and arms 

      13) whenever I lie down or stand or even sit I feel my heart skipped a beat and if I don't move I'll die 

      14) while I am about to sleep there is a sudden jerk also I feel my body is too weak and if I don't move I'll die 

      15) feel like something's pushing me into bed. 

  • manoj_89379
    manoj_89379 michelemuffin

    Posted

    I have dizziness everyday while walking, standing as well as feeling off balance, unsteady on my feet like I am gonna fall over.last 2month feel.but when we sit feel like a normal.
  • manoj_89379
    manoj_89379 michelemuffin

    Posted

    Can you help me with that.what kind of medicin i am taking for that.
    • guy18404
      guy18404 manoj_89379

      Posted

      I took meclazzine a few times. Found it helped. But see my post above. Try CBT therapy for anxiety attacks. 
  • asis48059
    asis48059 michelemuffin

    Posted

    Hello there, 

    Okay it all started with me 2 years back i was just standing and then i felt there is a heavy earthquake but only i was the one who was facing it i was soo dizzy. But when it got over, nothing happened after that for 6 months.

    But then now i cannot even walk straight normal i feel so off balance i am now scared of going anywhere outside when i walk i feel bouncy, my slippers comes out of my feet automatically. This happenes everyday. I cannot stand in a cue i feel ill fall down my heart rate suddenly starts beating so high. I went through all the tests it was normal, when i come out of a lift suddenly there is up and down feeling as soon as i keep my leg out of the lift. When i go in a car nothing happenes. Also i have gad which is generalised anxiety disorder. My sleep breaks everyday at night.

    I think about negative things like something negative is going to happen. I am so scared of stepping out of my house and going somewhere far. My headaches everyday. Im on bp medication.  I am 18. Please help me tell me what to do. the most irritating thing is no one understands my problem 

    • thanosGreece
      thanosGreece asis48059

      Posted

      HI Asis,

      reading through the posts in this forum would let you get a decent view of what is the usual route. Me, like others that I have read their stories, have gone through the long chain of visiting every doctor that I hope to give me the super medicine to take away my imbalance. Unfortunately, this is a never ending loop because your "mind" tells you that something is wrong, the doctors will say that it isn't, you cannot admit so a new circle stars. By all means, I and nobody else could advise not to get yourself tested by a doctor when you see things happening to yourself. You say that it has been two years. You don't mention any doctors involved. Have you tried to solve this by your self? There are some well documented reasons that your body could experience all these symptoms and a doctor is the only one to rule them out. If things seem to point to your self then yes, eventhough I am a scientist my self (Physics) and I am still having a hard time to understand how mind can turn the body around, consider a psychotherapy approach. It would help in any case.

  • deerica0323
    deerica0323 michelemuffin

    Posted

    Im new to this page and I feel the same way its feels a little better to see all the comment to see im not alone but im sick of feeling like this ! I need a cure 😭😭😭

  • kerry65163
    kerry65163 michelemuffin

    Posted

    Hey I too have been suffering from similar symptoms for the past week. It all started one night after I had a shower, I was standing in front of the mirror and suddenly lost my balance and felt as if I’m going to faint. My face turned pale and I quickly went to lay down on the bed (p.s didn’t actually faint though). Then the next day I had another episode while I was washing stuff at the sink, had to grab on to the side of the sink to steady myself, this whole dizziness/lighthead feeling only last a few seconds. Then the third day it started happening more frequently, especially when I’m standing and walking around, feels like I’m walking on the clouds and can’t keep my balance. Sometimes I feel nausea too and had to lay down. The weird thing is I don’t feel dizziness when I sleep or lay down, only when I’m standing/walking and sometimes sitting down. At first I thought it was my eyes as I had been playing on my phone a lot before all this happens, and I sometimes feel pain and pressure on the eye lid area, but then I’ve reduced my time on the screen since this started but it’s been a week and the symptoms are still there daily. I’m yet to go see my GP. I do have anxiety and panic attacks which I had gotten control over, but now I’m starting to think it’s the anxiety that’s causing all these. I found that when I’m concentrated on doing something I don’t feel dizzy, but as soon as my mind start thinking about the dizziness/lightheadness and I start to feel if I am dizzy or not, then that’s when the lightheadness come. 

    I’ve had an MRI done two years ago because I was also experiencing dizziness (not as severe as this time), and I have my eyes and ears checked back then, did full blood count and everything came back normal. And funny thing is once I know that there’s nothing physically wrong my dizziness subsided. So I think it’s just all mind problems

    • guy18404
      guy18404 kerry65163

      Posted

      Ugh, its the worst isn't it? I had this 2 years ago. I would fear getting out of bed in the morning, because my OCD would kick in and I would obsessively check things by turning my head side to side to see if I was still dizzy, and each time I did it, sure enough, I was very dizzy. I would go to stores and I would try to quickly see each item on the shelf as I walked forward down the aisle, and I would get severely dizzy. My eyes took 2 seconds to catch up to my head. It felt like I was walking on a moon bounce. My head felt heavy at all times like a brick was sitting just under my skull, but on top of my brain. Anyway, same thing, did all tests and MRI, came back clean. Finally went on anti-anxiety meds for 7 weeks and saw that it really all was anxiety, because all this went away when my anxiety was gone. Since I realized it was anxiety, I stopped the pills (didn't want to be on them) and tackled my anxiety through CBT Therapy, working out, yoga, and meditation. Now I'm cured. So, hang in there. There is hope! I thought my brain was seriously messed up, and my ears. Especially after a few doctors told me I had Labyrinthitis. They were wrong, it was all anxiety and panic. Check out a book called Don't Panic by Reid Wilson. It teaches you all about it, what it does to the body, shows you a ton of case studies and how they resolved themselves, etc. I also recommend getting a massage once a week as its good to focus on your body and get out of your head. A Foot Massage place by me is really full body and they charge 25 bucks for an hour. I also steam shower after workouts, drink lots of tea, and just do everything to relax and have a "ef it" attitude on most things that I shouldn't be worried about, but my brain thinks I should. Let me know if you need any other tips, but this can and really should go away.

    • thanosGreece
      thanosGreece guy18404

      Posted

      Posts like this are lighthouses in a stormy ocean. Thanks, many thanks !!
    • guy18404
      guy18404 thanosGreece

      Posted

      Yeah, internet forums are the worst! When I was on here searching everdya it made everything so much worse. My advice is RELAX, calm down. Those short breaths aren't delivering enough oxygen to your brain, so meditate. I recommend Head Space in the app store. Most people posting on here are depressed, anxious, or panicked about what they are going through. Only reason I'm here is because I promised I would be the one guy that would come back here when I was healed. I'm holding my end of the bargain with myself. Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor. I do think you should get examined by a doctor to rule out any possible causes. I thought I had a tumor, aids, Lestoperosis, Meningitis, you name it, I thought I had it. It was great to hear doctors say I didn't have anything. Then it just told me it was all in my head and it was time to get my act together and quit being such a whimp. I started working out and that really helped. I coudln't do much in the beginning without being dizzy, but I realized nothing bad is going to happen to me, it's just my brain being stupid from lack of proper oxygen (anxiety breaths are short). 

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