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Post by jools on Apr 14, 2015 12:05:20 GMT -5
I met the neurologist today and he showed me the test results. MRI was fine but my right eye reacted stronger than it should have in ENG/VNG. According to him the imbalance between the vestibulars is not however the reason for my condition but it may have been one of the causes that triggered psychogenic dizziness. We're going to try 10mg citalopram dose next starting tomorrow. I must say I'm a bit worried about the possible side effects, let's see how it goes.
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Post by eliuri on Apr 14, 2015 17:47:33 GMT -5
I met the neurologist today and he showed me the test results. MRI was fine but my right eye reacted stronger than it should have in ENG/VNG. According to him the imbalance between the vestibulars is not however the reason for my condition but it may have been one of the causes that triggered psychogenic dizziness. We're going to try 10mg citalopram dose next starting tomorrow. I must say I'm a bit worried about the possible side effects, let's see how it goes. Hi Jools: Makes much sense that a past vestibular event-- which has been neurotologically compensated-- continues to show this asymmetry. That even may well have been the trigger for all this. That test does continue to show such healed events. But regardless, it's not very relevant now... It's a good sign he was able to sort this out. Good luck with the Citalopram. You might not have the side effects you fear. You might want to ask him again about VRT for this along with the citalopram. That's considered optimal combination. Or has he told you again it won't add much to what you already are doing? I'm trying to put together some little routines of my own which might help with this infernal rocking, and will be posting them here. Some I already have posted. Please feel free to share what helps with this and what doesn't here. Do continue to keep us posted and good luck with the citalopram. ~eli
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Post by jools on Apr 15, 2015 10:28:56 GMT -5
No, we didn't talk about VRT this time. He said he's going to call me next week so maybe I'll bring it up then.
How bad is the rocking you're having if I may ask, is it every day the same? And does your condition allow you to do for example any regular sport activities / exercises?
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Post by Michael T on Apr 17, 2015 19:39:38 GMT -5
Wow, great posts folks, I love this, the forum is getting some life thanks to you two and we are getting more subscribers ! My goal is to get the word out to everyone that suffers from this illness and hope providers will take it more seriously.
Cool....
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Post by eliuri on Apr 17, 2015 21:38:05 GMT -5
Hi folks:
I'll copy n paste this from what I had posted in "eliuri diary" section of the Forum, as I think it may give a sense of what triggered it all for me initially. It shows interplay of physical and emotional factors in how this may all come about:
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What triggered all this for me was a fall in the stairway of my building. Before I fell I felt an odd sensation on a step of the ground giving way. So my foot reflexively skipped on to the next step. This caused me to topple and fall, bumping my head. I had brief spinning sensations soon after, when turning my neck a certain way, probably due to dislodged crystals. A vestibular disorder called BPPV. This resolved amazingly fast on its own...
I was quite traumatized by that fall and I had recurring flashbacks of that memory of ground moving just before I fell. So I became terrified I'd fall again. During the usual "compensation" phase from a vestibular disorder, where the mind recalibrates and re-adapts, I was filled with terror. I had several panic attacks and "derealization" episodes. I noticed I was walking differently than my usual agile way. Taking short single steps at a time. Often looking at the ground to make sure it was "solidly" there. Fearful of another spinning attack which might cause another fall
About six-eight weeks after the accident, I had this one "attack" of a brief sensation of ground moving up slightly while taking a step in a supermarket. I of course panicked! Then it kept happening increasingly more often, in certain rooms or when going from one room to another...Eventually, it came to be there with each step, in synch with my footsteps, as I've described earlier. As long as surface was hard and level.
About a month after that first sensation of "ground moving up", and about three months after the initial accident, I found the reason for that sensation of motion below me which had caused the accident in the first place. There was part of a step in that wretchedly decrepit stairway which was detached from the stairway, but one saw only a crack. Obviously, it had moved below me and gave way when I was going down those stairs and that caused the fall....My daughter confirmed in fact that part of that step had been detached for months, and she always took pains to avoid walking on it...So it wasn't some "hallucination" then on my part of that ground moving below me, but a reality. The reality of a broken step and the harsh reality of a negligence which had placed my children and myself in jeopardy. But by the time I realized all this, this "anxious postural control strategy" had gained a firm foothold in my way of walking. It has become deeply entrenched. At first I was relieved at having found the cause for my fall. But soon terror turned to rage at the negligence of those responsible. Eventually, those sensations of ground moving up when I would step down on it came to be there with each step, in synch with my footsteps, as I've described earlier. As long as surface is hard and level.
I gave description of my day by day triggers earlier on in this thread...
~eli
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Post by Michael T on Apr 18, 2015 6:57:15 GMT -5
Do you still get nervous when you walk by that step?
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Post by eliuri on Apr 18, 2015 11:18:00 GMT -5
Do you still get nervous when you walk by that step? Excellent question, Michael: Short answer: YES!!! I rarely get the rocking up and down other stairways. Because generally I only get in on level, unyielding surfaces.. Passing that step however, the rocking actually starts up a bit before it on the stairway, on the way back up.... at that point , the entire stairway feels like its rocking. especially if I'm carrying things. My shoulder blade pain also intensifies at that point. And I feel like I'm breathing very fast...As soon as I get back in to apartment, I plop what I'm carrying down on floor and either sit down real fast or lie down, till this subsides.. Generally, my rocking isn't accompanied by breathing symptoms, but at that point on stairway--going up- I often feel like I can't breathe... ~eli
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Post by Michael T on Apr 18, 2015 16:36:34 GMT -5
The "Ice Maker" syndrome.....
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Post by eliuri on Apr 18, 2015 16:45:29 GMT -5
Only in part...
That step has taken on a strong symbolic meaning for me, for many reasons..
The provoking of the rocking by it might be part of some PTSD-type of thing going on here...given the flashbacks ..and the delay between the trauma and the emergence of the rocking
Yeah..I guess u can say its the Ice Maker Syndrome...phobic conditioning of sorts ..now that u mention it...I also get bad rocking when I bend over at the corner of my room to change from my house clothes to street clothes in anticipation of the stairway..That's somewhat closer to the Ice Maker Syndrome..
The step itself however, is the biggy..
~eli
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Post by jools on Apr 21, 2015 8:57:04 GMT -5
I asked about the VRT again today. In my doctor's opinion I don't need but he encouraged me to train my balance through sports etc.
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Post by eliuri on Apr 21, 2015 17:27:59 GMT -5
I asked about the VRT again today. In my doctor's opinion I don't need but he encouraged me to train my balance through sports etc. Hi Jools: Hopefully, your activities plus the citalopram can bring about desired recovery then... It may be that thinking is along such lines because VRT is seen as a way to improve balance , rather as way to alter sense perceptions?
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