Iām having a big attack right now, couldnāt even stand on the bed.
Yesterday I had a fan heater in my room for 7 hours because it was cold.
I couldnāt sleep because of the violent inside vertigo ever since I turned it off and tried to lie down. I managed to sleep in the morning after putting a lot of pillows, in a reclining position.
Yesterday night also when I was blowing my hair with the hair dryer I passed it by mistake momently in front of my right ear and the air power was strong. But I immediately pushed it away and wore earplugs.
Could there be a damage in my ear caused by this?
Come on. Be sensible. One burst of hot air in passing your ear isnāt going to do ādamageā. Doctors use air suction to extract earwax and that involves much more than one gust. High winds can be a trigger so it might be that but Iād say itās much more likely to be something else.
Hereās my take for heat itās worth. Something thatās probably not crossed your mind as yet. You say you ādriedā your hair so presumably it was previously wet and how did it get wet. I guess either you bent your head over a sink or tilted your head at odd angles in the shower. All necessary to shampoo and rinse of course but not something vestibular conditions take too kindly. You arenāt alone there ā¦.
Do showers trigger you?
If you have daily headaches/migraines please look here!
Washing hair tips?
Downside to washing hair
Fan heater? Think vibration.
The less firm and stable any surface is the more difficult it is for the balance system to handle. To a brain currently tuned to hypersensitivity that bed probably feels like a trampoline.
Itās not until we suffer from such vestibular issues that we have any true understanding of how hard our brain works to keep us balanced and to truly appreciate the difficulties it faces. When itās all working correctly itās nothing short of a miracle but, much like the petrol engine, it is not until it go wrong, we take a look under the bonnet.
2 Likes
Thank you once again for your kind response, Helen.
Youāre right. Sometimes all this terror takes me so much over that Iām beginning to be afraid that simple daily tasks will probably cause an aggravation to my symptoms, as Iāve become extremely sensitive to countless stimulus, since all those symptoms began.
Maybe it would be considerable to mention that yesterday was a really windy day. I live in a near-coast town where there are intense winds pretty often. You could also hear the wind blowing intensely indoors all night long.
I try to be extra careful while bathing. I use a stool (initially for pots syndrome) so I am sitted and I gently wash and shampoo my hair trying no not move my head much. Same while drying them. I try not to bend over at all.
I didnāt use to have problems in the bath, but one month ago I used the new shower column I got for the (then) new house, and even though the water did not have big pressure, an hour after I started experiencing awful aggravation of dizziness, motion sensitivity and disorientation which lasted for a lot of hours. So no shower columns for me I guessā¦
Thanks a lot for taking the time to post the links!
Youāre right about the firm surfaces. Since all this started I find that I sit on the floor almost all day long as I feel the surface is more stable than a couch or a bed, or even a chair, where my legs are far away from the rest of the body, so I feel the motion sensations more.
Thatās exactly how it is, Helen.
We shouldnāt have to be thinking about all these basic functions our bodies were supposed to do by default. Itās exhausting.
Thank you again for taking the time to answer.
1 Like
There is a great video on this site called āCatastrophizing: How to Stop Making Yourself Depressed and Anxiousā.
The video talks about how easy it is to think the worst (catastrophizing) and how to deal with it. It seems to me that, maybe, you are doing it and, maybe, the video might help. For myself, I have been catastrophizing a lot, but I have learnt how to stop it over the years (sometimes unsuccessful).
3 Likes
@Katharina, Iāve added the link for you.
So you can do this yourself next time here is how: Adding a link takes the following steps:
- Visit the target Post or Topic you want to link. Below the post you will find a chain icon. Hit that and it will bring up a dialogue asking you what to do with the hyperlink. Copy that URL
- Navigate to the Post you want to add the link to. Hit the pencil icon below your Post.
- In the Composer which pops up click-drag to highlight the text you want to appear as a link.
- With the text still highlighted, hit the Chain tool in the Composer tool bar at the top. This brings up a small dialogue box.
- Paste the link you copied earlier.
- Hit Ok. The dialogue will disappear.
- Save your edit by hitting the āSave Editā button and exit the Composer.
- The link is now embedded into your Post.
NB You can use rich text in the Composer. This follows an international standard called Markdown. If you edit your post again you will see how links work using a combination of square and round brackets, square for the visible text you want to make a link and round for the link itself.
2 Likes
Absolutely right. From a mental health viewpoint itās best we are not that aware of such things. Being so is what leads to an even higher state of alert which ultimately results in PPPD. Itās one of those cases where really ignorance can prove to be bliss. As soon as we start trying to have control other body functions that should be subconscious and automatic that will only add to the maladaptions we already experience from suffering a vestibular condition in the first place. Unfortunately it is what happens to people who are severely affected and left without effective long term treatment such as you and me to name but two.
Triggers are often so very difficult to establish. Iām sure that the high winds you hadnāt mentioned before could have been a major factor. I struggle with those even now and sometimes you donāt even have to be outside experiencing their force to do do either.
The video @Katharina mentions is certainly worth studying although I suspect that, much as I was at your stage, your current reactions are more a direct result of your hypersensitivity rather than catastrophizing as such. Having to continue to live in such a noisy environment is just continuously winding your symptoms up and the more hyper it all becomes the more you suffer.
When it comes to stability. I recall several encounters with tubular chairs. The faintest vibration, not even discernible to others (like my husband), felt like being on an ocean in a Force Seven Gale. Even the dog panting in the back of the car and, other I only just remembered. The vibration of fuel going from the petrol pump into the fuel tank made me vomit. Squidgy floors get anybody right any vestibular issues every time.
1 Like
Thank you so much for your recommendation, Katharina! Iāll certainly have a look on it.
Thank you for your support 
Perhaps you are triggered by loud, low-frequency sound, as I am. I put ear plugs in before drying my hair.
2 Likes
That could be true, @Prairiegirl.
I also wear earplugs when drying my hair, but I end up with more tinnitus after it, anyway. But it surely helps somehow.
Thank you for your help