Well itās been doing so quite a long time now so itās habituated to it for sureš
Ah when it comes to the āelevatorsā. Here we hit upon āthe common language that divides usā. In the U.K. if one can get shut up in it then itās termed a āliftā. To us an āelevatorā is an open moving staircase not at all dissimilar from a treadmill which is why I mentioned it. After your reaction to the treadmill Iād suspect you wouldnāt get on well with our elevators (āmoving staircaseā maybe you call them?). Outside large towns and hospitals lifts arenāt common over here but I certainly remember years ago coming out of one bent double and my SO telling me to āstand up straight. Everybody is looking at youā. During a 5 floor upwards journey Iād not been aware of any discomfort neither was I aware I was actually bent double on exit. My VM was at that time still episodic but obviously a strong link. Incidentally at one time my reaction to large grocery stores was exactly the same. By the time I left I would be looking through the bars of the trolley rather than over the top.
Rather drifting off topic now. When considering your treadmill experience I never thought about the lights having declined his offer Iāve never used one. Cover them over. Good idea. Reminds me of @Naejohn who in the early days taped over everyone in her house for same reason.
ājust to add to the confusion just noticed after reading your post whether I mistyped or whether the Autocorrect made the mistake but it was āescalatorsā not āelevatorsā I was aiming at. In U.K. moving staircases are āescalatorsā.
Ok . So itās the same in most countries then. The moving staircase is called an escalator and the enclosed one that goes up and down with the push of a button is called an elevator. Same in the US. This ended up being a funny topic. At least it took my mind off the crazy treadmill which I regret buying!
As I see it it wasnāt a complete waste at all. Trying it has proved you do have an ongoing vestibular problem. Might be a good idea to get more investigations carried out and find some remedial action you can take. A family doctor once told me my balance was poor but he never suggested any way I could remedy that. Wish he had. It might have helped once I went chronic.
I did a little investigation myself this morning as I realized I do have an ongoing vestibular problem even though I hate to admit it. First, I went on the treadmill again even though I had a headache and felt slightly lightheaded this morning and started out slow. I wasnāt able to get a good cardio workout but I managed to make it to 10 minutes and then I stopped. I also covered up the bright red numbers showing the time and distance which helped a lot. Second, I went on the website where I purchased the treadmill and I am able to return the treadmill within 30 days if not satisfied. I have about 7 days left to test it out. If I continue to do well starting out slowly and increasing slowly I may keep it. But then I may regret not returning it if after 7 days if I relapse again after the return policy is past. I am not sure what to do. Do most VM people have poor tolerance to exercise machines especially treadmills. What a dilemma.
Well, I just made up my mind. Gradually I am started to feel worse after using the treadmill. Itās not worth using a piece of equipment that will exacerbate VM. This is my day off and I feel like crap. Why put myself through this. Itās going back asap.
Now there is a question. It must all depend on how the VM affects the VMāer in question. The more it affects the sensory information reaching the brain the worse I would expect tolerance to be. Thatās what most affects the balance and totally non medical as I am long ago reached the conclusion that itās that which reduces mobility and in turn exercise tolerance. Btw an intolerance to exercise and most particularly to irregular or unaccustomed exercise is apparently common amongst migraineurs.
Exercise tolerance levels vary immensely. Some MAVers hike in the mountains. Others cannot walk to the bathroom unaided. I can only speak for me. Until mine went chronic I was always able to be as active as I ever wanted to be. I could and regularly did spend six hours outdoors on my feet in all weathers taking photographs literally by the hundreds or birdwatching and/or walk a few miles then drive a couple of hours to get home and get up next day and repeat. Since mine went chronic Iām lucky to manage 2 miles with a walking stick. Tai Chi which I did four years pre chronic VM I can only tolerate sometimes and then only in short bursts. No way I could last a one hour class since.
Its all subjective. Some MAVers find riding in a car makes them feel better. In my case riding in a car makes me worse. What it all comes down to all MAVers have a lot of intolerance whether its eating a tiny bit of forbidden food or just from a quick head movement. I know I have to be diligent because when I am symptom free for a long period of time I tend to indulge in all the triggers and then I pay in the end. I started weight training which is kicking up the head and neck pain too, I canāt even stay in shape. Its so discouraging. Today is a horrible day for me. I have head pressure, neck pain, tinnitus, TMJ pain, and feel slightly off balance. I am now realizing that we just have to take things slowly. I am reading The Migraine Brain and Headache 123 again to refresh myself on the triggers and treatment options. Also, its an extremely humid day too which isnāt helping. I know things will get better.
I am going to a gym which only does strength training (no cardio) and they only employ physiotherapists and exercise physiologists. We developed a program for me that includes three machines which focus on the upper body. However, none of these machines require me to lift my arms above my shoulders. Lifting my arms above the shoulders makes me dizzy immediately. When I use these three machines, I have to relax my shoulders every time I move the handles/levers of the machines. If I do it correctly, it is very beneficial for my neck and shoulders, it relaxes them and the pain goes away. The other nine machines I use are for my lower body. For me, it is important to keep my lower body strong, because I rely a lot on my legs to be stable when I am dizzy.
So donāt give up on strength training yet @rosjane. Maybe you can find a gym and machines that are able to accommodate your individual needs.
Yep. Definitely. The only exception to that, as far as Iām concerned, is to get treatment fast. Untreated MAV just gets worse until it eventually becomes chronic. The episodic state which is where you currently appear to be is so much easier to get under control. Mine took more than a decade to
transmute and I so wish Iād been given a diagnosis and treatment sooner. It would have saved so much suffering for sure. MAV is a hard nut to crack. Diets only help in 10% of cases apparently. Once a condition affects quality of life itās time to really take action.
Go slow and work your way up gradually. Start with five minutes. When five minutes doesnāt seem like much, adda minute. Keep adding minutes and before you know it youāre at 30 minutes.
Cover up the console with a towel, you donāt need to see the lights and donāt look at the belt. Look straight ahead. Part of my vestibular rehab was to stop watching the ground and pick out a point on the horizon.
Mine too. Pertinent question. Did they ever give you an End Date? When to stop walking to the point you picked out on the horizon? I bet not. Mine neither. Itās a very useful bit of advice at that point in time I appreciate. Very useful indeed. Trouble is all that wonderful brain neuroplasticity quickly latches on to it. Watching that point on the horizon becomes an established part of the movement pattern and then when you start to look around, whoops, You are as unsteady as ever was before if not even more so. A near impossible habit to break.
Its not a problem, because I donāt remember to watch the horizon for very long. Iām always looking around like a fool. Then like you say, whoops, there it goes and Iām thinking, āWhy did I do that, I know better.ā But, in all fairness to the therapist, they had me doing that too. Walking and swiveling my head looking at things as I went by. I wanted to say, āYouāre killing me Smalls!ā
Isnāt regular exercise contributes to healthy living? But I am anxious because a neighbor of ours does exercise every morning but suddenly she got cancer. ;(
I havenāt probe or ask her family but thinking that exercise can trigger scares me.
Hi and welcome. Donāt be scared. I think you may have misunderstood this thread. We are talking about exercise increasing symptoms of a condition that already exists. Nobody is suggesting that exercise can cause people to develop a new illness. Many people who already have VM find that exercising makes their existing symptoms worse. You are correct. Regular exercise contributes to healthy living. It keeps you fit and gives you a better chance of a speedy recovery should you happen to become ill. Being fit will not stop you from ever becoming ill but it aids recovery.
I donāt see a connection why exercise can trigger a cancer. @Onandon03 is right, you may have misunderstood this thread. Iāll just add, actions such as rotating your body quickly, turning your head suddenly, or bending over can all trigger or aggravate migraine symptoms for your reference.
