My experience with Supplements and natural/alternative medicine

I’ve decided to share my personal story in case it can help anyone else who prefers to try the non-drug approach. I totally understand that we all react differently to different things, - so far this is what SEEMS to be working for me for over the past +3months. I’m aware that I could just be in one of my remissions…will update if things change!

Quick background: I live in South Africa and am 68 years old. I started with vertigo around age 20, but could not find a diagnosis till about 10 years later, when I chanced upon an ENT who was well versed in Meniere’s disease - which was the diagnosis! I underwent surgery straight away, supposedly to halt further damage to my already diminished hearing in the effected left ear, although it did nothing for the vertigo. The vertigo episodes consisted mainly of vertigo attacks of varying intensity and duration, occasionally accompanied by nausea, and always exacerbated by head movement of any kind. I was prescribed Stugeron Forte, which helped nothing, and told to cut out added salt. The ‘groups’ of episodes came and went with no discernible pattern, and all but disappeared for over 20 years (although the tinnitus remained and I think the brain eventually tunes it out to a large extent), until Dec 2015. It all re-appeared then with a massive ‘attack’ including terrible nausea and a splitting headache - something that had NEVER been a part of this before, and I concluded that it was a result of the vomiting.(?) With hindsight, I had been feeling incredibly tired and listless for a couple of months prior to this, but put it down to the ‘Christmas rush’.
Diagnosis/help was no more forthcoming from the local medical profession than it had been nearly 50 years ago, so I resorted to ‘Google’ - which was not around back then :slight_smile: However, I did find that added to fluorescent lights, computer screens added to my woes.
After about 4 months the episode abated for around 3 months and then re-appeared in a totally different form!! I felt constantly ‘off’, slightly nauseous, tired and weak. The vertigo episodes had changed to violent ‘upheavals’ that had me grabbing anything within reach to prevent falling over, which seemed to be of a shorted duration - sometimes only lasting about 20 seconds, but the other symptoms did’nt abate with the vertigo. I had a couple of bad headaches, but it was by no means the norm. I rated my life between ‘man down’ and ‘functional’. On functional days I tried to do research on the net and found this forum as well as other research and decided to take my own ‘treatment’ in hand.
I am now taking:
Ginkgo Bilooba (250mg) daily
Grape Seed Extract (80mg) daily
Magnesium Chloride Slow release - (535 mg) twice a day, morning and night
Vit B combination daily
Brionia Homeopathic drops daily (for ‘dizziness made worse by movement’)
Feverfew tincture drops 3x per day
Combination ‘coughs and colds’ Tissue salts (homeopathic) 3 x per day (these seem to gently keep post nasal drip in hand)
Mag Phos Tissue salts daily
If I feel nausea coming on , I take a stemitil.
If I think a headache is more than just a ‘pressure’ one, a codien seems to stop it.

I have had to cut out chocolate :frowning: and tea, coffee …at least down to the occasional treat, instead of a way of life! I wear Polaroid sunglasses whenever I’m outside…and sometimes in supermarkets.
I try to limit my computer use (luckily I don’t have to use one in order to earn a living!!), and try to be aware of other activities that make me feel ‘off’. Unfortunately I have no control over the fluctuating weather - changes in pressure i.e. when the barometer drops suddenly are BAD news for me!
For me - stress and anxiety do NOT seem to be a trigger ( I have experienced some very stressfull periods in my life with no episodes!) - but rather a result of the affliction. Neither do most of the other foodstuffs often noted as triggers seem affect me. (yay!!)

I am well aware that a lot of people will not aggregate with this regimen, and that homeopathic remedies have been ‘disproved’ several times, however - it works for me (at the moment) and I don’t care if its ‘in my mind’ - as long as I’m feeling better! - which I am!!
Research tells me that Magnesium is lacking in just about everyone’s diet these days - so is good for you whether you have MAV or not. I also note that a number of the forbidden foods on the diet those that are are high in Magnesium.??

I hope this looooong post might help someone to help themselves!!

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you did a fantastic job of explaining everything mazzy :slight_smile: I didn’t realise you had suffered for so long but im pleased you have figured it all out and have set a plan in motion which seems to work for you (yay!)