HELP! I was diagnosed with VM this past summer, but have had symptoms for eight months. This illness has utterly destroyed my life. I am severely depressed, anxious and traumatized beyond all belief. I cannot sleep, laugh, relax, or eat normaly. I almost lost my job and am hanging on by my nails. What is baffling is that I have no hx of migraine, phono or photophobia, motion sickness, dizziness, or HAs. I was a happy and social person with a wonderful life. It came on suddenly on March 14th while I was taking amlodipine for my bp. Initially I had only slight pulses of dizziness when I turned my head and then it progressed. Computer screens made me dizzy, turning my head, etc… I developed fogginess and my head is extremely sensitive to motion. I have constant subj. vertigo. I had objective vertigo twice: One time on May 21st when I rolled over on my left side and one time after I took amitriptyline. My tests have ruled out end organ damage and are consistent with VM. I had horrible HAs during the summer which are now gone, but I still have slilght has daily. I am suddenly intolerant of fluorescent light which I never was. My phono and photophobia was severe during the summer, but are now improving. My entire world has turned upside down and I am in nightmare from which I cannot extricate myself. I am on Celexa 5mg daily bc I could not tolerate the higher doses (it made my Sxs worse). I take Klonopin daily, but that only transiently suppresses the symptoms. My neuro-otologist is referring me to a headache specilaist, and I think I should try a beta-blocker. Can someone help me?
First of all…take a deep breathe…nit is a scary place to be when the world is spinning around you. Also most of us are very drug sensitive and it seems that everyone’s cocktail for relief is different. Make sure that you are seeing a neurologist that is familiar with MAV which is “migraine associated dizziness”. Take some time and familiarize yourself with this site. There is a wealth of reputable information and many compassionate people. Try not to panic and ask questions…there is a lot to learn and you have come to a very good place to guide you! Take good care…Dee
Home,
I’m very sorry you are going through this. Most of us can relate to much of what you feel. I, too, was very depressed and anxious and scared as to what my future was going to look like. I had insomnia, morning trembling, no appetite, no sense of humor…I truly just tried to make it through each day looking forward to the nightime when I could take my meds that would knock me out for sleep.
It sucked.
These days things are much better. It takes time, and for me, it took the right combo of meds. Celexa is a good one for many people, but if you are still having a lot of depression/anxiety, I would find a way to go up, or try another med. Perhaps Paxil? Or look into Remeron. It is really good for sleep as well in case that is a problem.
You will find good support here…
Kelley
Home,
If I may add this also, When I’m feeling down about this whole mess, I’ll take a look into the section of the success stories. That never fails to bring me up when I feel down about my dizziness. It shows me that people do come out of this and get there life back and you’re not alone and there is a way out. Remember the more positive you can be, the better chance you have of getting past this. I know it sounds impossible right now to be positive at all right now, but you’ll notice if you’re in a good mood one day, you’ll notice the dizziness isn’t as bad as it usually is and that has given me hope in itself. Don’t give up hope. I’ve done that more than once since I’ve had this and it hurts bad when I give up hope. Good luck to you.
Greg