As I've said in other threads, I haven't felt so great the last few days, and was getting worried I was having another vertigo attack coming on. But until now that hadn't happened. I thought maybe this time, against all odds, it wouldn't - just to prove me wrong to my therapist.

So I was just taking a nap, sleeping on my right (affected) side, and woke up after about 10 minutes with everything spinning out of control. Again.

My last vertigo attack was on Sept 5th, so pretty close to a month ago. I'm approaching menstruation again... just like last time.

I think right this second I'm more pissed off than anything else. So much for my therapist telling me that I'm responding to the treatment and getting better. After I've told her dozens of times that it WILL come back. Thanks for taking me seriously. :mad:

I made an appointment with that new doctor today but of course she's out of town this week, and the earliest she can see me is next Thursday... same day I have my next therapy appt. *sigh*

I don't know what to do. I'm so mad. Ugh!!!

Sorry sipa - that feeling is just so so horrid! By any chance are you mid-cycle (ovulation) right now? I just read that during ovulation, vertigo that happens more often when lying down can occur due to fluctuating hormones. I thought that was interesting that it actually said that it happens more profoundly when lying down. That happened to me just the other day after dinner. I went to lie down on the coach and totally started getting dizzy! No wonder that this can be confusing and probably quite often mistaken for BPPV. I'm not saying that you don't have BPPV - just that if the head maneuvers aren't really doing anything for you, and it returns monthly during certain times (cycle and mid-cycle), ya gotta wonder!

I just ordered a book online about premenopause and how to help our bodies naturally during this time. I know I feel like crap right now - it's like I have to wait for my estrogen levels to increase more or something. :(

Hi Missy,

Sorry you're still feeling horrible. :( I've been doing a lot of looking around online for hormones + dizziness/vertigo but I can't really find all that much in terms of research and explanations. Dizziness and even vertigo are listed as PMS symptoms but that's about as far as it goes.

I'm at a complete loss what's going on with me. It seems obvious to me that hormones have something to do with my vertigo. I've had vertigo attacks every single month the week before my period now. Including this time. For the past 9 months. That can't be coincidence.

What's bizarre is that the Epley DOES work. I did the MEP 3 times last night and the spinning is gone. That should mean it is BPPV. Right?

But how can BPPV be related to hormones?

Additionally, I usually start feeling a little off a few days before I get an actual vertigo attack. If it's BPPV, shouldn't it be a sudden onset? Either you got the rocks in your ear or you don't.

:confused:

Need to do more research. Let me know if your book is any good!

Maybe the Epley works like the placebo effect, OR, maybe it moves around the mechanism that is causing the dizziness even if it is hormone related. I mean, the hormones are obviously causing the dizziness somehow - I don't know if they are swelling the areas around the inner ear, or if it is solely chemical. I read somewhere that it can actually be like a drug-withdrawal. I have never been through a drug withdrawal but I know they can be horrifying because your body is just freaking out due to lack of that drug/chemical. So with the hormone fluctuation, same thing - we are actually going into a hormone withdrawal. ick :(

Have you ever consider HRT? I'm too afraid of that because we have breast cancer in our family history.

Another thing I read with this hormone withdrawal - is that our bodies will kind of get used to it and adjust. So you say you have been having this happen for the past 9 months - I'm pretty close behind you at 7 months. But when I think back, I have sort of been feeling semi-rotten for longer than that - closer to a year. It's like my body is preparing for the big change, even though I'm still quite young. I just keep hoping, hoping and praying that our bodies learn how to adjust to the fluctuating hormones and we start to feel better in time. In fact, I think that is what happens to some of the ladies on this board that have said that they started feeling better at the "2 year mark" or even later. I'm not convinced that everyone really has inner ear problems and that they have rehabilitated their vestibular systems. Sometimes I think that their bodies have just finally adjusted to the fluctuating hormones.

I don't think it's a placebo effect. Each time I did the MEP, the spinning got a little less. I did another one just now to make sure I got everything, and it's completely gone. Just like it should be for BPPV. Totally bizarre.

Maybe the hormone fluctuation is changing something (physical) in the ear. Changes in the fluid? Maybe for some reason it causes those crystals to become detached?

I think it's very possible that our bodies end up adjusting to it after a while. There's so much still up in the air when it comes to diagnosing and treating dizziness and vertigo. That's part of the reason it really annoys me when my therapist stops listening. She thinks she's figured it out exactly when the diagnosis she's given me is not even completely understood. I really, really believe there's a lot more involved. And the anxiety that comes with it? I don't believe that's purely psychological. Mine goes away the second I don't feel dizzy/off/nauseous, from one day to the next.

Haven't tried HRT. I haven't even had my hormone levels checked yet. For some reason all my doctors thought it wasn't necessary to do any blood tests. I'm not sure it would do any good to check hormone levels during the "normal" time?

Actually, those hormone tests can be worthless. Mine showed normal and I know they are not normal!! They had me do the hormone blood test 3 days after my cycle started. What I would do next time is do the hormone blood test when I felt at my absolute WORST (which can vary at times). ANd even that might not show anything. So don't be surprised if they say your hormones are totally fine. Don't believe 'em! ;)

You're right - this inner ear stuff of WHATEVER it is is so bizarre and almost impossible to pinpoint. Isn't it just the worst when trying to explain what we have to other people? I always have people saying, "So exactly what is wrong with you?" and I have to go on to this totally long explanation that it started out as Labyrinthitis which set off some migraine component which then started allergies, which then made my hormones go out of whack... They just look at me like I'm a nut. :rolleyes:

Hi Missy and Sipa,,
I think your right about the hormonal things you relaid to me on other threads,"Not to worry too much".Because I don't ever get any of these BPPV symps; around any of my cycles. And I gotta tell you, Man can I ever relate to trying to answer or explain the,," What's wrong with you??" thing. Even to my oun husband,infact,even harder to him! I thinks it's cause he's seen me on my worst and very bad days. Then seen me on my not so bad or even pretty good days, then I get bad days again, then I get better days, then I'm hugging the walls or sometimes even crawling the floors. RRR and oh man,, the anxiety. Sometimes I think, he thinks I may be turning into some kind of hypocondriach. Hmmm,, gee, maybe I'm starting to think that too.?.
Naw,, just some venting "I hope" lol Sure hope you get to feeling better again real soon. For Good this time,,, if there is such a thing.

I know! I do feel like people think I am a hypochondriac sometimes. Last night was a good example of mixed messages. I felt so horrible after work and my headache started getting worse and worse until finally when I got home at 7pm, I had to lay down! My son came in and asked if we were going to watch our favorite show while we ate dinner and I told him, "not tonight, mommy's got a had headache." So I laid in bed and started slowly eating, and by the time I finished eating my headache was gone. :rolleyes: So of course I got up and started walking around again and doing things around the house and everyone was kind of looking at me weird. Here I was deathly ill one minute, totally walking around like a zombie - my face was even pale - you know that "look" of just feeling bad - and then the next minute I'm fine.

And then today again, here I am feeling wrecked again. It's back and forth and back and forth - it really is quite maddening.

Hope you feel better too pumama!:D

Hi Sipa,,, I'm so sorry to hear it's back again! I'm not gonna comment on the therapist thing - cause I think that gets me in trouble. But I'am sooo glad your going in to see a new doctor soon! I hope this time you'll get a good one that'll actually listen to you,and consider ALL your symptoms.Try to make a list of everything you think will help in talking with this new Dr. I know with me, and I'm lucky cause I feel very comfortable and confident with my Dr, even though from a woman's perspective I have a male Dr. Please understand,,,, I mean No offence to anyone.. Just that a lot more women usually feel more comfortable with female Dr's,,, especially my own 2 teen daughter's. Lucklier,, my Dr's wife is also a doctor and they share patient overloads,, if & when or as need may be,, if the patient's are comfortable with it, if not then we just have to wait for our own. Well,anyways. Alot of times when I go in to see him,,, in my mind, I always (Think) I know what I'm going to say or atleast be talking about. Yeah,, till he asks for the "more specifics",, anyways, I'm gonna start doing this too, but just maybe try & make a list,, and at the top,, maybe start with talking about Blood Test, and make it a fact they know you haven't had any done by any Drs yet. Ya know? And who know's,, next week may just turn out to be the best time, cause it'll be even closer to your period. Don't know if it would matter or not.?. At any rate, I pray your MEPs hold up for you and your symps fade fast!

hahaha, an "acquaintance" just told me in not so many words that I'm turning into a hypochondriac!!! Ya ookay! I get the weird looks too sometimes. I feel horrible one second, don't want to move or talk, then a few minutes later, I'm walking around, doing stuff.

Yes, I make lists now when I go to see a Dr. Like.. written down, lol. I tried without but somehow once they start talking, I forget the rest of the things I wanted to ask about. So far it hasn't done any good, but maybe this time it will. *crosses fingers*


I did some looking around online and found 1 (ONE) good article relating hormones and vertigo, specifically Recurrent Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo Related to Oral Contraceptive Treatment.

While it looks at 10 women on oral contraceptives, it might not be limited to taking the pill (I'm not on it.)

A few excerpts (not sure how much I'm allowed to post)

...we conclude that the rate of recurrence of BPPV is high, and may exceed 40% [13- 15]. ... Beynon and colleagues [13] demonstrated a correlation between female gender and recurrent BPPV.

(...)

Various hormonal triggers may be released in the premenstrual syndrome, during pregnancy, in premenopausal syndromes and by the use of oral contraceptives [17], which have been associated with neurological symptoms including vertigo. Specifically, the use of oral contraceptives may have multiple metabolic effects. The mechanisms presumed responsible for premenstrual hormonemediated vestibular impairment [18] are as follows:

(1) A sudden fall in blood estrogens and progesterone levels, with a peak in blood aldosterone concentration and subsequent variations of endolymph/perilymph pressures, due to impaired water and electrolyte balance.

(2) secondary hypothyroidism.

(3) Blood hyperviscosity.

(...)

In conclusion, the effect of hormones on vestibular function appears not completely explored [30], but is worthy of further investigation to clarify clinical entities such as the cases of BPPV reported herein.

Sounds interesting to me.

I knew it!! ;) Great job finding that, sipa. Especially number 1 where it mentions the estrogen and those "other" levels. Very interesting about the electrolyte thing too. I especially like the fact that they agree more research needs to be done (DUH)!! It is obvious that MANY women are experiencing vertigo and dizziness and if it is related to hormones, it would sure save alot of time and energy knowing where to focus on instead of other possible causes.

I SO much want to just TRY a patch or something during "those times" to see if it helps. Then again, I would SO much prefer figuring out a more natural approach.

Haha, yep. Unfortunately what I got from the article is that basically it isn't well understood at all how hormones affect "otoconial degeneration," which they assume is the cause of BPPV. Just that these particular authors believe that there is a link.

Maybe I've been looking in the wrong places. I've heard/read (don't remember which) that calcium taken over 2-3 months improves PMS symptoms. The article also mentions something about calcium:

It has been reported that pH variations and/ or ion deficiencies in the endolymph may alter the structure of the otoconia [26]. A deficit in endolymphatic calcium supply has been suggested to explain senile otoconial demineralization [27,28]; in fact, a possible pathogenesis seems to be related to impaired calcium homeostasis, frequently associated with menopausal hormonal deficiencies or changes.

I've started taking calcium regularly about a week ago after I read about it helping PMS symptoms (been rather lazy about it before then). But I guess I won't know if it'll help any for a while, lol.

The more I think about this, the more I'm starting to believe that my BPPV is more a symptom of something else. I mean, it's great if I can self-treat with MEPs every time I get it, but I'd much rather get to the bottom of this and find what's causing it so that I don't have to self-treat every month.

It sort of reminds me of my first Dr giving me anxiety meds to get rid of the anxiety and completely ignoring the underlying cause, i.e. my dizziness... I really, really hate that. "Oh! You're a woman and you're not feeling well! It's anxiety! Take these pills! Good-bye!!" :rolleyes:

Out of all of the gazillion vitamins I take, believe it or not Calcium is not one of them but I am definitely adding it to my regimen. I know I should have been taking it anyway because of osteoporosis yada yada, but now that it may help with dizziness for SURE I am taking it!!

Yah - I just read somewhere that in the olden days (ha ha, not that long ago actually), the anti-anxiety meds were the standard to give to women who were having "womenly health problems". In other words, they had/have no clue how to treat the hormone problem. That is why HRT was so popular until they figured out that it causes cancer. :(

Wow, I'm so glad I found you women. I've been sitting here depressed all day trying to figure out why this BPPV has been torturing my life for the past year! It's like some kind of blessing that you happen to be talking about this today when I've come to find answers yet again as to why when I think my BPPV is gone, it's back again after atleast a month. And it just so happens that I have my period right now. Last night, while laying down, the room spun around me and I just ignored it, I woke up this morning and it happened again. Then I looked up in my closet, and again spinning with lasting nausea and hungover feeling. I immediately did the Epley and had nystagmus during first position. I thought I was free from this the last time I did the MEP!!! I'm so frustrated! I have been to the best doctor (Otorhinolarygologist)in the area and after visiting him three times for the Epley, he basically told me in so many words that he was sending me to VRT b/c there was nothing more he could do and didn't have any answer as to why it keeps coming back! I never went to therapy, why would I do that when I could just do it at home? I want to get to the bottom of this, like all of you! I am 36 with two young children and the thought of pre-menapause and hormone imbalance never entered my mind until now! I think you are onto something, please post if you find out any other information. I will search as well. Would you suggest I have hormone testing done? What should I ask for? Thanks so much for listening, it makes it so much easier to know there are other women out there like me.

Hi Meniero!

It's great when they tell you that they have no clue why it keeps coming back and make no efforts to find out either. :mad:

Re VRT: I think especially the visual ones do help me but I had lingering symptoms too. If you don't have any of that, I'm with you and don't think it'll do you any good.

Not sure which tests should be done. Just starting to find out more about this.


I found one more article on hormones + vestibular disorders last night. I'm going to go ahead and buy it (only $5) and start reading up before my appts next week. Maybe that'll shed some light on things.