how bad does the epley manuever make you feel? how likely are you to get sick from it?

It depends on the person. It didn't make me sick at all. The spinning stops pretty quickly.

I may have misunderstood but didn't you mention that you don't get spinning depending on your position? It's just like lying down in bed. Does that make you dizzy?

If you don't have BPPV, you most likely won't feel anything at all during the Epley. Try it yourself. Lie down on your back kind of quickly (but don't snap your neck! ;)) from a sitting position with your head turned a little to the left or right.

i might could try that. if it does make me spin, will i have residual effects afterwards?

When you lie down at night, do you get dizzy? Or if you turn to your right or left? You could try that. Just lie down like you normally would and turn your head to either side.

I don't want to tell you there will be no residual effects. If you have BPPV, yes, there will be at least for a couple of minutes. It just doesn't sound like you have it so you shouldn't feel anything. And you would pretty much know if you had it. It's pretty severe vertigo when you lie on your affected side.