I haven't been here for a very long time. For those who don't know me, like you I first came on this post about 4 years ago looking for answers to my 24/7 dizziness. I hope I'm not jinxing myself, but I want to tell you that I'm feeling a lot better thanks to a low dose of an SSRI (20mg Paxil) that I've been taking since March 2005.
I want to tell you my story in case it can help someone.
It all started at the end of Septemer 2001.
- It started with a feeling of being pushed to one sidel.
- After a week, 24/7 dizziness
-I mainly had no spinning virtigo (happened 4 times in a period of 5 years).
-I had trouble with my balance (felt like trying to walk carrying a pan of water.
- Pressure in my brain (like squeezing a sponge) especially when turning my head in bed
- Sometimes felt like I was wearing prescription glasses (floor was leaning a little bit
- And more minor symptoms
During these 4 first years I saw many doctors (2 GPs, 2 ENTs, many neurologists, 1 psychiatrist (1rst GP said it was anxiety), an Environmental Medicine doctor, I saw chiropractors, a physiotherapist, I tried accupuncture,
homeopathy, vitamins, a few quwacks, ... probably missed a few.
I tried different meds (SERC, diuretic, anti anxiety drug etc). I tried soooo many things and nothing worked.
After 4 years of constantly battling this dizziness I decided to try an SSRI. I was sooo scared (my first GP had given me SSRI's (Effexor and Celexa) at the very beginning (before all the testing) and after a few days they were giving me panick attacks. And since I wasn't convinced that my dizziness was due to anxiety I didn't want to take them. (By the way my dizziness has nothing to do with an anxiety problem).
My new GP started me on 10 mg of Paxil a day. I was sooo scared that I divided my little pill in 4. I took a 1/4 of my pill for about 4 days, when I didn't feel any anxiety I took 1/2 of the pill for another 3-4 days, then took 3/4 then the whole pill. Since I didn't feel any bad side effects he asked me to go to 20mg a day. And like before I went up a little bit at a time.
Sooo, it's been over 1 1/2 years on the Paxil and all I can say is that I'm not 100% normal but what a difference. I hardly feel unbalanced anymore, it happens from time to time (noticed mainly if I haven't eaten) and it doesn't last a long time. Very very mild pressure in my head. Practically no visual dizziness (if it goes up, it doesn't last as long). I tried going to 40 mg, but I felt I didn't feel any better. I just went down for a few months to 15 mg and felt the symptoms getting worse, so 20mg seems just fine.
It's not perfect but it's sure is heaven after being miserable for 4 years.
Great to hear from you and excellent to know the SSRI worked so well for you. I suspect that these meds may work their stuff on a lot of long-term sufferers and indeed are a silver bullet as Rosalyn Davies (London neurotologist) said. It sounds like you were in a similar boat to me and perhaps these SSRIs stopped the madness of it all long enough for your brain to compensate. Too bad your doc didn't pursue this route with you much sooner.
A theory I am chasing up is that SSRIs somehow knock out a migraine component of this. Adam and I have wondered if labs/VN or some other viral infection (herpes?) can somehow produce a "channelopathy" in the brain. In plain English, whether the regular workings of nerves get hosed and muck up calcium channels that exist within the cells - necessary for normal function. So this migraine "variant" could start and does not necessarily include headaches. If this is true, the SSRI may work as a double-edged sword by killing the physical anxiety driven by the inner ear upset but also the migraine as well. SSRIs, while not the drug of choice for migraine, still work for some as a migraine treatment. I'm seeing a top Australian neuro next week to find out what he thinks of this.
Just out of curiosity, was it Paxil that made your anxiety worse in the very beginning or was it a different SSRI? Second, do you think the original dosing caused the increased anxiety or was it because you were really nervous trying such a drug which may have revved you up that way? Any plans to *slowly* wean off of the Paxil down the track?
Glad you posted this as it might give others more confidence to try an SSRI when all else fails and symptoms refuse to change. It illustrates again that when compensation does not happen within a reasonable time frame (VRT or not) that there is most likely something else in the way.
I haven't been here for a very long time. For those who don't know me, like you I first came on this post about 4 years ago looking for answers to my 24/7 dizziness. I hope I'm not jinxing myself, but I want to tell you that I'm feeling a lot better thanks to a low dose of an SSRI (20mg Paxil) that I've been taking since March 2005.
I want to tell you my story in case it can help someone.
It all started at the end of Septemer 2001.
- It started with a feeling of being pushed to one sidel.
- After a week, 24/7 dizziness
-I mainly had no spinning virtigo (happened 4 times in a period of 5 years).
-I had trouble with my balance (felt like trying to walk carrying a pan of water.
- Pressure in my brain (like squeezing a sponge) especially when turning my head in bed
- Sometimes felt like I was wearing prescription glasses (floor was leaning a little bit
- And more minor symptoms
During these 4 first years I saw many doctors (2 GPs, 2 ENTs, many neurologists, 1 psychiatrist (1rst GP said it was anxiety), an Environmental Medicine doctor, I saw chiropractors, a physiotherapist, I tried accupuncture,
homeopathy, vitamins, a few quwacks, ... probably missed a few.
I tried different meds (SERC, diuretic, anti anxiety drug etc). I tried soooo many things and nothing worked.
After 4 years of constantly battling this dizziness I decided to try an SSRI. I was sooo scared (my first GP had given me SSRI's (Effexor and Celexa) at the very beginning (before all the testing) and after a few days they were giving me panick attacks. And since I wasn't convinced that my dizziness was due to anxiety I didn't want to take them. (By the way my dizziness has nothing to do with an anxiety problem).
My new GP started me on 10 mg of Paxil a day. I was sooo scared that I divided my little pill in 4. I took a 1/4 of my pill for about 4 days, when I didn't feel any anxiety I took 1/2 of the pill for another 3-4 days, then took 3/4 then the whole pill. Since I didn't feel any bad side effects he asked me to go to 20mg a day. And like before I went up a little bit at a time.
Sooo, it's been over 1 1/2 years on the Paxil and all I can say is that I'm not 100% normal but what a difference. I hardly feel unbalanced anymore, it happens from time to time (noticed mainly if I haven't eaten) and it doesn't last a long time. Very very mild pressure in my head. Practically no visual dizziness (if it goes up, it doesn't last as long). I tried going to 40 mg, but I felt I didn't feel any better. I just went down for a few months to 15 mg and felt the symptoms getting worse, so 20mg seems just fine.
It's not perfect but it's sure is heaven after being miserable for 4 years.
Hi Mica
Great post!
---interesting that SSRI's---work---for some---glad its working for u.
----agree with Scott---about---other things---- standing in the way.
The first SSRI I tried 4 years ago was Effexor. That was 3 months after got sick. That was the first time after many years that me and my GP had a dissagreement. She told me that the dizziness was probably due to anxiety but I disagreed with her. I went along and tried the Effexor. I didn't know at the time what the sides effects were. I think she prescribed me 10mg a day. Anyways, I took the whole pill and after the fourth day I felt a big wave of anxiety. After it passed I didn't think anything about it, but the next day, it was hell. The anxiety was really bad. I wanted to dig a whole and hide. I couldn't function. I called my doctor and she told me to go by her office that day. I remember that my husband took me for a long car ride an hour before myappointment to try to calm me down. The doctor told me that it took a few weeks for the SSRI to work, but I didn't want to continue. She asked me to try Celexa. Since we were close to
Xmas I decided to wait and started the Celexa after the Holidays. I didn't feel any anxiety during that time. After a few days (took the full dose) on Celexa I felt a small wave of anxiety. Since I didn't want to experience the same thing again, I decided NOT to take them. My GP wasn't happy with me. But I told her that I wasn't ready to go through hell went I wasn't convinced that my symptoms were due to anxiety.
Four years later, my new GP (we moved) - after making me try different things, asked me if I wanted to try an SSRI. Not because he thought that I was suffering from anxiety, but that maybe by brain was not compensating because of a chemical imbalance. I was sooo afraid but I was out of options. Like I said before, this time I started at a very very low dose and never felt a touch of anxiety.
This summer I did try decreasing the dosage very slowly but after a month I noticed that my symptoms were stronger (more visual dizziness, more days were I felt unbalanced, more pressure in the brain etc) so I went back to 20mg. With Paxil the maximum dosage is 80 mg.
About weaning off of it ... it all depends on how this dizziness will go. Like I said I'm don't feel 100% but it is 90% better than what felt without the Paxil.
I was prescribed citalopram yesterday and will start taking it tonight. I'm battling some weird inner ear/neuro symptoms (I'm going to update "my" thread in a minute).
Re: Update 
Linear Mode
