| Recurring BPPV causing terrible anxiety and ruining life
Hello Everyone,
I have been searching around in the archives of past threads trying to get to the bottom of my problem. I have had three episodes of BPPV. One last March, one three weeks ago (went to hospital it was so bad), and one this morning. I feel like I am stuck in a circle of Hell in Dante's inferno, doomed to have the spins at any random moment. Since they each happened while in bed, and turning over, I now have developed a dread of sleeping. Needless to say, I haven't slept a good night in three weeks. I am terrified to lie flat, and have been "sleeping" nearly upright on a bunch of pillows frozen with immobility-- fearing a recurrence.
The Epley maneuver helped the first time (on the right ear) but I still wasn't quite right after. I went back to the doctor (a different doc) and he thought the left ear was involved, so did the Epley on the left. I felt better. This was five days ago. Then I had a terrible night of sleep due to stress, and a very stressful day. Then BAM, vertigo was back this morning. I couldn't tell which side it was on. Things seemed to spin mildly on either side I turned, and I felt impending spinning while lying down. The nausea was awful. I did Epley on the left, and had no symptoms on left, but very minor on right. Then I did it for the right, had mild spinning on the right ,and all hell broke loose when I turned to the left. I have no idea what is going on. I thought the Epley was supposed to help. Two doctors have diagnosed BPPV. I feel as if I have some sort of permanently compromised inner ear to have a recurrence so soon after being treated. I also feel that I need to treat this anxiety, as it certainly isn't helping things. Does anyone have experience with taking an antidepressant, or some other tranquilizer?
Prior to this, I was an extremely active, healthy person. I have two young kids and teach martial arts. Now I just sit around in fear and confusion. I'm really quite desperate to get some help, but my doctors seem to think this is a minor annoyance, and as my ENT put it to me bluntly "nobody cares about vertigo."
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