Dizzy/Vestibular Rehab

Vestibular Rehabilitation Specialist

Do you suddenly have Dizziness? Or feel dizzy when you turn your head or look up? There’s a good chance we can help you with your symptoms, QUICKLY and PERMANENTLY!

What causes my dizziness?

There are small “crystals” (otoliths) in your inner ear that break free, and lodge themselves into the wrong spot, causing a disruption in fluid, and thus dizziness.
Therefore, looking up, over your shoulder, or bending down, you may experience dizziness or dizzy-like symptoms.

What can YOU/TOPS actually do?

Crazy enough, this is likely a quicker, simple fix that requires only a few sessions to eliminate your symptoms. Especially if you follow the simple directions we provide you at the end of your appointment.

Even if you have had the symptoms for quite some time, our Vestibular Rehabilitation Specialists can help you! It is still just as simple of a fix as if you have only had it one day.

My doctor put me on anti-dizzy medications (Meclizine and Valium), won’t that help?
Maybe, BUT manual treatment is 9 TIMES MORE EFFECTIVE than medications. And if it’s truly BPPV or a sudden onset of dizziness, it really only takes 1-3 treatments to help take away the symptoms.

But I am dizzy, so I don’t think I can do exercises and I’m afraid of throwing up!
No worries! That’s why we are trained as Vestibular Rehabilitation Specialists, so we can help you through this. Most of it starts as a passive treatment, thus you aren’t doing exercises.
And, it is our job to try to elicit your symptoms, so we can best determine what your diagnosis is, and eliminate the feeling of nausea or vomiting. If you do vomit, no biggie! We will do our best to ensure that doesn’t happen, but if so, we will take care of it.

Who is affected by these conditions?

Most people think it is older individuals with Parkinson’s who have balance issues or dizziness, but really, it affects women in their 50’s the most.
It also commonly affects post-concussion athletes, or individuals who may have been in a car accident and had whiplash or head trauma.
If you have had a fall or hit your head, or perhaps you are working out and smoke your chin, that can cause some of the crystals to come loose and settle in the wrong spot in your inner ear.

What do I actually have?

There are different causes for these symptoms, however, most commonly, patients have BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo). This is followed by uncompensated Meniere’s disease, vestibular neuritis, labyrinthitis, perilymphatic fistula, and acoustic neuroma. More central vestibular deficits include cerebrovascular disorders, cerebellar disease, migraine, multiple sclerosis, tumors to the posterior fossa, neurodegenerative disorders, medications, and psychiatric disorders.
All of that fancy language to basically say, our TOPS Vestibular Rehabilitation Specialists can best determine your needs and get you the help you need! Psst, there’s a good likelihood it’s BPPV, and that takes 1-3 PT treatment sessions to eliminate the symptoms.

Ok ok, we see “TOPS Vestibular Rehabilitation Specialists”…what does THAT mean??

Essentially, we have gotten a certification that demonstrates that we are the country’s premiere resource for management and treatment techniques related to the vestibular system (aka you being dizzy). We believe in our continued advancement of our abilities as medical practitioners and that it is critical to have this certification in the ever-evolving medical system.

We are trained in:

• Performing a thorough vestibular evaluation and examination
• Performing special tests to determine pathologies
• Hands-on treatment approach for vestibular hypofunction, peripheral vestibular dysfunction, and post-concussion care

At physical therapy, after we get the crystals back into their correct positioning, we will use specialized exercises that result in gaze and gait-stabilization. This occurs through head movements that help to retrain the vestibular system. The custom programs we will create for you are much more effective than the generic ones often provided, including many of the fancy, high-tech computer programs.

Our goals for you:

• Eliminate your dizziness
• Improve your balance
• Minimize falls
• Improve stability while you are walking, looking up or down
• Reduce dependency on visual and somatosensory inputs
• Improve your neuromuscular coordination
• Decrease your anxiety and somatization due to vestibular disorientation

More random factoids:

• 90 million Americans experience dizziness in their lifetime
• Peak incidence of occurrence is in 50 year olds (Mostly women)
• Children also have these issues and are easily treated (Oftentimes associated with concussions or falls)

Want to learn more about what we do? There are some references below, or come in to see us and let us help you determine if we can help you.

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