Vertigo and Chiropractic Treatment
Have you ever been standing or sitting still somewhere, or even lying in bed, when suddenly everything around you seems to start spinning out of control? If so, you know what vertigo feels like. It’s a scary, disorienting and nauseating feeling. More than 10 million people visit their doctors or go to the ER every year with symptoms of vertigo.
For many of these people, it’s the beginning of a long journey of tests and medications that do little to solve the root problem or help them get relief. If you live in Knoxville and suffer from vertigo, you owe it to yourself to schedule a visit to Homberg Chiropractic & Wellness to see Bearden Chiropractor Doc Hennie. Chiropractic care can provide effective, lasting vertigo relief that can help you get back to living your best life without the dizziness and nausea.
What is Vertigo?
Vertigo is the sudden feeling that everything around you is spinning, even if you are standing or sitting still. This can throw you off balance or make you feel sick and fall down. Vertigo is a symptom, not a disease on its own, however. It can indicate problems within the inner ear, sometimes, but not always connected to hearing loss. These relentless dizzy spells can also indicate nervous system interference. Vertigo may be connected to an injury, but it can also stem from other health imbalances like nutritional deficiencies. Certain medications can also have vertigo as a side effect. Fortunately, some in-depth studies listed in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics demonstrate a clear link between chiropractic care and vertigo relief.
Types of Vertigo
Because vertigo is a symptom and not its own condition, it can stem from a range of different causes. It is important to get a comprehensive, clear diagnosis of what is causing your vertigo, so the chiropractic treatment can be tailored to address the underlying causes of the dizziness and nausea. The two main types are:
Peripheral—This stems from inner ear conditions that impact balance.
Central—This type stems from nervous system issues that can include traumatic brain injury, stroke and other problems.
Vertigo Causes
Drilling down even further, each of these types of vertigo can stem from a number of different diseases or syndromes that impact either the inner ear or the nervous system (or both):
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)—A BPPV episode can be triggered when you suddenly change head position, roll over in bed, stand up or sit down. Suddenly, it feels like everything else is spinning and you can become very nauseous and disoriented. This is the most common scenario and it can be treated well with chiropractic care and therapeutic exercises. The Mayo Clinic has a good explanation of BPPV as well.
Meniere’s Disease—A fluid buildup in the inner ear, sometimes accompanied by hearing loss or ringing in the ears (tinnitus), can also cause the spinning sensation of vertigo. Often, you can feel the fluid buildup in the ears as a “heaviness” there.
Vestibular Neuritis—In this case, the vestibular nerve is inflamed. The vertigo sensations may also be accompanied by vision disturbances as well.
Labyrinthitis—The labyrinth is part of the inner ear where the vestibulocochlear nerve sends information to your brain about head motion, sounds and your position in space. This inner ear inflammation can cause vertigo, hearing loss, tinnitus, ear pain and even visual disturbances.
Cholesteatoma—If you have had numerous ear infections, this can cause non-cancerous growths in the middle ear that can also cause hearing loss and vertigo.
In addition to these common vertigo causes, there are a host of other things that could be the root problem too. A car accident where you suffer whiplash or a head injury can bring on attacks of vertigo and other associated symptoms. Certain medications can cause vertigo, as can diabetes and a host of other problems.
Supporting the nervous system’s ability to control proper nerve function within the ear is one of the main goals and benefits of chiropractic care for vertigo. Here at Homberg Chiropractic & Wellness, Chiropractor Doctor Hennie will also teach you exercises that can help reduce the frequency and severity of vertigo symptoms, as well as other symptoms often associated with vertigo. By supporting proper nervous system function through chiropractic adjustments and other physiotherapy techniques, the underlying causes of these symptoms are relieved so the symptoms themselves go away.
Associated Symptoms
As you might notice from the list of conditions that can lead to vertigo symptoms, this condition can also come with other problematic and troubling symptoms that need to be addressed. When treating vertigo with chiropractic care, many of our patients notice that some of all of these other symptoms usually lessen or resolve as well.
Vision problems—Many of the same nerves that affect hearing and balance are also connected to nerves that serve the brain’s vision centers as well. Vertigo often comes with similar complaints of having a hard time focusing, blurry vision, or even double vision.
Hearing Loss—Often, vertigo can be associated with hearing loss, usually in one ear.
Tinnitus—This ringing in the ears is frequently associated with vertigo and other vestibular problems.
Balance Problems—Because vertigo causes dizziness and disorientation, it can be hard to maintain balance, which can lead to falls and injury.
Fatigue and Exhaustion—The causes of vertigo can also lead to fatigue because of the nervous system stress that these underlying conditions can cause.
Chiropractic care can successfully treat and relieve the nervous system interference caused by these problems so that you can regain balance, proper vision and leave the dizziness of vertigo behind. Chiropractic care can also help you feel much more energized because the nervous system is able to accomplish all of its jobs without stress and impingement.
Our patients have experienced successful treatment with chiropractic care in our office: “I’m grateful for the treatment I received from Homberg Chiropractic, and would recommend them to anyone. I’ve noticed a significant decrease in neck and hand pain, plus improvements I didn’t know could be related to spinal alignment like better balance and no more headaches. If you're thinking about chiropractic, come check them out first.” — Mirka M., Google Reviews
Vertigo Treatment and Chiropractic Intervention
If you live in the Knoxville area and are struggling with vertigo or any of these other associated symptoms, make sure to schedule an appointment with Chiropractor Dr. Hennie. He has several techniques that can directly address and relieve vertigo and its follow-on symptoms. For example:
Chiropractic adjustments—Chiropractic adjustments are an excellent way to reduce nervous system interference that can cause the problems that lead to vertigo symptoms. It is especially important in the case of vertigo associated with whiplash or head injuries.
Therapeutic exercises—Doc Hennie also coaches his patients on a number of exercises that can provide relief for inner ear and vestibular problems. We work on getting the proper form right here in the office, and then you can continue to do these exercises correctly at home.
Lifestyle adjustments—In many cases, chronic inflammation from poor diet and other substances can also exacerbate vertigo attacks. Our chiropractor will help you evaluate different lifestyle changes you can make to help you make vertigo even less likely to occur in the future. Some of these changes include following a better nutrition plan and ceasing the use of alcohol, tobacco, caffeine and other stimulants. There are other kinds of medications that can also cause vertigo, so it’s important to fully understand the side-effects of any medications you use. Over-the-counter antihistamines and sleeping medications can cause vertigo too. In addition to pursuing these lifestyle changes, you can add good, helpful relaxation and breathing techniques to your daily routine. Yoga and Tai Chi have also been helpful to many of our patients in getting their vertigo under control.
Don’t Ignore Vertigo
Vertigo isn’t just annoying. It can prevent you from living to your fullest potential. Worse still, it can cause you injury if you fall and lose your balance, or experience an attack while driving. Don’t risk it! In most cases, vertigo can be treated by chiropractic care, exercises and lifestyle adjustments, which can help you regain a sense of control and stability in your life and your ability to move through space easily. Chiropractic care is especially helpful because, instead of just sending you home with another medication to take, chiropractic care provides a holistic, natural approach that lets your body heal and restore balance on its own. Working with Dr. Hennie has helped so many people in the Knoxville area overcome vertigo, as well as many other conditions, giving them the power to resume a healthy, dizzy-spell free life.
Your Bearden Chiropractor Provides Vertigo Relief
Don’t wait for another vertigo attack before you contact us here at Homberg Chiropractic & Wellness for an appointment. Our Knoxville chiropractor, Dr. Hennie, has successfully treated many vertigo patients, and he can help you as well. He has served the community actively as a Bearden Chiropractor for more than 20 years. Whether your problem is vertigo, headaches, a musculoskeletal injury, back pain or any other condition, he can help!
To learn more about our services, check out our Chiropractic Services page, and contact us through the appointment booking page here, or call us on the phone at 865-679-2225 to ask questions from our knowledgeable, friendly staff. We look forward to helping you get the relief you need!