I haven't been on the board for awhile - too painful for me. I caught a nasty viral infection in February (probably from my gym--everyone had it and the virus lasted for a month in almost everyone who caught it). The virus settled in the inner ear. Prior to that, I swam 12 miles a week religiously, getting ready for my first summer off in about 30 years! My summer was going to start each day with a 3000 yard swim, some yoga, walking, maybe tennis. I had planned to take a few lessons to refine my strokes and hoped to swim with Masters. It is now almost August and I am still not able to swim. At first, the backstroke and freestyle resulted in severe motion sickness. Eventually, even breastroke and fly caused it. At first, the motion sickness only happened when I was swimming (almost the entire time), but I was fine when I got out of the pool. Then I became equally imbalanced even out of the water. Has anyone ever gone through this? My ENT says it can take months, or even years to recover from an inner ear inflammation. He also said it could be permanent damage. I am terrified, and needless to say, very depressed. I'm sorry to be a drag, but I know you all can understand. Thanks for listening.
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Thanks again. :bow: I was dx with VN as well. I've had all the required tests in 2006 which showed weakness in one ear. I recently saw a neuro otologist but was disappointed because she reviewed the old tests and said she thinks I have Meniere's. Yet all the ENTs I've seen said it's not Meniere's, its either Labrynthitis or VN. Maybe I should try the Antivert again. I'm sure I will build up a tolerance over time. I have cut down on the salt and eat raw ginger every day which not only helps motion sickness, but is very anti-inflammatory.
How long did your VN imbalance last? Mine started end of February. I really cannot put my head in the water - one can only do so many kick drills.:waiting:
I probably had attacks of vertigo for 7 or 8 years. But mine sounds a lot different from yours. My attacks were sudden, with no warning, but the worst part only lasted for a few minutes. If I then took an Antivert I was usually back to normal within a couple of hours. I only remember it happening once while I was swimming, and I just had to get out and sit on the pool deck.
I thought that my symptoms sounded more like Meniere's than VN. But I ran into an old friend who is now an ENT and told him about my vertigo. When I mentioned that I wondered whether it could be Meniere's, he started emphatically shaking his head "no". He said, "if it's Meniere's, when you have an attack you would be on your hands and knees, vomiting." He also said that, as an ENT, it is very frustrating to treat patients with vestibular disorders. He said he had instructed his staff to schedule his appointments for only one or two "dizzy" patients per day, because it was all he could handle.
For reducing your sodium intake, make sure you read the food labels. Things like canned soups can contain 800-1000mg of sodium per serving. Not good when trying to stay under 1500mg for an entire day. Also, restaurant food contains tons of sodium. I notice more vertigo problems just after taking a trip where I had to eat restaurant food most of the time.
Thanks again. :bow: I was dx with VN as well. I've had all the required tests in 2006 which showed weakness in one ear. I recently saw a neuro otologist but was disappointed because she reviewed the old tests and said she thinks I have Meniere's. Yet all the ENTs I've seen said it's not Meniere's, its either Labrynthitis or VN. Maybe I should try the Antivert again. I'm sure I will build up a tolerance over time. I have cut down on the salt and eat raw ginger every day which not only helps motion sickness, but is very anti-inflammatory.
How long did your VN imbalance last? Mine started end of February. I really cannot put my head in the water - one can only do so many kick drills.:waiting:
I probably had attacks of vertigo for 7 or 8 years. But mine sounds a lot different from yours. My attacks were sudden, with no warning, but the worst part only lasted for a few minutes. If I then took an Antivert I was usually back to normal within a couple of hours. I only remember it happening once while I was swimming, and I just had to get out and sit on the pool deck.
I thought that my symptoms sounded more like Meniere's than VN. But I ran into an old friend who is now an ENT and told him about my vertigo. When I mentioned that I wondered whether it could be Meniere's, he started emphatically shaking his head "no". He said, "if it's Meniere's, when you have an attack you would be on your hands and knees, vomiting." He also said that, as an ENT, it is very frustrating to treat patients with vestibular disorders. He said he had instructed his staff to schedule his appointments for only one or two "dizzy" patients per day, because it was all he could handle.
For reducing your sodium intake, make sure you read the food labels. Things like canned soups can contain 800-1000mg of sodium per serving. Not good when trying to stay under 1500mg for an entire day. Also, restaurant food contains tons of sodium. I notice more vertigo problems just after taking a trip where I had to eat restaurant food most of the time.
