Physical Therapy for Vertigo and Why It May Not Work for You
Vertigo is a sensation that causes the sufferer to feel as if they or their environment is spinning and can be very debilitating to the person experiencing it. Vertigo symptoms often include feelings of imbalance, swaying, spinning or tilting. Other symptoms of vertigo are nausea, vomiting, headaches, hearing loss or ringing in the ears. If you’re experiencing vertigo, you may be wondering about the effectiveness of physical therapy for vertigo treatment.
Physical Therapy for Vertigo
Vertigo can occur for any number of reasons which include infections in the inner ear, issues with the cervical spine, central nervous system issues, and the most common cause of vertigo, loose crystals in the ear, also referred to as Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). Depending on what exactly is causing your vertigo will alter the treatment. For BPPV in particular, vestibular rehabilitation therapy may yield positive results.
Physical therapists can treat the symptoms of BPPV by using positional maneuvers that are used to return dislodged calcium carbonate crystals in the inner ear to their original resting position. This is done by using maneuvers such as the Epley maneuver, Semont maneuver and the Brandt Daroff exercise.
Why Physical Therapy May Not Work for Vertigo
While there is a growing body of research that supports vestibular therapy for vertigo treatment, some patients may find little to no success with this method of treatment. Though the likelihood of it becoming worse is minimal, there are a few reasons why you may not find results with this method of vertigo treatment.
- Incorrect Exercise Execution – If the exercise procedure is not being followed correctly, it may be the reason why vestibular therapy doesn’t work for you. These exercise parameters include the angle of the head, how quickly the movements are made, the direction of movement, and duration of the exercise.
- Aggravation in the Neck – If you currently suffer from neck problems, they can become aggravated during exercises, causing headaches and neck pain, even lightheadedness.
- Misalignment – When the upper cervical spine becomes misaligned, it can put pressure on the brain stem, which may cause you to experience vertigo. Without properly treating that misalignment, vertigo will continue to recur even with the aid of physical therapy.
Finding the Root Cause of Vertigo
Without addressing the root cause of vertigo, relief may be impossible to find. How can proper spinal alignment help in vertigo relief and recovery? The cervical spine is critical for the mobility of the head, ensuring proper blood flow to the brain and protecting the spinal cord. Any type of misalignment in the cervical spine can wreak havoc on the entire body in a number of ways, including causing vertigo and dizziness.
At Align Wellness Center, we have helped thousands of patients that have suffered with vertigo and have found physical therapy unhelpful, those patients are finally starting to find relief from their symptoms for the first time. Vertigo issues can improve drastically through corrective chiropractic care.
If you or someone you know is suffering from vertigo and have found physical therapy to be unhelpful in treating the symptoms of vertigo, they need to be looked at by a corrective chiropractor and ensure the cervical spine is in alignment as well as other areas of the body. If you’re looking for a chiropractor that will take a natural and holistic approach to helping with your vertigo, give us a call, even if you’re out of our area, we can look to connect you with a chiropractor near you.
We offer an in-depth exam to determine exactly what we can do to help with as much detail for you as possible. It is called the 3-Dimensional BioStructural Analysis, and the process involves the following:
- Timeline history
- Digital posture exam
- 3-Dimensional posture exam
- Chiropractic, Neurological, and Physical Exam
- Spinal radiographs (if needed)
- Digital biomechanical analysis of your spine
- Insurance verification (by our insurance team)
- Separate time to go over the results of your test within a day or two, where we will go over:
- What is going on
- If we can help
- What the best next step is for you
- Any investment in your health that is necessary
If you’re interested, you can schedule an appointment for a 3-Dimensional BioStructural Analysis here. If you’d like tips on how you can stay healthy and well without drugs and surgery, go ahead and check out other articles on this site. If you continue to struggle with vertigo and dizziness or want more information on physical therapy for vertigo, give us a call at Align Wellness Center (847) 860-6599 or schedule an appointment online. Contact us today or stop by the office. We’re located at 900 Skokie Blvd., Suite 113, Northbrook, IL, 60062.