Reply to Dean re balance: You can regain much of the balance you lost via VRT (vestibular rehab therapy). Today there are VRT specialists in many places. You need to learn to use your third balance system, proprioception, the feeling you get from your entire body, esp. your feet, as you move. I lived through four years of hell with unilateral Meniere's Disease on my right side, learned what my trigger is and got MD under control, then started VRT. At that time there were only a handful of VRT therapists in the world, so I learned via e-mail and practiced it every day for nearly 40 years. I was able to do extremely active hiking and wading, climb ladders, etc. almost as easily as a "norm." Then, a year ago, I went bilateral. Suddenly, my bad side is my best side! I've gotten the disease under control once again and have just begun a new round of VRT with a real live practitioner. The first thing I learned is that through daily work all these years, I've managed to maximize the small amount of residual balance function on my right side. Now, I'm learning to do the same on the left side.

I just checked VEDA's list of VRT people and see that Dr. Timothy Hain is still working in Chicago. He was one of the best and earliest docs to diagnose and treat people with vestibular (balance) disorders 40 years ago. FWIW, VEDA is the Vestibular Disorders Assn., has lots of info and references available at vestibular.org. With only the first two weeks' new effort behind me, I can already feel some improvement, and I'm confident that I'll be able to regain stability and balance...even though I'll be doing daily exercises for the rest of my life. I'm currently 78 and intend to continue to do volunteer instream work for our Fish & Game agency in a very difficult, wild little stream on Oregon's north coast...for years to come.

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