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Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo

Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) | Last Active: Apr 10, 2021 | Replies (17)
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@merpreb

Good morning. I am a mentor for Connect in the Lung Cancer and Lung Disease groups. I am a long-term lung cancer survivor of 23 years! Along the way to my current age of 74, I have picked up several exasperating and tiresome traveling companions, like a snowball picking up unwanted rocks. I am now the proud owner of Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.

I had the Epley maneuver performed and now have to do it myself, at home. Does anyone have any tricks of the trade or recommendations for me? Can I get rid of this forever?

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Replies to "Good morning. I am a mentor for Connect in the Lung Cancer and Lung Disease groups...."
John, Volunteer Mentor | @johnbishop | Apr 8, 2021

@merpreb - Have you seen this article? Epley Maneuver: Steps, Tips, and Outlook - Healthline: https://www.healthline.com/health/epley-maneuver

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Sue, Volunteer Mentor | @sueinmn | Apr 10, 2021

Merry - Yuk! BPPV is my awful companion too, but the Epley maneuver does help. As for getting rid of it forever - um, no - nobody in my family has been that lucky. At last count, 4 of 6 siblings have it, about 6 of our kids and so did my Dad and at least 2 of his brothers - along with other ear issues. At one point when my kid were young, 6 of us were under the care of one ENT, who called our family a "unique study of ear malfunctions."

I discovered this past year that for me an episode of BPPV is preceded a day or two beforehand by an extra feeling of fullness in my left ear, higher-pitched and much louder tinnitus in that ear, and sometimes a bit of dizziness when moving about. I immediately go to my bed and do the Epley maneuver (have been known to lie down on a park bench and do it once too.) If I repeat it twice or three times a day for 3 days, I can prevent a full-blown bout of BPPV.

If I miss the warning signs and get "hit" with the dizziness, I have learned to lie down and go to sleep. Then as soon as I wake, I start doing the maneuver 3 times a day - shortened the last bout to 1 1/2 days - sometimes it used to last for a week or more.

I find it interesting that you have migraines along with BPPV - so does my sister and 2 of her kids. I get a bad headache with it, but since I never had classic migraines, I don't know what to call it.

I hope the Epley maneuver works for you - can you tell yet which is your affected side? It took me a few years to figure it out.

Sue

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