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Living with vertigo is not fun. Who would choose to experience dizziness, loss of balance, blurred vision and nausea regularly? Fortunately, there are some exercises you can do at home to combat this typical result of migraines or head injuries. Investigate the following step-by-step routines for several home exercise options that could alleviate your vertigo type. Remember to consult your physical therapy specialist before trying any of them, though.
The Marching exercise is a simple procedure many people with vertigo use to prepare for more complex exercises. All you need is an open space near a wall in your bedroom, living room or kitchen and a single chair, similar to the Romberg exercise that follows soon.
You can do the Marching exercise twice or thrice daily as a stand-alone routine or in preparation for another vertigo exercise. Remember, if you start feeling dizzy, use the wall or chair to maintain your balance.
Specialists developed the Romberg exercise as a level-one beginner routine to assist vertigo patients in managing their symptoms. By training your body to manage the vertigo effects, symptoms often improve. Like the Marching exercise, you’ll want a nearby wall and a chair.
You can do the Romberg exercise up to three times daily. If you’re mastering the routine, try raising your chin and lowering it with closed eyes during a session.
The Epley maneuver moves any misaligned inner ear crystals (canalith debris), which commonly cause vertigo problems, back into your inner ear. This realignment helps with many vertigo forms, most notably in people with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).
If your vertigo persists, follow the Epley maneuver for 10 to 15 minutes, when the symptoms should ease. To be safe, resist driving for a further 15 minutes thereafter.
The Brandt-Daroff exercise works similarly to the Epley Maneuver to dislodge the inner ear crystals causing you dizziness. It is particularly beneficial for BPPV and labyrinthitis vertigo forms. You can do this exercise on a bed or couch and repeat it as often during the day as necessary.
If you stick to the 30-second rule between changing positions, you should suffer no side effects. As your head is angled upward, be careful not to bump it on any nearby furniture.
The Sémont maneuver is especially effective if you have BPPV by also targeting inner ear canalith debris. As a precaution, many people prefer to do this exercise routine with someone else present.
With the Sémont maneuver, you’re addressing the root cause of your vertigo. If you battle vertigo when looking down from a height, you likely have an inner ear imbalance due to canalith debris. This exercise could help. It is often a taxing and stressful exercise, so it’s a good idea to have somebody close to support you and help if the dizzy spells get too much. Avoid driving for at least 15 minutes after finishing the routine.
The gaze stabilization routine is a vital set of vertigo management exercises formulated to retrain your brain to reduce dizziness during head movements. The routine includes a series of specific eye movements that improve your balance and stability.
By habitually using the gaze stabilization routine, your brain will retrain itself to better cope with dizzy spells caused by moving your head quickly. The trick is to practice the exercises often to improve your general balance.
While these regular exercises at home can help combat your vertigo, even religiously practicing them doesn’t guarantee you’ll be vertigo-free. Many more serious forms of vertigo require professional vestibular rehabilitation therapy (VRT) to reduce or eliminate balance issues and dizziness. Doing vertigo exercises at home could work for you, so, with your physical therapist’s agreement, try them out before contemplating further steps.
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