Vertigo, a feeling of dizziness that occurs without any accompanying movement, is a balance-related condition that about 40 percent of adults will experience at some point in their lifetimes.
While there are diet and lifestyle factors that may contribute to vertigo, including dehydration, lack of sunlight (Vitamin D), and especially stress and lack of sleep, vertigo can also be a symptom of an underlying condition, according to a report from Healthline.com.
Thankfully, vertigo is often a fleeting problem for many people.
But if you’d like work on getting rid of symptoms at home, give the following exercises a try:
1. Brandt-Daroff Exercise-
According to Healthline, this exercise is simple to do unsupervised, which is why it is often recommended for people suffering from vertigo at home.
To do it,
1. Start by sitting on a flat surface, with your legs dangling as if from a chair.
2. Turn your head as far as you can to the left side, then lay your head and torso down on your right side. Do not move your legs; hold this pose for at least 30 seconds.
3. Sit up and turn your head back to the center position.
4. Repeat the exercise on the opposite side.
(Note: I personally tried this as I was writing and researching this article as I have been suffering from a bouts of vertigo during the stress of election season. The first try made me feel considerably less dizzy right away!)
2. Epley Maneuver-
This particular exercise is especially effective for people with Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, a sudden sensation that you’re spinning or the inside of your head is spinning.
Here’s how to do it according to Healthline:
1. Sit upright on a flat surface with a pillow behind you and your legs outstretched.
2. Turn your head 45 degrees to the right
3. With your head still tilted, recline back quickly with your head on the pillow and stay in this position for at least 30 seconds.
4. Slowly turn your head to the left a full 90 degrees without lifting your neck.
5. Engaging your whole body, turn it to the left so you are completely on your left side.
6. Slowly return to your original position while looking forward and sitting straight up.
Please note that you may feel dizzy during each movement, and this exercise can be done as many as three times in a row. An assistant may also be used.
3. Semont-Toupet Maneuver-
This exercise is quite similar to the Epley Maneuver, but doesn’t require as much flexibility in the neck.
1. Start by sitting on a flat surface with a pillow behind you and your legs stretched in front of you.
2. Lie down then turn to your right and look to your left side before looking up.
3. Sit down quickly and turn to your left side, keeping your head facing to your left. You should now be looking toward the ground.
4. Return to your original position slowly before looking forward and sitting straight up.
4. Visual Ocular Reflex-
While vertigo is often caused by ear-related problems, it can also be related to your eyesight, or lack thereof, especially when you’re not wearing corrective lenses and are dealing with stress.
To test whether your vertigo may be related to eyesight, first hold a pen about a foot in front of your eyes and use them to track it, to see if they may be “bouncing.”
Secondly, hold the same pen in front of your eyes to test your near vision. If you see double, that’s a strong indicator that it could be eyesight related, as shown by Dr. Justin Lin of Rehab and Revive Physical Therapy, Inc. in Tusin, California.
For a visual demonstration on how to do this exercise, check out Justin in the video below, and be sure to let us know if you’ve overcome vertigo in any other unique ways in the comments section:
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