Stop the Spins: How Vestibular Physical Therapy Can Help You Find Solid Ground

Vertigo is one of the most common symptoms that my patients with vestibular diagnoses report. Vertigo is a spinning sensation that occurs while you aren’t actually moving. People tend to say, “It feels like the room is spinning around me.”

As a physical therapist, I want to clarify that vertigo is a symptom, not a diagnosis! If you have seen a physician about these types of symptoms in the past, they might have told you about stones or rocks in your ears causing these symptoms. Inside the ear, are calcium carbonate crystals called “otoliths” that move when our heads move forward, back, and side to side. When these crystals move, they signal our brain to tell us that we are moving in one of those directions. Those crystals can become loose and fall into one of three different canals in the inner ear. The canals contain nerve fibers that tell our brain when we are rotating/spinning. When the crystal falls into the canals, we feel like we are spinning even when sitting still. These symptoms traditionally only last for a few seconds, but we are sometimes left with an uneasy sensation for a few minutes.

When you attend physical therapy, a physical therapist will determine if your symptoms are coming from the inner ear and, if so, what canal that crystal fell into. During the evaluation, your therapist may ask questions about your symptoms and perform visual and balance testing. If they believe your symptoms are coming from the inner ear, they will test for a dislodged crystal. This sounds a little more intimidating than it is. The testing is fast and straightforward, and you’re in a safe, private environment.

Once testing is complete and your physical therapist identifies the impacted ear and canal, your physical therapist will perform a repositioning technique to get the crystal back to its proper location. This maneuver will likely be done more than once to ensure effectiveness. These maneuvers are relatively simple, very safe, and quite effective! There are occasions when there may be more than one stone, and they can be in different canals, which may require a follow up appointment to address any remaining vertigo symptoms.

The good news is that you don’t have to live with symptoms of vertigo. Our vestibular therapist team is here to help you get back on the path of living life without limitations! Contact your local Athletico or visit our website at Athletico.com to find a vestibular therapist near you.

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