The first time that you encountered vertigo, you probably thought it was just an awful case of dizziness. In that episode, you could have gone to a professional chiropractor for vertigo in McKinney, TX, but since you had no clear idea of what was going on, you let the incident slide.
This is a scenario that happens a lot of time, so it’s not surprising that until now, you may be battling vertigo as it comes and goes. The truth is, you’ll be able to cope with vertigo if you have a complete understanding of it.
Here are essential facts that you need to discuss with your vertigo doctor:
1. Vertigo—What It Is and What It Isn’t
Vertigo is a type of dizziness that brings a false sensation of movement. When vertigo attacks, you feel as if you or your surroundings are spinning. For some people, the sensation feels similar to being sucked up by the ground.
To clarify, vertigo is neither a condition nor a diagnosis. It’s merely a symptom. You may also hear people with vertigo associate it with feeling faint, off-balance, light-headed, or “spaced out.”
2. Why Vertigo Occurs
Many factors may trigger vertigo. Physiologically speaking, vertigo occurs when your body’s sense of balance is impaired. It’s a complex system, but the main thing you should watch out for is any disorder in the inner ear and the brain.
Both your inner ear and brain have components or structures that should work well together so that your body can achieve a sense of balance. When these components run into a problem—either due to a disease, injury, medications, or psychological factors—that’s when you start feeling the whirling, spinning sensation.
Old age may also cause you to be more susceptible to vertigo. In fact, about 40% of people aged 40 and above start experiencing bouts of vertigo. Vertigo may also become chronic or long-lasting as you age.
3. Common Conditions Associated with Vertigo
These conditions usually result in vertigo:
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV)
This is a common disorder that causes short bursts of vertigo, usually due to changes in head position, such as when you roll over in bed.
Meniere's disease
This is a disorder that occurs due to the buildup of fluid and changing pressure in the inner ear. Along with vertigo, you may also experience ringing in the ears (tinnitus) or fluctuating loss of hearing.
Vestibular migraine
In this condition, you may experience the usual migraine symptoms such as a severe headache, visual disturbances, and light or sound sensitivity, along with vertigo.
Labyrinthitis
Based on the root word “labyrinth,” the bony part of the ear that contains the organs of hearing and balance, this is a bacterial or viral infection wherein inflammation of the labyrinth causes vertigo to develop.
Vestibular neuronitis
This refers to sudden and severe vertigo attacks that stem from an inflammation of the vestibular nerve. It links the inner ear to the brain to help keep the body’s sense of balance.
4. How Vertigo Affects the Nervous System
To help you understand the relationship between vertigo and the nervous system, you need to have a background on the latter. The nervous system has two major parts, namely the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
This is how these two systems work: The nerves and nerve clusters in the PNS recognize information from within the body and the outside environment, and then they send this information to the CNS.
The CNS, which has the brain and spinal cord, then controls how the body reacts to any changes based on the available information. Some of the things that your nervous system controls include the following:
- Eye movement and eyesight
- Sensation (proprioception) in your arms and legs
- Vestibular system, which senses equilibrium or balance, rotation, and movement
Unfortunately, there are times when the bone in the neck (the atlas) that protects your brain and spinal cord can become misaligned through injury or wear and tear. The atlas protects the brainstem, which processes all the information related to the body keeping its balance.
Among the other bones of the spine, you use the atlas more heavily since they help carry the weight of the head as well as its wide range of movements. As such, they become more vulnerable to misaligning.
Ultimately, these problems in your CNS can cause vertigo. The signals that tell your brain how to position your body and keep its balance may become distorted, leading to a vertigo episode.
5. A Natural, Effective Solution for Vertigo
Upper cervical chiropractic care can correct atlas misalignments, which may be the root cause of vertigo. The goal is to restore your overall bodily functions, including balance.
Upper cervical chiropractors take exact measurements and perform a series of tests, such as X-rays, to determine the extent of misalignment in your spine. From there, they carry out the proper chiropractic adjustment or correction procedure that your body needs.
You don’t need to suffer from vertigo when you receive upper cervical chiropractic care. If you have any history of neck pain or injury, then it is even more critical that you undergo tests to help you detect any underlying misalignments you have, which may be aggravating your condition.
Schedule a thorough and careful assessment with a professional chiropractor for vertigo in McKinney, TX. Get help from Crowder Specific Chiropractic in McKinney, Texas.
References:
https://vestibular.org/understanding-vestibular-disorder/human-balance-system