I wanted to share with you my experiences and what I have learnt, so it does help anyone else with it. Many of these things you can do for yourself. First and foremost, don't accept "there is no cure" by definition, meniere's is measured by the symptom (hearing lost at lower frequency) and other signs (tinnitus, ear fullness) together with elimination of other disorders, MRI etc. The triggers are different - some claim it to be viral, some say autommune, some MS and others think it may be a disorder set off by stress or sodium, it could be all of these, don't know, don't really care. Even if you were to be clasified meniere's, then so what? Accept there is no cure? So to settle for, 'I am dizzy I am doomed' is negativity that will reinforce meniere's a a disease without cure. This "look at me, I am suffering, poor me attitude" is typical of people who have this disease, accompanied by depression, anxiety, compulsive disorders, fear that begets panic. It is known that meniere's sufferers commonly have related problems with anxiety, and other issues related such as fibromyalgia, restless legs, irritable bowel, insomnia - I know, because I do. It also makes people settle for, "I cannot exercise, I cannot do things, I cannot get out" which affects me severely, and I do not want to become this person.
I refuse to allow someone else to take effect and decisions on my life, who doesn't suffer this disease, who learnt it off a text book. The most recent specialists I saw tried to tell me I have asthma, and too young to have meniere's. Maybe, but after $500 wasted pursuing this advice, I realised the medication he put me on, Singulair is totally fucking with my mind & exasperating negative thoughts, I opted out as a lost, and have half a pack of it left. It costed me a small fortune, I'm angry for it but at least I don't jump to the excuse "too big to fail". So a write off it is.
Start a journal.
This is one of the most productive steps I have done. Note down, the weather, your activities, any foods you took, coffee, soy (I found out I had soy allergy this way, medically confirmed), how you feel that day, did you feel well, and if you had an attack, how you managed your thoughts, feeling of impending doom.
I have heard people say "I've suffered too long to start a journal" ! I refuse to accept this. I for one, want to get better, and I want for others to get better. If nothing else, I learn a little more about myself and my own symptoms. But if there is any more to it, at least there is fighting chance it can help others too.
Start detoxing
One of the best and safest things you can do, is alter your diet - so I did. I really didn't think I would go too far wrong with a detox diet. Some vegetables such as carrot, celery (some say certain vegetables are high in Sodium, so if Sodium affects you, watch out) beetroot and fruits (pears apples) and feel good food may sound hippyish, but it made me feel better, and apparently helps the body heal itself, sounds good to me. If it has no ill effects, the only thing this would do is bring the body back to a state in equilibrium of sustainance, I cannot see any negatives with this (unless you follow TCM, read below), and sure beats the hell out of 'sorry, there is no cure'. Look into eliminating all foods with other bonds of sodium, not just table salt (sodium chloride), including MSG, Sodium Bisuphite etc; if you are sodium sensitive.
I am not.
Vitamin D and sunlight
Vitamin D aka Vitamin Sunlight is the most fundamental and highest correlation to numerous sicknesses, including a whole heap of cancers, related to all sorts of ailments of the nervous system. Google it yourself through pubmed, and the cancer council gives little guidelines to how to balance the sun exposure so you do not exchange one cancer for 17 other known types as well as chronic illnesses. Understand the minimum current limit is only set for preventive of bone density illnesses, and has not been adjusted for new findings, specially for breast cancer. And yet, despite this, people who often are exposed to the sun are still severely under this limit.
Supplements may assist those who are sensitive and aware of sunburn and melanoma risks, I opted for a combination of both supplement and exposure. Furthermore, sunlight is an excellent support of the body's own circadian rhythm, and assist with serotonin, a feel good hormone. Indeed one of the first advises given to me when being treated for depression. Vitamin D is a catalysts building block to one of the most powerful antioxidants manufactured in your own body - glutathione.
Everybody consumes Vitamin D at a different rate, so the only way to check for it and what does to take, is to have a blood test done, I use a 1000IU supplement with a lot more activity in the sun now, and yes I have been burnt. Despite plentiful exposure to sunlight myself, I came in around half the old daily recommended serum concentration. WIth the mad rules affecting society due to the sunscreen campaign, it is going to be a nightmare for the slip,slop,slap when people start to realise an epidemic of other cancers are a direct result of this campaign including those of children, who can longer play in the sun in mid winter without a hat in school - Western society nanny control.
It just isn't normal in human evolution for us to be indoors for so long, on a chair, some in air conditioning away from daylight. I've chosen to take control of my own life and protested against this madness - it's utter crap. I'm not suggesting you go get out and burn yourself in the sun either. Take some balance.
Chlorella
This pungent chlorophyll charged algae was found in the mining industry during cleaning up of chemical spills. I attempted this as a trial, and together with Vitamin D, makes up one of the more significant contributions for me. I attempted 2 cycles away from chlorella & symptoms gradually returned after 2 days, I view this as significant correlation, even if one might argue it be placebo. To me, this was the beginning of my journey towards the possibility of heavy metal poisoning - not saying I am.
I use this, trialled with a much smaller bottle.
Although not everyone can tolerate chlorella, I found this to be a major step forward towards assisting me with the fight against meniere's. I am using this as a basis for launch a series of actions to eliminate any chance that heavy metals maybe a contributing factor, present in my body. Regardless of if this is heavy metal induced, it has a strong correlation to my symptoms, and that is all I need to know for myself.
Heavy Metal detox
More and more in society, people are getting heavy metal symptoms. Alzheimers, Parkinsons, MS, and one thing you will read consistently with this problem is Mercury and Lead, and the body is running out of ways to get rid of these toxins. One of the beginning steps is to clean up the gut.
I am no nutritionist (definitely not any medical profession either), and have taken up an alternative way of finding this but without going too deep into the nitty gritty of something I don't understand, I will say this. The body has to produce it's own mother of all antioxidant, glutathione - which is derived from sulfur based foods, garlic, gingers, vegetables and other rooty foods, milk tistle, whey and pure organic milk. Some of the catalysts for this creation, includes Vitamin D and the sleep hormone melatonin (are you convinced yet that Vit D deficiency is a no no?). Again these are affected by your exposure to sun, and melatonin is an ingredient of a known natural feel good plant, St Johns Wort. If you lack glutathionem you'd most likely get sick pretty quick.
Furthermore, chlorella is also a heavy metal detox agent. Glutathione and chlorella are basically a potent combination for detoxification of any heavy metal poisoning. It seems to be working for me, again, whether my meniere's was caused by heavy metals or not, it matters not because I know I feel better for it, and I hope it works wonders for you.
Remove your amalgams
I've just had my amalgams removed to further reduce the effects of mercury, and the holistic dentists (at St Leonords Holistic Dentist) also adviced me on Zeolite, a source of humic acid, another powerful toxin binding agent. I have yet to try it out, but have a bottle ready to go which I will update. it works much the same way, but apaprently binds the metals in its complex molecular structure.
It is interesting that a dentists can know so much about everything outside dentistry, a real pleasent change, and it's opened up my mind to holistic approach, but there you go. There are people wanting to help, it is just a matter of finding them and I am glad I did. Now that my amalgams are gone, I'm one step happier.
Ibuprofen
One of the biggest correlation of attacks for me, is ibuprofen - it may be the intolerance to salicylates or aspirin, I am not sure as yet. Used for headaches, and inflammations, for some reason, this is a sure trigger. There are other natural and yet powerful anti-inflammatory which you can try - I've found chia to be good although not really sure about the actual inflammation properties. It's packed with excellent antioxidants, and full of minerals. It also offers an excellent source of soluble fibre, for cleansing, and best of all, it grows easily. (Thanks Jess, I hpe you remain cancer free)
As a training addict, I typically just drop a tablespoon into a bottle of water, add a spoonful of honey and take it with me to any workouts I need. For headaches, I try Paracetamol instead, which so far appears to have no triggering effect.
TCM
This is a little unusual however Traditional Chinese Medicine states that there are 2 main causes of dizziness One is associated with damp sickness, and the other more fundamentally due to qi deficiency in the lower dantien. Without going too far into the details of how it affects your dizziness, there are a few things you can do to assist with fixing this, as well as some herbs. One thing to note though, Yang qi deficiency contradicts taking raw vegetables, so this may put you into a dilemma but I will say, in the interest of your health, take the middle path. Fortunately, TCM is not all about diet changes, although something you can do include making soups with mushrooms & Goji berries. Goji berries have recently become popular in Western foods, and anyone using it is a hippy. But we've been using it in medicinal herbal soups in the east for years, and if it helps you, then fantastic. Screw what people say, they don't suffer from vertigo.
Damp sickness is associated with, well, dampness, so if the weather goes from dry to wet, it triggers symptoms. The tongue is usually coated with a white tinge & hairy in appearance - this is a very common complaint for meniere's disease sufferer's.
Furthermore, and this is an interesting one. Keep the sexual activity down, as well as watch the mind wandering. Pick up a meditation such as watching the breath, or even better guiding the breath down to "dan tien" and around the kidney regions. A wandering mind is a scattered mind, unrelaxed and wasting away qi, this contributes to deficiency through scattering - where mind goes, energy follows. As for the sexual activity, apparently, sexual energy retention is crucial to the manufacture of qi, hence so many yogas talk about these. Some common symptoms of qi deficiency are unusually cold hands and feet, insomnia in the night, tiredness in the day and for some more relevant to us, vertigo. This sounds eerily similar to other neuro symptoms in Western Medicine classified along the same class.
Alternatively, if all this is too difficult to understand, do what most people simply refer to as yoga in the form of asanas and breath control. The roots of both practises are the same, and are to do with prana and flow anyway.
Information sharing
When I read back, my journey sounds like a hippy looking for a trip, I should just pack up and move to California, or morfe locally Nimbin, smoke some grass. My meniere's is heavily correlated to stress, and it is somewhat confronting to reveal so much. However, for those serious about getting better - I think it is worthwhile. My last attack was now more than 12 weeks away, but what is important is that I am gradually feeling better and better, even if some days were horrible. Symptoms are being reduced and I am monitoring it as I go.
This is different though in the past I have had major attacks spread out, mini attacks would trouble me continuously. I think most meniere's sufferers would know what I mean.
I am happy to say, I haven't thrown up since I started down this path, and do feel a lot more positive about it. I was initially apprehensive, and somewhat fragile - I kept the journal going. The severity of the last attack was debilitating and the nausea lasted a long time. Gradually minor attacks were reducing in intensity, and I feel great today. I do not know when my next attack will be but this is already a huge improvement. I am not associated with any of the products or people I have mentioned here, and have no financial interests in them, except I pointed them out to acknowedge their assistance and good in this path.
Ref:
Something of note, 3g (6 tablets) of Chlorella above contains more than 1000 IUs of Vitamin D, so by taking chlorella, you are already supplementing vitamin D.
