I am definitely sure, that the last lot of attacks I blogged about a few days back, are not considered Meniere's attacks. Typically, in an onset of Meniere's - there is a distinct lost of hearing. The ears are generally full and lasts for a while, days to weeks. There is significant blockage in the ear, until, such time, the hydrops in the middle ear release resulting in vertigo and nausea.
In this particular case, there was significant soreness in the eyes, before the vertigo started, the ear blockage is insignificant, and there was no hearing loss associated with it, or ear fullness. There is a familiarity, like this has happened before - it develops and then the vertigo arrives - This migraine results in the nausea and feeling like my head is about to explode.
Which brings me to this question.
There is no question the brain is plastic and ever changing. However, can the brain be wired to manifests a symptom based on one other. In other words - if you had vertigo due to hydrops - can the easy onset of vertigo be created through an alternate pathway, such as through that of migraine?
If the above is true, what is the function of the brain to achieve such a pathway? Is the vestibular part of the brain closely related to that of anxiety? What kinda of regulation is best to control such behaviour? Perhaps, the use of hearing meditation, or some sort of sound therapy can assist with increasing the blood flow and healing of the vestibular region of the brain. Regardless, I wanted to throw this question out there - and also to share this ...
http://www.livestrong.com/article/307997-vestibular-migraines-diet/
I do feel though many people suggests that Meniere's and vertigo leads to anxiety orders. I would suggest instead of being the result, it may be the cause - or that it works side by side. But I am no neuroscientist. It is just how I feel, my symptoms became severely worst after long series of anxiety and depression. Maybe this is natures own healing path ?
For those who are triggered by pressure and food. I had a chance to speak with a friend, who happens to be a doctor, and I explained a few triggers, including that of humidity, and pressure. He said that it was most likely due to pressure, and that it is a common feature of migraines.
Hope this helps, I do feel a lot more lucid now, 4 days after the attack.
update:
So it has been documented, anxiety can lead to vertigo
http://www.calmclinic.com/anxiety/signs/vertigo
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Dizziness_and_vertigo
Wednesday 23 January 2013
Monday 21 January 2013
Went without Chlorella, paying the price
For experimental sake, I decided in the last week that I would go without chlorella. We went away for a weekend to an elevated area in the mountains, one of the highest rainfall areas in this region - and it wasn't too long before an attack came - frustratingly ending our holidays short, and no more climbing.
So here I am after recovering somewhat, wondering what triggered it all. During the celebration of my daughters birthday, I had 2 glasses of champagne, and blueberries by the bucket loads. I remember feeling unable to open one of my eyes, and I thought it could have been allergies. But when I looked into the mirror, my eyes were no longer looking straight, one was again tilted higher than the other. Also, the madness of the weather didn't help - summer was at its craziest, the temperature peaking in the city at a little over 45C and where we were 40C, dropping to a mere 16C at night, followed by 2 cold rainy days.
Is it the vitamin D or the anti-oxidant properties of Chlorella ? Or was it completely placebo ? I remember sitting in the car, having forgotten I have forgone Chlorella - and watching the way I reacted. My head inclined one way to prevent triggering that crazy migraine that comes when the vertigo goes to nausea. Any movements - my breathing becomes short and body spasm, hands become completely numb, pins and needles, legs are uncomfortable, and I can hardly find it in myself to explain how I feel.
Again, when I got home - I forced myself to drink a bit of water, and a vitamin D tablet. An hour later, woke up and I could sit up again without feeling like throwing up - was even able to eat a little bit. What happened ?
How can the anxiety attacks and emotional roller coaster in the last 5 years end me in this state of chronic disability ? How can mental disease affect you so badly physically ? Is there a link between anxiety and the vestibular sensory organs or brain area ?
This is an opportunity for me to reflect back now on the questions asked.
Given how quickly I was able to recover by taking Vitamin D tablets, I think the main component in Chlorella that helped me so much was most likely Vitamin D. Furthermore, I recall during the time of my last big hoohaa around Vitamin D, and sunlight exposure, I was strong, my body was working efficiently when I wasn't feeling unwell, and yet my blood tests came back less than half the Recommended Vitamin D levels.
One of the biggest contributors to the increased difficulty of dealing with this disease is anxiety. Any signs of panic attack sends the body into spasms, and the best way to be in this situation is to remain calm and concentrate on nothing but the touch of my breath. Panic, brings more pain.
There are numerous people out there with severe nystagmus on a constant basis that go on with their lives. The brain will retune and leave the vestibular organ as the primary source of balance, it can happen, but the best way to allow it to adjust to this new equilibrium, is to begin mindfulness and awareness, and not react, retuning itself to its new normal.
But Vitamin D has helped me recover quickly so from here on onwards, I am trialling replacing my daily dose of Chlorella with that of Vitamin D. I am not sure why Vitamin D tablets are not sold in more than 1000IUs in Australia, however, we are a little backwards in Australia, we still advocate covering up and using sunblock uncompromisingly despite the epidemic of Vit D deficiencies, but I have ordered some 5000IU units online to trial for myself.
Will update as I go.
BTW, a VERY good site on Vitamin D http://vitamindwiki.com/VitaminDWiki
So here I am after recovering somewhat, wondering what triggered it all. During the celebration of my daughters birthday, I had 2 glasses of champagne, and blueberries by the bucket loads. I remember feeling unable to open one of my eyes, and I thought it could have been allergies. But when I looked into the mirror, my eyes were no longer looking straight, one was again tilted higher than the other. Also, the madness of the weather didn't help - summer was at its craziest, the temperature peaking in the city at a little over 45C and where we were 40C, dropping to a mere 16C at night, followed by 2 cold rainy days.
Is it the vitamin D or the anti-oxidant properties of Chlorella ? Or was it completely placebo ? I remember sitting in the car, having forgotten I have forgone Chlorella - and watching the way I reacted. My head inclined one way to prevent triggering that crazy migraine that comes when the vertigo goes to nausea. Any movements - my breathing becomes short and body spasm, hands become completely numb, pins and needles, legs are uncomfortable, and I can hardly find it in myself to explain how I feel.
Again, when I got home - I forced myself to drink a bit of water, and a vitamin D tablet. An hour later, woke up and I could sit up again without feeling like throwing up - was even able to eat a little bit. What happened ?
How can the anxiety attacks and emotional roller coaster in the last 5 years end me in this state of chronic disability ? How can mental disease affect you so badly physically ? Is there a link between anxiety and the vestibular sensory organs or brain area ?
Answers
This is an opportunity for me to reflect back now on the questions asked.
Given how quickly I was able to recover by taking Vitamin D tablets, I think the main component in Chlorella that helped me so much was most likely Vitamin D. Furthermore, I recall during the time of my last big hoohaa around Vitamin D, and sunlight exposure, I was strong, my body was working efficiently when I wasn't feeling unwell, and yet my blood tests came back less than half the Recommended Vitamin D levels.
One of the biggest contributors to the increased difficulty of dealing with this disease is anxiety. Any signs of panic attack sends the body into spasms, and the best way to be in this situation is to remain calm and concentrate on nothing but the touch of my breath. Panic, brings more pain.
There are numerous people out there with severe nystagmus on a constant basis that go on with their lives. The brain will retune and leave the vestibular organ as the primary source of balance, it can happen, but the best way to allow it to adjust to this new equilibrium, is to begin mindfulness and awareness, and not react, retuning itself to its new normal.
Conclusion
I've had a really good run, and chlorella has been a huge help to me. Be it its anti-oxidant properties or not, it has been time and time again proven for me, without it, I would suffer. Be it placebo or not, if I can believe that I am able to cope with snake oil and rid of my symptoms, then I can learn to accept that I can retrain my brain to not allow the panic attacks to follow through on its course.But Vitamin D has helped me recover quickly so from here on onwards, I am trialling replacing my daily dose of Chlorella with that of Vitamin D. I am not sure why Vitamin D tablets are not sold in more than 1000IUs in Australia, however, we are a little backwards in Australia, we still advocate covering up and using sunblock uncompromisingly despite the epidemic of Vit D deficiencies, but I have ordered some 5000IU units online to trial for myself.
Will update as I go.
BTW, a VERY good site on Vitamin D http://vitamindwiki.com/VitaminDWiki
Thursday 3 January 2013
Food group sensitivities
Through the journal, one of the observations that show up was a rough but unreliable association of dizziness with the use of ibuprofen. As it does not happen every time, it was difficult for me to pinpoint the cause to be from foods containing Salicylates. So I wish to share this in more detail.
One of the problems plaguing people with Salicylates sensitivity - is that it can present itself as a collective and accumulative reaction. So, for example, you may be consuming foods high in Salicylates, but may not show up as a reaction, until you consume something else that tipped you over the scales of your tolerance. Yet you may eliminate one food, and others still tip you over the scale.
So by simple means of food elimination, unless you are aware of the food groups - you'd be hard pressed to find why you are reacting suddenly to whatever foods that tipped you over the edge without much consistency. One of these, which is a common cure for headache, is of course, aspirin and ibuprofen.
Hence, I strongly advice, if you are keeping a food journal, to note as much of the foods you have had as possible, not just the trigger, so as to assist you and your doctor in identifying if you have a food sensitivity that may be triggering your symptoms.
One of the problems plaguing people with Salicylates sensitivity - is that it can present itself as a collective and accumulative reaction. So, for example, you may be consuming foods high in Salicylates, but may not show up as a reaction, until you consume something else that tipped you over the scales of your tolerance. Yet you may eliminate one food, and others still tip you over the scale.
So by simple means of food elimination, unless you are aware of the food groups - you'd be hard pressed to find why you are reacting suddenly to whatever foods that tipped you over the edge without much consistency. One of these, which is a common cure for headache, is of course, aspirin and ibuprofen.
Hence, I strongly advice, if you are keeping a food journal, to note as much of the foods you have had as possible, not just the trigger, so as to assist you and your doctor in identifying if you have a food sensitivity that may be triggering your symptoms.
Tuesday 1 January 2013
Happy New Ear
Happy new ears to you.
This simple greet puts me in a dilemma, if I had a choice of a new ear and that was my only wish, I don't know for sure if new ears would fix my dizziness issues. In fact, I watched a documentary recently on a patient who suffered intense diarrhoea for a few weeks after a family bbq, then dizziness and nausea, before eventually falling into a coma. Many tests, scans came out negative eventuating at an autoimmune disorder, where an antibody was discovered attacking the central nervous system of the body as a result of the bacteria.
I have always felt like there are other causes to the trigger, it feels as if there is something attacking the back of my head resulting in impairment of normal functionality - perhaps this is showing up in ears as a first sign of attack, or perhaps, it is also showing up in other areas such as restless leg syndrome, Chronic fatigue and other odder behaviours such as joint pain and unexplainable muscular atrophy, tears. Whether it is an auto-immune disorder or not is difficult for me say. So far, blood tests for autoimmune has showed up negative.
But one thing is for sure, I don't feel it is simply a result of a localised issue with my ears. Else, it would not have spread to both ears. This very characteristics tells me that it has to be some sort of serum hormone, brain function or neuro signal disorder, or some sort of reaction to a food that results in the body attacking itself.
The hunt continues...
This simple greet puts me in a dilemma, if I had a choice of a new ear and that was my only wish, I don't know for sure if new ears would fix my dizziness issues. In fact, I watched a documentary recently on a patient who suffered intense diarrhoea for a few weeks after a family bbq, then dizziness and nausea, before eventually falling into a coma. Many tests, scans came out negative eventuating at an autoimmune disorder, where an antibody was discovered attacking the central nervous system of the body as a result of the bacteria.
I have always felt like there are other causes to the trigger, it feels as if there is something attacking the back of my head resulting in impairment of normal functionality - perhaps this is showing up in ears as a first sign of attack, or perhaps, it is also showing up in other areas such as restless leg syndrome, Chronic fatigue and other odder behaviours such as joint pain and unexplainable muscular atrophy, tears. Whether it is an auto-immune disorder or not is difficult for me say. So far, blood tests for autoimmune has showed up negative.
But one thing is for sure, I don't feel it is simply a result of a localised issue with my ears. Else, it would not have spread to both ears. This very characteristics tells me that it has to be some sort of serum hormone, brain function or neuro signal disorder, or some sort of reaction to a food that results in the body attacking itself.
The hunt continues...
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