Vestibular Neuritis - Fewer Relapses - Getting Better

I know why you're here...You are on these boards hoping and praying to be released from the nightmare that is Vestibular Neuritis. I explained why I spent so much time on these boards to my husband this way: It's like we've been thrown in prison for a crime we didn't commit and we need to spend every, single, waking moment looking for a way to escape--some miracle answer that will relieve us from these horrible symptoms. We've tried just about everything and we've done what our doctors have told us, but the symptoms persist...

I am here to tell you that there is hope. I was diagnosed with VN in April 2013. I was told that the condition would only last "a few weeks," and then I'd be back to normal. That absolutely did not happen. The symptoms hung on and on and on for months--I'm still not completely healed--and in the process, I have had to adjust my entire life. But today, as I type this, I am not nearly as sick and dizzy and nauseous as I once was. I can carry on conversations with people and not feel like I'm going to spin out of control! I can sit in a meeting at work and focus.

I seem to have had all of the symptoms: Nausea (really felt like I was on a boat for about 2-3 months; ringing in the ears (which they say doesn't happen with VN, but I am proof that it can); popping in the ears; ear fullness; tingly scalp; creepy crawly sensations on the face; numbness in the fingers (due to horrific anxiety); severe imbalance; really horrible neck pain; fullness in the cheeks just under the eye and near the nose; difficulty concentrating; awful dizziness; and the worst for me: real difficulty in driving. I pretty much had to stop driving all but the very shortest of distances. This has been so depressing and hard as a very busy mom who also works outside the home.

I would wake up every day and not be able to believe I was still in this horrible situation. I would start moving around a little and sure enough, the dizziness and nausea and imbalance would follow. And we have the one disorder where they tell us that medication actually hurts us in the long run! Such a Catch-22. I was fearful of taking Ativan or Valium or anything addictive, even though it would certainly help with the awful anxiety and the dizziness. It was a nightmare. I still can't believe it has happened to me.

But...The brain really does--slowly--start to figure things out. I liken this to a marathon, and each day is only one small step of recovery--or more accurately, each week is like one step on the journey. It's that slow. Or imagine trying to get through a 24-hour day, and each week of recovery is like just one second ticking on the clock. It's just really, really, really slow. More painfully slow than any of us can imagine or bear, but we are progressing.

I also decided in July to take an SSRI. It is non-habit forming and I read one study that suggested that SSRIs actually help with ear function. I needed to get something to reduce the anxiety. I was having panic attacks just about every day. And also, having to accept that my life has been so disruptive has been indeed depressing, so the SSRI I think is helping with that.

Today, the ear popping and fullness has stopped. I still have ringing. I am not nearly as nauseous or dizzy, but I do have my days where I can feel it profoundly--these are fewer and farther between. Relapses happen, which is beyond depressing, but they are short lived. I can drive a little further--still not full time, but getting a little better with lessened anxiety. Bottom line is that it's just not as bad as it was. I think that's how we have to measure this. We have to say, "Did I feel better or worse last summer?" Not, "Did I feel better yesterday?" The improvement is so slow it's almost immeasurable, but it's there.

I would just encourage anyone out there to keep the faith and take care of yourself. A good friend of mine that I found through these boards reminded me of that. It's going to be okay. We're just in a tough spot right now, but we're not alone, and it does get better. Hang in there, friends!!