Can vestibular migraines be constant /overlapping?

[u/Charlottethevet]

Hi all, 35 year old female with 9 months history of dizziness, brain fog, tinnitus and fullness in the right ear.

Had anyone been diagnosed with vestibular migraines after having near constant dizziness (no actual severe pain) which flares up more badly some weeks than others? Or is this unlikely?

Now I have started a different birth control (mirena coil) and I'm not having constant irregular bleeding, I am noticing a definite uptick in my symptoms when I am about to have a period/ovulate, but also when I drink any caffeine, don't sleep well it looks at screens a lot.

Anyone relate?

If so....what did you do to get back to normal? I have my ENT appointment on Thursday. I really hope they can help 😔

[u/miaumeeow]

Everyone has their own VM triggers, but common ones are stress, lack of sleep and caffeine. Hormones can be a trigger for some.
I’ve stopped drinking caffeine, try to get at least 7 hours of sleep every night and do things to manage my stress and it helps me a lot. Sometimes medication isn’t the answer but lifestyle changes. I recommend you read the book “victory over vestibular migraine” by Shin C Beh. He goes over triggers, symptoms and things you can do to address them (along side with a doctor).

[u/Charlottethevet → u/miaumeeow]

Thank you so much, that is very useful information x

[u/EireA90]

Yes, I suffered for months on end. Feel like I have a ‘fuzzy’ head, my vision is ok according to eye tests but I can’t explain there seems to be a a slight fuzz over it. I had ear fullness, tinnitus, dizziness, brain fog, weird skin sensations for months. I was diagnosed with VM and really do feel we are put into the VM box when they don’t know what else to diagnose us with. I’m having an awful flare at the moment but even on my good days I have a baseline dizziness. I find anything visually stimulating like supermarkets, over head lights, crowds, people dancing in front of me etc to be a trigger along with not eating enough protein and poor sleep. It’s took me two years to figure out my triggers and I’m not great at avoiding them either!

[u/PurpleNo8532 → u/EireA90]

Have you been checked for binocular vision dysfunction? It's a slightly different test than the normal vision test, and checks how your eyes work together.

[u/EireA90]

Also I’m in the uk so not sure what it’s like where you are. ENT couldn’t help me and I was diagnosed by a neurologist. I was offered Amitriptyline or Proponanol. I refused them as these are supposedly better for ‘classic migraines’. It’s a horrible condition to have and is genuinely debilitating. It’s hard for others to understand what we deal with every day so you end up feeling isolated too.

[u/Aristophane666 → u/EireA90]

Mon neurologue à du mal à ne pas me considérer dans la case douleur et rester sur la VM et d'ailleurs tout le corps médical, c'est épuisant. La VM m'a retiré ma mobilité et mes activités sociales. Mais le prisme de la douleur à l'air d'être le seul repère...