Monday, November 08, 2004

Rant: Vertigo SUCKS

I officially have vertigo, which I didn't know until yesterday just means 'dizziness'. I always liked the sound of the word, and thought it had something to do with fear of heights. But it's just plain dizziness, having your equilibrium off, etc. And I've got it. YAAAAYY.

Some of you in blogland know that I've been having ear problems for about a year now, and this is just the latest in a series of symptoms that have been, at turns, irritating, barely noticeable, non-existent, or downright painful. Well, now I'm at a new level of this ear-problem-business: this vertigo thing--oh yes, and the ringing in my ears (known in medical parlance as Tinnitus that feels as if one side of me attended a four-hour Def Leppard concert while the other side stayed home--is irritating, painful, frightening and just plain weird.

It's weird to get up from putting a houseplant on the floor and feel as if I've just had the wind knocked out of me. It's weird to have to sit down and then lie down, and then doze in and out of sleep for the next four hours because every time I just move my head the room starts to spin around me and then I get nauseated. It's weird to feel seasick when all I'm doing is laying in my own bed. Yes, the vertigo thing fuckin' SUCKS.

And the tinnitus is just as bad. There's this constant ringing in my left ear, louder than the ringing I hear when I've just left the club, and it just doesn't stop. Sometimes it gets a little quieter, sometimes louder. Certain external sounds help drown it out a little. But get something with a bass tone to it around me--from hip hop music booming in a car driving by or the sound of my upstairs neighbor's heavy footsteps pounding the floor/ceiling above me--and the ringing reverberates in my brain like a big brass gong. Yes, this tinnitus thing sucks too.

Okay, enough complaining. I should be doing some positive affirmations and healing visualizations and blah blah blah. And I will, of course, 'cuz that's the kind of boho-alternative-healing-therapies kind of girl I am. And on Wednesday I'm going to my acupunturist whose treatment and herbs will probably make me feel much better than the doctor's prescription medication will. But I had to get this off my chest. So thanks for listening, and I hope to God/dess that you never have to deal with this shit. As I said before, it SUCKS.

Wish me speedy healing and good vibes-
Rona

6 comments:

Gura said...

Sending healing vibes your way.

profile said...

sorry to hear that. now u can use the adjective equivalent, vertigious. the spanish word is mareado or mareada if feminine. i use these dizziness related words all the time because guess what? el serenito has motion sickness! meow. but hey, i live with it. just lots of candies all the time when i travel. or in some cases, dramamine. but yes, it SUCKS. but a really nice word.

Anonymous said...

whoa, not to freak you out, but before you abandon western medicine entirely, you might want to get a CAT scan. a year of this kind of stuff is pretty worrisome, and i think you should make sure it's not a brain tumor. sorry for being ominous.

Rona Fernandez said...

Daniel, is that you (the last post/anonymous)...just to put you at ease, I have not been vertigious (thanks, Bino!) for a year, just having various ear problems (on-and-off tinnitus, ear infections, ear aches, etc.). This is the first time I've ever had vertigo. And today I feel much better but I'm still taking it easy just in case.

Thanks all for the healing thoughts--RF

oscarchoy said...

Hey Rona,

Just read your post. Hope the healing vibes have been helpful to you. I too have occasional tinnitus, but mine seems to come at times of emotional stress -- usually when I feel a rising frustration as I'm making some sort of point. I think it has something to do with my blood pressure at any give point (though generally I have very low BP). It comes, rings, then goes as I calm down. Have you noticed any correlation?

Meg s said...

Did acupuncture work. I've had a few bouts a year for last ten years, have complete neuro workup and came back good. It only last one to two days but in opportune times. Looking for something other than Dramamine or diazepam to help without sleepy side effects. Acupuncture cld b a great idea!