Say Goodbye to Dizziness: 3 Top Physical Therapy Exercises

Does vertigo ever strike suddenly, leaving you disoriented grabbing a wall for support against intense spinning, nausea, and losing balance? 

You’re not alone. 

Around 30% of people experience these debilitating sensations over their lifetime when the inner ear centers or the back part of the brain (cerebellum) malfunction. Your body’s sense of equilibrium goes haywire leading to feelings of dizziness and physical instability.

While peripheral vertigo stems from inner ear imbalance, central vertigo originates from problems with the brain or spinal cord. 

Medication only temporarily eases symptoms, but targeted physical therapy exercises can effectively treat several underlying causes of vertigo by rebuilding the communication between your inner ear, muscles, and cerebellum. 

This article explores canalith repositioning maneuvers, gait retraining, movement pattern modification, and other evidence-based approaches that have guided many patients to stability again. 

1. Repositioning Loose Calcium Crystals Causing Dizziness

Do you feel sudden vertigo when rolling over in bed or looking up? This likely means that tiny calcium crystals in your inner ear canal are dislodged. 

Getting them back in place can stop the spinning spells.  

This common condition is called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). Canalith repositioning exercises use gravity to guide the loose crystals back home. Controlled head motions coax the tiny particles to reorient themselves. 

While helpful for inner ear vertigo, if your therapist identifies central origins, they will guide motion pattern retraining and balance exercises to stabilize involved brain/spinal areas instead.

It’s like guiding puzzle pieces back into their proper places.

Epley and Semont are two popular repositioning maneuvers. 

The Epley maneuver has patients move step-by-step from sitting to lying back with heads tilted to shift the crystals. The Semont maneuver involves quickly switching from lying on one side to the other. These gradual orientation changes reposition the crystals. 

Therapists tailor and progress the techniques to your needs, with crystals eventually returning to balance so vertigo resolves.

Studies show canalith repositioning exercises successfully treat BPPV 90% of the time. These targeted motions leverage the body’s natural recuperative powers so you can regain stability by doing routine activities again without worrying about triggering vertigo.

2. Retraining Your Balance Reactions

Dizziness scrambles the communication between your eyes, inner ears, and muscles that keep you upright. Physical therapists use exercises that challenge stability to rebuild this neurologic connection.  

Exercises on foam pads challenge your balance by disrupting stability, prompting your brain to adjust equilibrium reactions. 

Tandem walking emphasizes concentration on each step, further improving balance and coordination.

Your therapist also guides head motions in planes that provoke symptoms, allowing them to carefully calibrate retraining techniques to the movements causing you difficulty. This helps desensitize the hypersensitive reflexes making ordinary motions seem to spin out of control.  

Physical tests like the Romberg and Fukuda help therapists tailor balance retraining exercises to specific needs.

The Romberg test assesses proprioception (body awareness) by having the patient stand with feet together and eyes closed, checking for balance loss. The Fukuda stepping test evaluates dynamic balance and vestibular function by observing the patient's ability to march in place while turning their head from side to side. 

Assistive devices like canes or walkers lend support in regaining confidence in walking, turning, and bending again without fear of falls while rebuilding inner ear compensation skills. 

Balance retraining also aims to reinforce communication between the brain and musculoskeletal connections contributing to stability and movement control.

Through tailored drills, your brain retrains itself once again.

3. Retraining Movement Habits 

Dizziness often links to uneven head, neck, or eye positions that vestibular disorders amplify. Your physical therapist ensures ideal alignment with posture retraining. 

They guide you in stabilizing your gaze while in motion. 

You start by focusing on a still object, then slowly turn your head rather than your eyes first. You widen your base of support by consciously positioning your feet shoulder-width apart in stance and gait (pattern of movement). 

With patient practice, new safety habits become ingrained reflexes rather than constant concentration. 

Tight neck muscles can also provoke symptoms - your physical therapist identifies sources of cervical stiffness with thorough hands-on assessments and gentle stretches opening trapped nerves. 

Postural retraining helps correct uneven head and neck positions that can worsen dizziness coming from the spinal cord. This takes the strain off already overloaded areas.

As posture alignment and movement patterns improve, you’ll notice everyday motions once triggering vertigo start flowing smoothly. Therapists help reorient the signals connecting your vestibular and visual systems so you can regain confidence in your body’s balance capabilities.

Find Your Balance Again

Customized physical therapy plans matched to your specific vestibular impairment offer drug-free relief from vertigo and dizziness episodes.

Whether your vertigo originates from the inner ear or central brain/spinal areas, tailored combinations of canalith maneuvers, balance retraining, movement pattern correction, and manual techniques can help rebuild equilibrium control.

The goal focuses on fully reintegrating signals between involved systems so you can move without triggering disorientation.

At Complete Wellness, we too believe in tailoring our approach according to your unique needs and giving you holistic relief.

Our physical therapists listen closely to your history and functional limitations before designing integrated treatment regimens aimed at reducing episodes and building self-efficacy. 

The goal is to empower you to regain stability and confidence by performing routine motions that previously triggered anxiety due to vertigo. 

Book an appointment to understand the multifaceted approach best targeting your symptoms. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What am I lacking if I have vertigo?

If you have vertigo, you are likely lacking proper communication between your inner ear balance organs, eyes, and muscles/joints. This makes you feel spinning sensations and lose coordination. 

Physical therapy can help rebuild these connections.

2. Is it better to rest or be active with vertigo?

Light activity and exercise are recommended while avoiding provocative motions that trigger symptoms. This allows for rebuilding strength and stamina. 

Too much rest can worsen deconditioning and imbalance.

3. What exercises should be avoided with vertigo?

Avoid quick position changes, repetitive bending or looking up, rapid head turns, and inversion poses that seem to provoke vertigo episodes. Work closely with your physical therapist to determine symptom triggers.  

4. Should I see a chiropractor or a physical therapist for vertigo?

We recommend consulting a vestibular physical therapist first since certain neck adjustments could worsen vertigo. If spinal joint dysfunction contributes to symptoms, gentle targeted care can help. 

5. How long does it take for vertigo to fix itself?

While some cases resolve in weeks, persistent vertigo often requires customized therapy targeting the underlying cause which could take months. However, specialized treatment can help rebuild balance control and limit episodes.