Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is one of the most common forms of vertigo, and it’s cause is loose crystals in the inner ear as we have discussed here in an earlier post.  Treatment thankfully is fairly straightforward if you know what to do.  Just to recap though, how do you know if you have BPPV?
BPPV classically produces vertigo (spinning of the room – the difference from dizziness is discussed here) that lasts anywhere from a few seconds to two minutes, and is usually only provoked by movement, usually lying …

When it’s summer time many of us want to go swimming, but for those with vertigo and dizziness it’s not always that easy. Swimming can present several challenges to the vertigo sufferer.

In my last post I talked about why a brain rehabilitation programme is necessary for anyone who sufferers vertigo or dizziness.  However before we go into that idea much further, a brief series of discussions on the anatomy of the balance system might be a good idea.  If fact it is really vital that vertigo and dizziness sufferers understand what is happening in their bodies, because a thorough understanding of the problem can help remove much of the fear and anxiety that these problems can produce.
Today we are going to …

One of our readers asked the question why I had made the assertion that people with balance problems need to undergo a brain rehabilitation programme.  This is a fair question, and I will answer it here.  This post will be more technical than most, but bear with me, it is worth it.

In this post I’m going to talk about what causes BPPV.  I think it’s important to know what causes the symptoms you are suffering from as then you can take action to manage the progression of your condition. 
In a nutshell, BPPV is caused by loose crystals in your inner ear that have slipped into a part of the ear called the semicircular canals.  These crystals then move when you move, causing abnormal currents in the fluid of the ears, which produces vertigo.
Your ears have three parts, the external, middle and inner parts.  The …