Psychological Impacts
Symptoms from vestibular disorders are invisible and unpredictable. This does not mean that they are imaginary, but that they often contribute to a wide range of psychological impacts. People who have a vestibular disorder often need support and may benefit from counseling to cope with lifestyle changes, and the depression, guilt, and grief that comes from no longer being able to meet their own or others’ expectations.
- Internal conflict: Even people who have made an uneasy peace with their symptoms may experience an erosion of self-esteem and self-confidence because of the difference between what they can accomplish and what they wish to accomplish.
- Depression: When depression occurs, it is often difficult to treat because many antidepressants are associated with side effects of particular danger to someone with a vestibular disorder, such as increased dizziness and likelihood of falls.
- Grief: Grief encompasses psychological, social, and somatic reactions to the perception of a loss. People can become obsessed with all the things they have lost—that they’re no longer able to care for their families, no longer physically active, or no longer able to work.
- Anxiety disorders: An increased incidence of anxiety, panic attacks, and agoraphobia is sometimes associated with vestibular dysfunction.
- Social isolation: People with vestibular disorders understandably choose to avoid situations and environments that provoke vertigo and unsteadiness. This reduces social contact with other people. It may be too fatiguing for a person to join colleagues around a conference table or mingle with other parents during a soccer game. Even a low-key get-together with friends is fatiguing because of the frequent head turns required to participate in conversation with several people at once.
In addition, without education about vestibular disorders and willingness to adjust and communicate, family members and friends may distance themselves and be unsupportive. Because of the invisible and poorly understood nature of vestibular disorders, people may be accused of exaggerating their symptoms or of abusing intoxicating substances. Even close loved ones will often get frustrated and irritated with the limitations a vestibular disability imposes. - Other stresses: Managing symptoms of a vestibular disorder requires other practical adjustments that are difficult. For example, financial hardship caused by medical bills and lost work time often adds to the stress.
Observations on Cognitive and Psychological Aspects of Vestibular Disorders.
Additional free publications about this are available from VEDA:
"It's All in Your Head" Addressing Vestibular Patients' Stressors and Self Doubts
Coping with a Vestibular Disorder
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