Hello everyone!
Thanks for letting me introduce myself and share my store. I suffered a bout of extreme vertigo 11 years ago that lasted a few months and was diagnosed as vestibular migraine. I'm a computer programmer and had been forced to wear sunglasses all day long. Lights and movement paralyzed me. Vertigo became so intense that I lost balance and fell into the shelves at Sams Club. And then, the symptoms vanished. It wasn't overnight though, it was gradual, but the symptoms were completely gone.
Two weeks ago it came back. My head is heavy with pressure, and the spinning hits me in waves. Sometimes every minute but if I'm lucky every few hours.Ā
Everyone obviously has different flavors of this disorder and different triggers. I believe my trigger is the computer monitor along with stress. When my first round of vertigo migraine hit 11 years ago, I had been under extreme stress, and I had been glued to a monitor. The same things are true of this round. The month of December had been very stressful for me, and I had been staring at monitors non-stop. And when I quit looking at monitors, I looked at my phone, or the TV, or some other device. I think my brain finally cracked.Ā
But I'm not even completely convinced that monitors are the culprit. I spend almost 95% of my life indoors staring at things that are close. Pressure builds in my head, and when I go outside and stare off into the distance, I can feel the pressure release. It's almost as if the muscles in my eyes and head relax. Our ancient ancestors didn't spend their days indoors looking at things close up. They were outside hunting and traveling, staring at the distant horizons and up at the sky and the stars. I don't think our brains were made for this lifestyle. And when people get dizzy, they don't go outside, they stay inside more, which increases the inflammation and strain, which leads to more debilitating dizziness, and more stress, and the cycle continues.Ā
I believe that if I had chosen a different career and worked outdoors, this would not be happening to me. I can't prove that. It's just a hunch.Ā
Thanks for letting me share. Hang in there everyone, hopefully, things will start looking up (yes, pun intended) š
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Welcome! Iām new here too ā and work on computers all day as a grant writer. Like you, I wonder if this contributes to my vestibular disorder. In particular, I have to be very careful looking at small screen devices and then looking up, because everything goes wonky. Sitting on the subway, I have a habit of noting how many people have their eyes glued to their phone screens. I just wonder if anyone has studied screens and vestibular disorders.Ā
@akenealy hi there. I have similar symptoms and I am also looking at my computer whole day writing code. I wish I could do something else for a career but unfortunately this is my only job. I am not sure if this is the reason Iām suffering with vestibular symptoms for over 3 years but it could be a contributing factor. Iām trying to exercise and get the blood flowing to see if it improves my constant sense of vertigo and dizziness and motion sensitivity.
Stress and long hours spent in front of screens can really have a negative impact on our health. It is important to recognize these factors and try to find a balance between work and rest. Of course, it is not always easy to change your professional activities or lifestyle, but it is important to look for ways to reduce stress and improve your quality of life. Your observation that the pressure in your head eases outside may be the key to understanding your condition.