The Dizziness Group: For those who are floating, boating, falling or flying

[Guest [...]]

thanks lapis and LMAO youshookme.

frigging hysterical, maybe the jedi council will snag me up and train me how to not be a dizzy, whacked out mess.....

 

im at work right now....im BARELY able to withstand it yet again. ugh, soooo many days like this. torture. hiding at my desk, even sitting im flaoting around, off balance. hardest thing ive ever done is endure my job through this...its crazy, i should in a hospital bed right now. thats what it feels like. but i cannot lose this job, id be destroyed, id lose my house, my car, everything.

 

i did a 20 minute or so sneak break in my car around noon, could barely stand up. very agoraphobic today, very anxious.

 

feeling the effects of cutting down to 3mg i imagine. Most other jobs I would have been fired a long time ago, i have some leeway here but man have i pushed it. i will NEEVR updose though, im frigging pushing through this shit.

 

ugh...ANOTHER tortuous day.

 

I'm sorry your having such a bad day LukeSkywalker.I noticed you started at 20mg. and are down to 3mg.I am really impressed and I am sure many others on here are too!And you are at work, trying to hold it all together!

 

Just wanted to tell you,that you are very gritty to have come this far,and that you are doing amazing!!

 

One day at a time!

[[Yo...]]

You said it, 2200. Luke is "impressive...most impressive".

 

This is like levitating your X-wing from the Dagobah swamp. Seems impossible, but once you achieve it, everything else in life will seem like a simple Jedi mind trick.

[Guest [Lu...]]

thanks so much you guys, 2200, and youshook lol i csn never get enough starwars reference

 

im actually a lil better this past couple hours. yeah today was leaning towards the tougher zone.

 

ugh. still plodding through at work, whew, almost done.

 

yep at 3mg now from 20, and actually also just about off gabapentin after being up to 1800mg - just didnt do a damn thing for me but cloud up my vision and fog me up even more. at 200mg now.

 

thanks guys, everyone hang the hell in there!

[[Be...]]

Luke, I can imagine how hard it is for you to try to taper and have to keep working.  I hope you can get off these pills with no problems. 

[[Yo...]]

:'(

 

Really saddened by news of Soundgarden's Chris Cornell's death. Strangely I had one of their songs stuck in my head today, "The Day I Tried To Live", before finding out... One of the all-time best voices in rock.

 

I always liked this song off his solo album:

 

 

RIP CC

[[Be...]]

:'(

 

Really saddened by news of Soundgarden's Chris Cornell's death. Strangely I had one of their songs stuck in my head today, "The Day I Tried To Live", before finding out... One of the all-time best voices in rock.

 

I always liked this song off his solo album:

 

 

RIP CC

 

Just heard on the news he committed suicide in his hotel room after the concert.  Toxicology results aren't done yet, but they found no alcohol in his system.  It may have been drugs.  Benzo's?  Opiates?

[Guest [Lu...]]

He hung himself in his hotel room in detroit.

full autopsy not in yet though

[[La...]]

I posted some articles in the News section from Rolling Stone and Variety. It looks like Ativan played a role, but we'll have to wait for the full story to come out.

[[Yo...]]

I'm sure this'll spark a short discussion about the dangers of these drugs that will change nothing.

[[Be...]]

Maybe he was having tolerance withdrawal symptoms from the damage these drugs do and couldn't get off them and was suffering?  Maybe it was affecting his ability to perform? 

[[La...]]

In this article about Ativan related to the death of Chris Cornell, dizziness is mentioned as one of the most common side effects. IT IS. So, why was it so hard for some of us to get acknowledgment from the medical community that benzodiazepines caused our dizziness?

 

What are the side effects of Ativan?

 

The most common side effects associated with Ativan include drowsiness, sedation, and dizziness. Some people report feeling tired, not being able to concentrate, and becoming forgetful. Because Ativan is sedating, it is especially important to note that the drug will alter the user’s coordination and balance, making them clumsy and likely unable to complete activities that require fine motor skills. This means that driving and operating heavy machinery (yes, your car is heavy machinery) is absolutely forbidden during the 6-10 hours the drug is coursing through the user’s system.

 

http://uproxx.com/life/ativan-chris-cornell/2/ 

[[Yo...]]

Benzos are known as vestibular suppressants, so why would anyone doubt that they cause dizziness?

 

Notice that sedation is called a "side effect", yet it's most often prescribed for its sedative effect. What's called "off label" use.

 

Last year I was offered an anti-psychotic as a sleep aid! Incredible but true. I found out it contained a plain ol' anti-histamine. Meaning the doc could've instead suggested an allergy med or Tylenol PM, which I ended up taking instead of an ANTI-PSYCHOTIC DRUG!

 

 

 

Wow, I didn't know mentioning Chris Cornell's death would become topically relevant! Ativan!!

[[La...]]

Good question, YSMANL! However, when I became dizzy, and I was still on the clonazepam, I asked the doc if it might be the cause. Guess what I was told? "No, it's too small a dose." Right!

 

Guess what? ANY dose of clonazepam can make someone dizzy, because it's a benzodiazepine, and it's a vestibular suppressant, and it affects the central nervous system.

 

I, too, was offered an anti-psychotic for sleep. I was dead set against it, once I read about it. Scared the heck out of me. I had no idea why it was offered to me.

 

By the way, anti-histamines are also vestibular suppressants, so they also make people dizzy. People do use them as sedatives, but they're not meant for long-term use either.

[[Yo...]]

Good question, YSMANL! However, when I became dizzy, and I was still on the clonazepam, I asked the doc if it might be the cause. Guess what I was told? "No, it's too small a dose." Right!

 

Guess what? ANY dose of clonazepam can make someone dizzy, because it's a benzodiazepine, and it's a vestibular suppressant, and it affects the central nervous system.

 

I, too, was offered an anti-psychotic for sleep. I was dead set against it, once I read about it. Scared the heck out of me. I had no idea why it was offered to me.

 

By the way, anti-histamines are also vestibular suppressants, so they also make people dizzy. People do use them as sedatives, but they're not meant for long-term use either.

 

 

Oh, it's common practice! Thanks to the considerable influence of Big Pharma!

 

Yeppers on the anti-histamines. But it's the safest way to go if you need something. No tolerance or withdrawal, and the only dependency you might develop is a psychological one.

[[La...]]

Personally, I wouldn't be taking any anti-histamines at all. If one is already dizzy, why add another vestibular suppressant? Why not try melatonin? Or some other non-substance solution to the sleep issue?

[[Yo...]]

I guess my point was to "choose your poison" carefully if you need a sleep aid now and then. If not an anti-histamine, then how about a glass of red wine? 

 

Melatonin tablets did nothing for me unfortunately. Anyway, I've pretty well stopped popping the Tylenol PMs. I'm nearing the end of my Zoloft taper and will start my Clonazepam wean a week later, and will steer clear of anything that might interfere. Some won't even drink camomile tea, but that might be playing it too safe for me. I'll experiment lightly. Is warm milk ok? 

[[La...]]

Well, if you're lactose-intolerant like me, then no, warm milk could cause intestinal suicide!    Nope, not a good idea for some of us. I stayed away from all the herbal stuff too, e.g. valerian, passion flower, kava kava, scullcap, etc. Many of them are positive allosteric modulators for GABA. I just didn't want to take a chance, but then, everyone has to decide these things individually.

 

One of the earliest links I posted on this thread looks at medication for dizziness (a vestibular.org link), and it states that anything that makes the brain "sleepy" can interfere with the process of vestibular compensation. So, that includes all the vestibular suppressants, such as antihistamines, anticholinergics and benzodiazepines. When I was coming off the Prozac and having hideous insomnia, I asked the doc if it was okay to take an antihistamine or Gravol, and he strongly advised against it. He suggested it would make things worse. Well, I wasn't up for that.

 

How about counting sheep? Or cows? Or pigs? Or even roosters? Or doing deep breathing? Or doing meditation or visualization? I got a blackout blind, which made a huge difference. I try to keep my room cool too, because being too hot ruins my sleep. I also don't drink anything after 6, so I won't have to get up to use the loo. I'm not too good about shutting down electronics early, though, so that's probably not a good thing. But I do go to bed and get up at the same time everyday. These are the "sleep hygiene" (i.e. non-substance) things that I keep reading about. Exercise can help, but I can hardly walk. When I was exercising regularly, my sleep was quite good. Everything has changed.

 

On the wine thing: Um, no, probably not a good idea. 

[[Yo...]]

Most of those herbs weren't in my lexicon, let alone in my kitchen! Scullcap? Is that for real?

 

As for "non-substance" sleep aids, I listen to Bob Ross... By the time he signs the painting with Permanent Red thinned out with some oil, I'm out! 

 

[[La...]]

Listening to Bob Ross paint sounds completely drug-free to me! Great stuff!

 

And yes, scullcap (or skullcap) is for real, as are the other herbal sedatives. They probably work on GABA too. Probably not a good idea if one is trying to avoid GABA-ergic substances during withdrawal.

 

Nighty-night to you and everyone else! Sweet dreams to all. 

[[Ti...]]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm new to this support group.

 

I'm close to the end of my taper and I've noticed that in the past week dizziness and vertigo have increased. I also read about Ativan being a vestibular depressant.  Ugh.

 

Sounds like the general advice is to just cope with it and know it will go away right?  My head pitches to the right or left when I try to sleep.  Earlier in the week I woke up to severe vertigo on my right side, which makes me nervous to move my head to the right.  I actually tried my BPPV exercises the next day and had to stop because I was spinning so much.

 

Any helpful tips would be appreciated.

 

Tiny

 

[[La...]]

Hi Tinypillow,

Welcome! I'm really sorry to hear about your dizziness, but you're in good company here. Since you mentioned BPPV exercises, I just wanted to ask if that's something you've already been diagnosed with. If so, how long ago? Were those exercises helpful? And does this bout of dizziness feel the same? Have you consulted anyone about the dizziness recently, or are you pretty sure that it's from your taper?

 

Personally, I haven't had any spinning at all, which is usually called "vertigo". I don't feel like I'm spinning, nor do I feel like the room is spinning. Mine's more boaty/floaty/rockin' and rollin', which is often referred to as "disequilibrium". I tried those exercises, but they didn't seem to address what I have.

 

And yes, all of the benzos are referred to as "vestibular suppressants" in the medical literature. For some types of dizziness, they help in the immediate acute phase, but they're counterproductive after that. For those of us who took the meds for long periods of time, we essentially interfered with our normal balance for way too long.

 

For the most part, we're hanging out together and supporting each other through the darker days. There doesn't appear to be a "cure" -- except time. For some, it goes away quickly, and for others, it seems to take a bit longer. I see from your signature that you're also taking an SSRI, so that can contribute to balance issues as well. Double whammy! I'm in the same boat. 

 

Anyway, you're very welcome to hang out with us here.    If you haven't had your symptoms checked out by a doctor, it might be worthwhile to do so, just to rule out anything else. It's up to you, of course, but it's a way to eliminate possible other causes of dizziness, since there are many things that can affect balance.

 

 

[[Ti...]]

Thanks Lapis!

 

I'm no longer on an antidepressant - I tapered off that very quickly because it made things worse. 

 

I had seen a PT for vestibular disorder through a PT friend's recommendation.  I still hadn't sorted out what the problem was but had told my friend I got dizzy sometimes.  I did all the PT exercises for several weeks and stretched out my neck muscles.  I had very mild vertigo with the BPPV exercises then, like really almost none, and with the follow up exercises from home.  When I got the vertigo in bed, I though "oh I'll just do those again" and then it was too much.  That's why I think it's from Ativan.  I had one other vertigo episode in Jan right after my stepmom passed on after too much wine.

 

I've been to an ENT and other docs so I believe it's the drug.  Every doc I go to says it's nothing and I'm good.  So for now I will hang out with you guys.  Thank you for being here.

 

Tiny

[[La...]]

Oh Tiny, it sounds like a similar story to many of ours! Welcome aboard this crazy floaty boat! I'm so glad you've had everything checked out. I just think it's more prudent for people to eliminate the other possible things that could be going on.

 

If you've recently come off an SSRI, plus you're also doing a benzo taper, then that's reason enough to be dizzy. For me, the SSRI withdrawal really ramped up my dizziness, even though I'd waited a fair amount of time after my benzo taper. I doubt there are any hard and fast rules at this point, so we all just muddle through and figure out things the best we can.

 

Anyway, good for you to keep moving forward. I hope things smooth out for you. Maybe it will just be a short phase of dizziness. Fingers crossed!

[[Yo...]]

Hi Tiny, welcome aboard! 

 

My "floating on the sea" sensations began towards the end of my taper as well. I don't experience standing dizziness or disequilibrium like Lapis... It only hits me when I'm completely still, either sitting but especially lying down. The intensity varies from stormy to placid waters.

 

Don't think I mentioned this before, but I had two episodes of "vertigo" in as many months...

 

The first time, I remember falling on the bed on my back and my eyes rolling across the ceiling, which moved in a very slow spiral. Not your textbook vertigo where the room's spinning either up-down or left-right. I quickly sat up and the "spiralling" stopped almost as fast.

 

I tried laying back down after a breather, and again it happened. And again I sat up and it went away. So it was like positional vertigo. Next, after a longer respite, I very slowly leaned back onto the pillow, and that seemed to halt the symptom.

 

I thought it was a freak thing caused by who-knows-what until about a month later when it woke me out of my sleep. Same thing. Ceiling slowly turning, and sitting up made it go away.

 

Oh and I could actually feel a turning sensation in my head both times.

 

Anyway, these things can come and go, so try not to worry too much. Easier said than done, I know!

 

Once again, welcome aboard the S.S. Lapis!

 

[[La...]]

Geez, I hope "S.S." doesn't stand for "Sinking Ship"! Nooooooo!