I'm 44 w/ Off/On Dizziness...Dr Wants to See if MS (Multiple Sclerosis) (MRI, sinus)

[Forever Blue]

To mk a lengthy story as brief as I can...

I'm now 44. Been getting off & on dizziness since May 2017 for no reason that I can tell. I don't even really get headaches. Not sure if "dizziness" is the right word. It's hard to explain. Been seeing a neurologist since Oct 2018.

Tests done: All normal

- blood test
- brain MRI (non-contrast) - that caused me worse dizziness...took 2-3 mos to gradually go away
- Baer VBK
- vision & hearing
- very quick Epley maneuver long ago in the examining room. Now did ride a roller coaster that twists around & upside down just yesterday & my head didn't feel good for a few min, but after that was fine.

Meds Prescribed for it:

- 25 mg Meclizine - didn't seem to help

.5 mg of Alprazolam I guess aka Xanax was just prescribed the other day for me optionally take. Haven't taken yet. Don't really want to...aren't there bad side effects?

Future tests ordered:

- more bloodwork to test vitamins D, folate, & B12 levels, AC1, thyroid function, & antiphospholipid Ab.

- MRI of cervical something or other (top of spinal cord)

- another MRI WITH contrast too (which I think I'll refuse because I didn't want to do it at 1st. I heard contrasts isn't good PLUS felt bad for 2 mos after previous MRI)

MY QUESTIONs:

- They said due to my young age, they want to see if it's MS. The talk of MS was scary to me. There's no history of it in my family.

- Anyone have or know anyone who's been through a similar experience?

- Anything else to tell/ask the dr? I've thought about mold in my apt & will look more into food allergies.

[rjshae]

I've had incidences of vertigo, of and on, due to an old ear infection. The world starts spinning around and I have to stay still for a while and let it pass. It usually hits me when my head is in a certain orientation, and is sometimes brought on by allergies or a sickness.

Does it sound anything like that?

[wit-nit]

OP we've been dealing with MS in our family for over 70 years. I suggest you find a new doctor, specifically one that specializes in MS. Your story doesn't add up symptom wise or even the correct medicine.
Google MS, it's symptoms, diagnosis, treatments and how do I know if I have MS. Mayo Clinic is one of the top MS institutes.

Here is a good informational read on MS. https://www.emedicinehealth.com/myel...article_em.htm

[Parnassia]

Originally Posted by Forever Blue

I'm now 44. Been getting off & on dizziness since May 2017 for no reason that I can tell. I don't even really get headaches. Not sure if "dizziness" is the right word. It's hard to explain. Been seeing a neurologist since Oct 2018.

.5 mg of Alprazolam I guess aka Xanax was just prescribed the other day for me optionally take. Haven't taken yet. Don't really want to...aren't there bad side effects?

Future tests ordered:

- another MRI WITH contrast too (which I think I'll refuse because I didn't want to do it at 1st. I heard contrasts isn't good PLUS felt bad for 2 mos after previous MRI)

- Anything else to tell/ask the dr? I've thought about mold in my apt & will look more into food allergies.

What is puzzling to me is listening to all your vague symptoms and worries (possible allergies, odd growths and skin conditions, etc) over months but then reading how you don't want to do the diagnostic testing, sampling, see the appropriate specialist, never get around to taking suggested medications (remember the inhalers?) to see if they help. You keep saying you MIGHT do these things but never seem to. Then a little while later another thread about similar or the same worries all over again. Somehow I doubt you are going to get any clear answers unless you follow through and start helping your providers eliminate possibilities.

[RamenAddict]

Originally Posted by Parnassia

What is puzzling to me is listening to all your vague symptoms and worries (possible allergies, odd growths and skin conditions, etc) over months but then reading how you don't want to do the diagnostic testing, sampling, see the appropriate specialist, never get around to taking suggested medications (remember the inhalers?) to see if they help. You keep saying you MIGHT do these things but never seem to. Then a little while later another thread about similar or the same worries all over again. Somehow I doubt you are going to get any clear answers unless you follow through and start helping your providers eliminate possibilities.

This! Did the OP ever get allergy tested? Some vertigo symptoms are a result of inner ear issues, and if she’s having these symptoms in conjunction with allergy problems, it could very well be related to that. I know previously when I had some congestion, I would also get fluid buildup in the ear and feel a bit dizzy. Taking Sudafed would help with that. This typically happened the most in one town where people tended to have TONS of allergies and I had a friend there who also suffered from really bad benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.

[Forever Blue]

Originally Posted by Parnassia

What is puzzling to me is listening to all your vague symptoms and worries (possible allergies, odd growths and skin conditions, etc) over months but then reading how you don't want to do the diagnostic testing, sampling, see the appropriate specialist, never get around to taking suggested medications (remember the inhalers?) to see if they help. You keep saying you MIGHT do these things but never seem to. Then a little while later another thread about similar or the same worries all over again. Somehow I doubt you are going to get any clear answers unless you follow through and start helping your providers eliminate possibilities.

You make it sound like I'm refusing to do 95% of what I was told. I try my best not to take prescription meds & go as all natural as possible. If I could afford a holistic dr, I'd see one.

I also took it upon myself to get an ENT referral & he did all he could do on his end. Hearing test was good. Had a little extra earwax in one ear, which he cleaned & that was it there.

Re: the things I'm refusing, I'm sure each of us have been wary or didn't want to do certain things. Just because someone's a dr w/ an MD behind their name, doesn't mean we have to do everything they say, be alright w/ everything, etc. We have to do our own research, be proactive, & advocate for ourselves.

I'll do the most I can w/o worsening my issue &/or causing further harm. I'll ask more about benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. I started another list of comments/questions typed up to ask the dr on the next visit as I've done before.

The MRI contrast solution they use isn't that good.

The inhalers I was prescribed was used for a good time, but I don't think I have to take them forever for the rest of my life.

The latest med prescribed (Xanax) the nurse practitioner said I don't have to take it. I did research & the side effects aren't good. Others have said & I quote:

"The longer you are on it, the more you will need to take to feel the same way. I used to take 1-2 mg a day. I ended up titrating down to a lower amount. When you do decide to get off of it, expect flu-like symptoms."

"It took him a year and a half to wean off it. Please be careful to use only what you need."

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

A friend had odd blindness/vision spots for some years before she woke up blind on one side. Turned out to be MS. Do you have any vision problems?

[bpollen]

I had severe dizziness in several incidents during a 4 year period some years ago. I was in my 50s. I am sure I had BPPV...where the crystals in the inner ear get out.

How severe is your dizziness? How long does it last? Can you drive, stand up, go to work?

My symptoms were severe. It would hit suddenly. The first time I was asleep; it woke me up about 3 a.m....with intense vertigo. It was debilitating vertigo. As if I were drunk and the room was spinning around. No equilibrium. I couldn't stand w/o holding onto something. Couldn't walk. Couldn't drive. Couldn't look up. After an incident started, the vertigo was constant for some period of time until it culminated in my throwing up. I would still be very dizzy, but the vertigo wasn't as much, and I would be weak, still without good equilibrium (but better than before). I would have to take to my bed for an entire day or two and try not to move because every movement of my head made it worse.

I went to an urgent care place after the first one, after several days (when I could drive). He couldn't find an ear infection. He's the one who told me it MIGHT be BPPV, which I'd never heard of before. He prescribed pills for me, which helped a LOT. I later learned they were just dramamine which you can buy over the counter. I looked up BPPV on the internet to see what it was. I read about the Epley Maneuver positions. I figured I had BPPV when I did the Epley Maneuver, because when I did it, when I put my head in one particular position, it was like a switch turned on the extreme dizziness. But then shortly afterwards, I felt better.

I started carrying dramamine with me everywhere, in case it suddenly hit. The dramamine helped a lot.

The good news is that after that 4 year period, I never had another instance of it. It went away as mysteriously as it had appeared. I DO tend to get NORMAL slight dizziness momentarily now when standing & sitting too fast sometimes, or if I get too hot in the sun, things like that. That might be my age, or my blood pressure dropping.

My medical history at that time (and now): excellent health, not on any meds, no med conditions besides mild arthritis, no allergies that I know of. I usually got a sinus infection back then once a year (I wondered if that was allergy related, tho, because I'd get those in January, I think, when the henbit weed was growing).

I was a SMOKER when the vertigo hit that first time. I had tried to quit smoking numerous times, but nothing stuck. I quit smoking when that vertigo hit; I couldn't stand the thought of that smoke swirling in my head, and I was going to try to quit, anyway. I haven't smoked since. So I wasn't a smoker when the other incidents occurred.

I didn't see a dr. about the vertigo spells, other than that urgent care doctor. I didn't think it was necessary. I was sure it was BPPV, and the dramamine helped.

Is it normal for a doctor to do all those tests and prescribe medications for dizziness? How bad are your spells? How long do they last? Did the Epley Maneuver help? Have you tried dramamine?

Do you have any issue with low blood pressure? I don't know the symptoms of MS, but I had a co-worker who was diagnosed with MS. Her first symptom was dropping things. It was like her hand just gave out, as opposed to being clumsy like we all are sometimes.

[Lucy_C]

I regularly experience dizziness in the early mornings. It's a few times per week, while drinking my morning coffee, before any exercise or shower. And it happens when I stand up.

The doctor and I are pretty sure it's my blood pressure - mine is usually very low and was even lower this last visit. For the time being I'm tracking a few different things, including dizzy spells.... I see the doctor again in a few months.

[jambo101]

Low Blood pressure will definitely make you feel dizzy.