Menieres

candybrowneyes said:
This thread will be for anyone who wants to discuss Menieres, who has it, wants to know about it, take out your frustrations about it.
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I am 60 years old with severe hearing loss, many years of "return of the locusts" type tinnitus, and a complicated health picture due to a rare systemic disease that is not well understood.

Today I was hit with lots of dizziness again. It also feels like there is a stick deep in my right ear canal. A few months ago I went through several weeks of bad dizziness with the same stick deep in that right ear. I worked with my chiropractor but was never sure what was causing it.

My question is... what distinguishes Meniere's from other types of hearing loss and autoimmune issues?

Thanks...
 
I have been using Google lately on the subject, and it appears that bilateral Meniere's is associated with autoimmune disorders and allergies.

I have been having dizzy spells and nausea lately. And fluctuating loss in right ear. Decided it is time to quit smoking. :D Using electronic cigs in transition. Further limiting caffeine-- I just traded my big coffee mugs for six-ounce cups. Don't care for caffeine in other forms. Playing around with big doses of chocolate-- another trigger. No problem with salt-- not a big fan of salty foods anyway. Going to Dr. in a few days-- Dramamine is my new drug of choice. Where are the joys in life :hmm:, other than listening to music?
 
Let me describe what happened to me, and then you see if I had Meniere's or not. If I did, then it has never been diagnosed before. I came home from an out-of-town football game in high school (marching band) and went straight to bed to get up in the morning for a drum corps contest the very next morning. When I woke up to get ready about 5 AM, I realized that my head was spinning very badly and threw up violently. I could hardly walk to the toilet 8 feet away. I ended up sick at home for a whole week while my head was spinning. My hearing was so bad during this time that I couldn't understand anyone, not even my parents. Everyone sounded mumbled. Remember, I have always been profoundly deaf since I was a baby. I realized that I had trouble walking from my car to the school building, and when I got there, I had to lean on the wall for support, as my balance was terrible. I couldn't recognize the music we had been playing for that particular season (we had a few more games before the season was over). Fortunately, all I had to do was follow the conductor and most students weren't aware that I had suffered some loss. I suffered additional loss in different parts of the frequency range in each ear.

Since then, I have had very rare, periodic episodes of being dizzy and vomiting, but no impact on my hearing that I can tell. I will say that my hearing post-sickness was not the same as before. I also notice that I have to keep my eyes open when walking or running, or I'll lose my balance and veer off.

Is it possible that I had a bout of it?
 
deafdrummer said:
Let me describe what happened to me, and then you see if I had Meniere's or not. If I did, then it has never been diagnosed before. I came home from an out-of-town football game in high school (marching band) and went straight to bed to get up in the morning for a drum corps contest the very next morning. When I woke up to get ready about 5 AM, I realized that my head was spinning very badly and threw up violently. I could hardly walk to the toilet 8 feet away. I ended up sick at home for a whole week while my head was spinning. My hearing was so bad during this time that I couldn't understand anyone, not even my parents. Everyone sounded mumbled. Remember, I have always been profoundly deaf since I was a baby. I realized that I had trouble walking from my car to the school building, and when I got there, I had to lean on the wall for support, as my balance was terrible. I couldn't recognize the music we had been playing for that particular season (we had a few more games before the season was over). Fortunately, all I had to do was follow the conductor and most students weren't aware that I had suffered some loss. I suffered additional loss in different parts of the frequency range in each ear.

Since then, I have had very rare, periodic episodes of being dizzy and vomiting, but no impact on my hearing that I can tell. I will say that my hearing post-sickness was not the same as before. I also notice that I have to keep my eyes open when walking or running, or I'll lose my balance and veer off.

Is it possible that I had a bout of it?
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It sounds like it. When you say you felt dizzy did the room spin? Feeling dizzy is not the same as having vertigo.
 
As with anything, there is no use in diagnosis unless more radical measures need to be taken. One can have subclinical symptoms. Then it is necessary to use preventive measures.
 
VacationGuy234 said:
It sounds like it. When you say you felt dizzy did the room spin? Feeling dizzy is not the same as having vertigo.
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Oh, you have NO IDEA if you've never had it. The reason I could hardly walk to the toilet to throw up was because my balance was gone. Yes, the room would spin like F*. That was exactly the first thing I noticed upon waking up. I was screaming, and I threw up in less than ten seconds. Dad ran down to check on me. I HATE it when it happens. I fear this more than an operation (I felt less fear when I went in to have my top and bottom jaws repositioned to fix my overbite) or dying in a plane crash. I've had times in the past year when I would be on my side in bed, and the room would move ever so slightly in a turning direction, just enough for me to notice it, and it would be interesting. It would stop if I laid on my back or sometimes if I rolled to the other side. It sounds like a 30-year mystery is solved.

I just NOW realized something. M* Santa... Right! The reason that my vision jumps so much around a rhythmic noise like an idling tractor is because the sound is so loud that the "drum sticks" or malleus and incus bones of the middle ear is drumming so hard on the cochlea that the fluid and vestibular tissues responsible for balance get rattled.

Someone said years ago that it was because that the optic nerve passes closely by the auditory nerve on the sides of the head in the skull, and there would be electric current bleedover from the auditory to the optic nerve. I checked it out recently to see if it might be causing vision problems. It's not true at all. These two nerves are nowhere near each other. And these two regions are far enough apart that the auditory part of the brain can't affect the visual part of the brain.

As I mentioned in another thread, the idling speed of a tractor's motor affects how fast my vision jumps. Bump up the throttle, and the jumping is faster and less pronounced. Cut it down, and the slower and more pronounced the jump is. When I turn the hearing aids off, it stops completely and everything is still. I learned that trick so that I could understand Dad talking to me over the tractor, otherwise I couldn't lipread him. A 35-year mystery is solved.
 
Feeling dizzy is not the same as having vertigo.
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That is a semantic issue. Technically, you are right, but in common parlance, they are the same. As for what I call "flickering" I have had that for a long time, but attributed it to something else.
 
I was diagnosed with Meniere's in 1989. It was one of those things that I didn't think much about. I had had a car wreck when I was 16 and I hit my head. Dr. said that was the cause. It started out with SEVERE vertigo where I felt like my body was standing still and the world was going a thousand miles around me and my eyeballs felt as if they were going around in my eye socket. Then there was the ringing or stuffiness bilaterally and the "I'm in a well hearing" kind of feeling. It was just something I kept to myself. I couldn't turn my head without having a spell, lay down, etc.

I had brief 'remission' until was 6 mths preg with my second child. I got up to go to bathroom and I fell over. For 3 days, I couldn't walk or move. It was horrible. I went to the dr and they told me that it was simply "too much fluid" and I would be fine after I had the baby. After I had the baby, though, I got worse. I couldn't turn my head, lay down, get up, bend over, turn quickly....nothing without having a severe spell. My spells last anywhere between 24 hrs and 3 mths. I have the forgetfulness, grasp problems, ringing, stuffiness, headaches, vertigo....everything except vomiting. I couldn't function. I couldn't take care of my children.

I began going to a chiropractor which helped me to live, again and I began taking maxzide and antivert. That helped. I now have 6 kids and am alive. I still struggle. My memory is shot and I struggle with hearing my kids clearly when they are reading things or talking to me. I walk with my hand grazing the wall and I recently had a spell while driving. I had to pull over because it was not safe for me to drive. My head can not ever be in a flat position, it has to be propped by 3 pillows, at night.

I am scared that my children might have it, so I am diligent about watching for dizziness and getting their hearing tested. I certainly do not want them to be debilitated as I have been.

I continue to take my meds, I am trying (LOL) to reduce my stress (which is a HUGE trigger) and I know when I need to slow down or stop. I'm learning how to listen to my body. I have some bilateral hearing loss, but not enough to warrant HAs yet.

Nice to meet people who know I am not crazy and feel my pain.
 
if you having attacks often i would get re-test meniers is collection of things different in people often different reasons...i have it but it nothing to do with deafness it trap nerve in neck circulation effects my balance..
i have tried phyiscal therapy and yes it did help.they sort of pulled neck vertabra it felt good but it dont work now...i take serc tablets
 
Nice to meet fellow Meniere's pep's. I just joined the site. I have had it for over 20 years. Within the past year I have something new. I have burning pain around my right ear, right side of my head, and starting down my neck. Have brought this up with my ENT. First time said it might be a nerve issue,maybe do some testing if it continues, next visit, he acted like we didn't discuss this before and didn't seem concern. Just wondering if anyone else has expericenced this before.
 
The audio Doctor I went to yesterday looked at my chart and started asking me a ton of questions and then she said I would bet my doctorate you have Menieres. She said I could go get diagnosed but there really isn't anything they can do and I shouldn't worry until the symptoms get worse and I can't handle them. Looking back I was going up the steps about 6months ago and almost fell backwards. When I got upstairs I stumbled to my bed and laid down because the room was spinning I remember laughing then crying when I tried to get up. After that everyone mumbled and I would constantly ask my kids what did you say stop mumbling. Ever since I can look back and see where I was nauseated and off. Or I just couldn't get up at that moment. I never really thought about it until yesterday and now I am looking back over ent visits and questions he asked. Anyway I can pin point my attacks to eating salty ham and other things like that attacks would happen within hours to a few days. At the moment I am pretty shell shocked what do I need to know what should I do? Do you drive? My co-pay is outrageous for health insurance do I go get an official diagnoses?
 
MomofmanyKidlets said:
The audio Doctor I went to yesterday looked at my chart and started asking me a ton of questions and then she said I would bet my doctorate you have Menieres. She said I could go get diagnosed but there really isn't anything they can do and I shouldn't worry until the symptoms get worse and I can't handle them. Looking back I was going up the steps about 6months ago and almost fell backwards. When I got upstairs I stumbled to my bed and laid down because the room was spinning I remember laughing then crying when I tried to get up. After that everyone mumbled and I would constantly ask my kids what did you say stop mumbling. Ever since I can look back and see where I was nauseated and off. Or I just couldn't get up at that moment. I never really thought about it until yesterday and now I am looking back over ent visits and questions he asked. Anyway I can pin point my attacks to eating salty ham and other things like that attacks would happen within hours to a few days. At the moment I am pretty shell shocked what do I need to know what should I do? Do you drive? My co-pay is outrageous for health insurance do I go get an official diagnoses?
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Yes you should, as there are quite a lot of things they can do to help you feel better.
That was pretty irresponsible of the audiologist. An audiologist isn't a medical doctor, and those symptoms can be caused by things worse than Meniere's.
 
I got diagnosed with meniere's literally 11 days ago. I'm a college student at UIUC in architecture and I'm scared.
 
Bottesini said:
An audiologist isn't a medical doctor,
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This one is a medical Doctor and honestly I think she was telling me its okay if I don't have the money it wasn't an emergency for me to go. She gave me the card and a referral we just barely had money for hearing aids and I am not sure how we could afford going to a specialist.
 
ekjebe said:
I got diagnosed with meniere's literally 11 days ago. I'm a college student at UIUC in architecture and I'm scared.
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It is a tough thing to go through, but there is no measurement for how long it could last. You could have symptoms for 2 hours or 2 years, but most people don't have it constantly, full on, throughout their lives.

I had it more in my early 20's and some in my 30's..

A lot of times it can be controlled by diet and exercise. Try to keep healthy and fit.. You'll be OK.
 
I just wish I knew more people around my age with meniere's. Or at least other Deaf or HOH kids.
 
i had bad turn with it this week ,had head in bucket throwing up....some dr say may only get a few turns in a lifetime other disagree also they say it umberalla term and different things cause it......horrible when have it......i deaf but i think my meniers is due to my neck i get different things on some attacks my balance go even if i was laying down asleep it would wake me and i be unable to put finger on nose it makes you panic..i get another sort want want to faint feel sick thumping on ear drums
 
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