Feeling like the room is spinning or struggling to stay balanced can be overwhelming and scary. People with dizziness and vertigo often feel stuck, unsure of what’s causing their symptoms or how to get better. The good news? Physical therapy can often help!
It’s important to recognize that dizziness and vertigo aren’t the same. Dizziness is a general sense of unsteadiness, while vertigo refers specifically to a spinning sensation that can throw you off balance. It’s also important to recognize that neither are conditions in and of themselves but rather symptoms of an underlying issue.
At Professional Therapy Partners, we help people understand the reason for their vertigo or dizziness, develop personalized treatment programs to manage their symptoms, and, in some cases, address the cause directly. To show you how our process works, we want to share two patient stories: one with vertigo caused by BPPV and one with chronic dizziness.
Beating Dizziness and Vertigo: A Tale of Two Patients
How Physical Therapy Helped Angela Manage BPPV
Angela was in her fifties when she began experiencing spinning sensations whenever she laid down or rolled over in bed. The dizzy spells lasted for seconds but left her nauseous and afraid to move.
She was eventually diagnosed with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), one of the most common causes of vertigo. It occurs when tiny calcium crystals in the inner ear become dislodged and disrupt your sense of balance. While the vertigo it causes can be alarming, physical therapy offers a relatively simple fix.
Angela scheduled an appointment at Professional Therapy Partners, where one of our PTs performed canalith repositioning maneuvers: specific head and body movements that help move the loose crystals back to where they belong.
We supplemented these maneuvers with balance training to help retrain the brain and body to stabilize during motion. We also worked with Angela to identify her vertigo triggers so she could avoid sudden vertigo episodes.
How PT Helped Jake Manage Chronic Dizziness and Feel Grounded Again
Not everyone with dizziness necessarily has vertigo. This was the case for Jake, who started feeling unsteady when walking through stores or standing for long periods. It wasn’t vertigo because he never felt like the world was spinning around him, but he often felt like he was floating or detached.
After visiting multiple specialists, he was diagnosed with chronic dizziness linked to visual and balance processing issues. He began working with us to manage his symptoms through the following techniques:
- Postural training to improve how his body reacted to movement and standing
- Walking and head movement drills to build tolerance for motion and improve his coordination
- Targeted balance training, including core strengthening exercises, to help him stay on his feet
His progress was slow but steady. Over time, Jake reported less fogginess, better balance, and more confidence in daily life.
Why Physical Therapy Works for Dizziness and Vertigo
Physical therapy takes a personalized approach to treating dizziness and vertigo. After a detailed assessment, our PTs will create a custom plan to help retrain your body’s balance system and reduce symptoms.
As you saw in the stories above, every plan is different. However, here are some techniques we might suggest:
Manual Therapy
- Hands-on techniques to improve neck mobility and reduce tension, especially if symptoms are triggered by neck issues
Strength and Coordination Exercises
- Help the body respond better to movement and changes in position
Functional Training
- Reintroduces daily tasks in a safe, controlled way
You Don’t Have to Live with Dizziness and Vertigo
Feeling dizzy or unsteady doesn’t have to be your new normal. Physical therapy offers solutions backed by science to help you feel and move better.
If you or someone you love is struggling with dizziness or vertigo, contact Professional Therapy Partners today. Our experienced physical therapists will help uncover the cause of your symptoms and create a plan to get you back on your feet.
Schedule your appointment now and take the first step toward lasting relief!
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