Have you been feeling dizzy or off-balanced lately? Feeling unsteady can have several potential causes, but regardless of why it occurs, it can dramatically disrupt your daily life. Fortunately, physical therapy for dizziness offers a structured and effective way to regain your sense of stability.
Dizziness refers to several related sensations, including lightheadedness, unsteadiness, and wooziness. Vertigo, where you feel like you or the room is spinning while standing still, is a specific type of dizziness.
Everyone experiences dizziness on occasion. Maybe you stood up too quickly or just stepped off a roller coaster. In those cases, the sensation only lasts for a few seconds. However, severe, persistent dizziness usually indicates an underlying issue with your inner ear or nervous system. It can also affect your ability to stay active and independent and dramatically increase your fall risk.
At Schultz Physical Therapy, we want to treat the root cause of your dizziness to help you find lasting relief. We also want to address the balance challenges that often accompany bouts of dizziness, helping you stay safe and injury-free.
Keep reading to learn how we can help you manage dizziness at our Bogalusa, LA, and Franklinton, LA clinic.
Physical Therapy for Dizziness: What To Expect
Physical therapy for dizziness begins with a comprehensive assessment. At your first appointment, we’ll take a complete health history and evaluate your balance, eye movements, and neck function. This allows us to pinpoint the underlying cause of your dizziness, whether it’s related to the inner ear, a vestibular disorder, muscle tension, or something else entirely.
Next, we’ll work with you to create a customized treatment plan based on the source of your symptoms.
When Your Dizziness Stems from Problems with Your Vestibular System
The vestibular system, located in the inner ear, plays a key role in maintaining balance by detecting head movements and changes in position. When something disrupts this system, it can send confusing signals to the brain, leading to dizziness and a feeling of instability.
We can address these symptoms through vestibular rehabilitation, which uses a blend of different exercises and techniques to help retrain your brain and body to manage dizziness more effectively. Techniques used in vestibular rehabilitation include the following:
- Habituation exercises, in which you purposefully perform movements that trigger dizziness so your body can habitat to it, reducing your symptoms over time
- Gaze stabilization exercises, in which we strengthen the connection between your vision and balance systems by teaching you to focus on an object while moving your head
- Balance training, in which we guide you through tailored balance challenges to improve your stability
When Your Dizziness Stems from Problems with Your Neck
Sometimes, neck injuries (such as whiplash-related injuries) can cause dizziness and difficulties with balance. In those cases, we focus on relieving muscle tension, improving posture, and increasing mobility in the neck.
Some of the treatment techniques we might use include the following:
- Manual therapy, in which the therapist gently mobilizes the neck joints to restore proper alignment and reduce restrictions
- Stretching and strengthening exercises, which target the neck and upper back muscles to improve stability, reduce pressure on the nerves, and restore proper movement patterns.
- Postural training, in which our therapists help address any postural issues that might contribute to your symptoms
Can Physical Therapy Help Address Your Dizziness Issues?
Physical therapy for dizziness is an effective way to manage your symptoms and get back to living your life to the fullest. Schedule an appointment at Schultz Physical Therapy today to get started.
