Meniere's Disease Support Group
Meniere's disease is a balance disorder of the inner ear. The symptoms of Meniere's are variable; not all sufferers experience the same symptoms. However, "classic Meniere's" is considered to comprise the following four symptoms: Periodic episodes of rotary vertigo, hearing loss, tinnitus, and a sensation of fullness or pressure in one or both ears.
I have to vent and I apologize in advance.
It's Spring. Storm season. Another gosh darn (trying to keep it clean) storm front has moved in again this week. The come in like clock work! Every Tuesday night / Wednesday morning and they throw me off every single time.
It starts out a few days in advance though. The pressure in my ears builds up, then I can feel the excess fluid sloshing around in there, especially when I lay down. HCTZ doesn't help.
A slight tilting sensation follows (- kind of like the feeling of tipping back in a chair too far and the exact moment of weightlessness you feel just before you go over completely.)
Then comes the headache, nausea and not being able to sleep and the next thing I know, I've just walked into a door jamb or busted my hip on the counter again because my depth perception and balance are so off. Oh and I can absolutely forget about hearing the tornado sirens when they go off - the tinnitus is so loud the sirens don't even register with me.
IF I am "lucky" I can pop a Promethazine and sleep all day, missing work again this week (Just like clockwork). I can't take valium - it causes vertigo for me.
IF I'm not lucky, I get my blanket and pillow and "camp out" on the bathroom floor for a few days. Only to start the process all over again once I finally start to feel human again on Saturday or Sunday.
I've been up since before 0200 this morning - my ears are full and clicking, my head is feeling like it just wants to flop whichever way is easiest to go, my stomach is rumbling and not happy and I have those little moments of quick vertigo, almost like a tilting sensation - that teasing. Like this disease is just taunting me for fun saying, "Should we spin?" "How about now?" "Or now?" "Not yet?" "Maybe like this?"
Aaaaarrrggghhhhh!
I just want it to stop. It's stupid, but I am tears right now. I don't want to miss another Wednesday and possibly Thursday at work. I don't want to play this stupid game any more. I never wanted to play to begin with.
Sorry.
Done whining.
Chelle
It's Spring. Storm season. Another gosh darn (trying to keep it clean) storm front has moved in again this week. The come in like clock work! Every Tuesday night / Wednesday morning and they throw me off every single time.
It starts out a few days in advance though. The pressure in my ears builds up, then I can feel the excess fluid sloshing around in there, especially when I lay down. HCTZ doesn't help.
A slight tilting sensation follows (- kind of like the feeling of tipping back in a chair too far and the exact moment of weightlessness you feel just before you go over completely.)
Then comes the headache, nausea and not being able to sleep and the next thing I know, I've just walked into a door jamb or busted my hip on the counter again because my depth perception and balance are so off. Oh and I can absolutely forget about hearing the tornado sirens when they go off - the tinnitus is so loud the sirens don't even register with me.
IF I am "lucky" I can pop a Promethazine and sleep all day, missing work again this week (Just like clockwork). I can't take valium - it causes vertigo for me.
IF I'm not lucky, I get my blanket and pillow and "camp out" on the bathroom floor for a few days. Only to start the process all over again once I finally start to feel human again on Saturday or Sunday.
I've been up since before 0200 this morning - my ears are full and clicking, my head is feeling like it just wants to flop whichever way is easiest to go, my stomach is rumbling and not happy and I have those little moments of quick vertigo, almost like a tilting sensation - that teasing. Like this disease is just taunting me for fun saying, "Should we spin?" "How about now?" "Or now?" "Not yet?" "Maybe like this?"
Aaaaarrrggghhhhh!
I just want it to stop. It's stupid, but I am tears right now. I don't want to miss another Wednesday and possibly Thursday at work. I don't want to play this stupid game any more. I never wanted to play to begin with.
Sorry.
Done whining.
Chelle
Hope your day goes better and the storms go elsewhere.
My ENT advised against this. There is no guarantee the Gentamicin will last and he called it poison, not an antibiotic.
Please keep me informed as to how well it works for you and how long it lasts.
Thanks and good luck!
Supplements
Regenokine
Antivirals
Chiropractor
TMJ relief
Diuretics are the old school, "Try this first" treatment.
I made a post much like yours about a year ago. I follow this site regularly but do not have enough energy to go on the computer when I get home from work. It's is very OK to vent. MD is as much a psycological burden as a physical one. Not to mention the financial side effects of not being able to work sometimes. My cycle is like yours and the only thing I can figure is it must have to do with the moon and tides because it happens every week. On thursday night I get the first flip. Friday is the buildup. Saturday and sunday suck because I am working and have to just go to bed when I get home. Monday is the peak. If I make it to work on Monday I am out on Tueday because I didn't rest. MD punishes you for not resting. By tuesday night it starts to clear. I have wednesday and most of thursday before it starts all over again. I have an FMLA but now companies are using their oustside disability insurance company to monitor abscences so they decide if the time off fits the criteria of your FMLA. So I go to work when I shouldn't which makes the episodes drag on longer. I am fortunate that although I get sick to my stomach I never actually throw up. The fatigue and the inabiltity to think is what gets me.
So vent when you need to, cry when you have to. We will be there for you.
To address the subject of gentamicin injections. There are gentamicin injections and steroid injections. Gentamycin is indeed an antibiotic and although I don't know exactly how it helps the ear I do know that it destroys the hearing in that ear. Steroid injections do not destroly the hearing. My doctor who is a very good Neurotologist will not do gentamicin injections anymore because of the hearing loss. Both require you to have one good ear so if your MD is bilateral the procedure is probably not indicated. I have heard of people having good results but I have not heard of anyone having permanent results as of yet. There may be permanent sucess cases out there. For anyone considering these procedures I wish you success. I am a chicken about needles in my ears and have several other serious health issues so an injection will not help me much.
Kerry