Living with Vertigo: Finding your balance PART 1

Lauren Walker, All Fit/All Ages Gym

Imagine yourself on a swaying ship. Imagine the waves getting bigger, thrusting you side to side, imagine the waves are calm and are gently rocking the boat. Now imagine living on this boat all the time. You’re never certain of what each day will bring. It can be a very debilitating and isolating problem. It makes you feel uneasy and unsure about your surroundings.

I’ve decided to write about this because I’m on the journey and I’m learning how to manage this issue effectively. Suffice it to say, I went through a period of being really low. You can wrack your brain trying to figure out how this all started. Believe me, I find this a very ineffective way of dealing with this particular problem. Unfortunately, feeling sorry for yourself doesn’t do much. I’ve learned the hard way, when you dwell on all the things that are wrong, you’re adding to the problem. So here are some solution oriented steps one can take to help.

1) Stop feeling sorry for yourself and refocus: added emotional stress can usually exacerbate physical symptoms 2) Identify triggers: Are you stressed out? Are you eating improperly? Are your sleeping habits in order? Are you exercising? 3) Move through it: Even on my absolute worst day, I made the choice to get on my spin bike and pedal until I felt better. 4) Limit screen time: Scrolling through pages on my computer or cell phone made my symptoms worse.

This isn’t just an issue that afflicts older people. I want to let you know, dealing with this issue in a positive way, it goes a long way. I am learning what lifestyle habits work for me. I look forward to sharing them with you in my next article. Here’s to finding our balance!

Stay positive!

#laurenwalker