If you’re feeling off balance and dizzy, the problem just might be your ears. Activities such as a visit to an amusement park, spinning in circles, or a boat ride can leave you feeling off balance. However, it’s not normal to feel so if you have hardly moved. When this happens, it might indicate issues within the inner ear.
How Your Ears and Hearing Can Cause Dizziness
There are three canals in the inner ear. They sense movement in every direction: side to side, up and down, tilting, and other motions. Combining this information with sensory feelings like what you touch and see allows the brain to navigate the physical world.
The brain is responsible for translating and coordinating all the body movements depending on the information it receives from the inner ear. If no proper signals come in, the brain can’t coordinate body movements effectively, leading to dizziness.
What conditions can affect your inner ear?
Usually, some conditions lead to ineffective inner ears. They include:
Meniere’s Disease
Usually affecting only one ear, Meniere’s disease is an inner ear infection responsible for causing dizziness, feeling of fullness, hearing loss, and ear ringing. While this condition can affect a person of any age, it is more prominent for adults between 40 and 60.
A buildup of the labyrinth, a fluid found in the inner ear, is the leading cause of Meniere’s disease. Its treatment options include medication, cognitive therapy, dietary changes, injections, and activating pressure points.
Excessive Earwax
Earwax is the ear’s self-cleanser. However, when it builds up to extreme levels, it can block the ear causing balance issues. While older people are the most vulnerable to this, it can happen to anyone, especially if you stick something like a cotton bud in your ear. Doctors recommend professional ear cleaning services to remove the excess earwax.
Vestibular Neuritis
A virus can infect the inner ear, causing it to malfunction. Usually, the virus attacks the vestibular nerve and infects it. When the swollen nerve fails to relay critical information to the brain, it results in dizziness, nausea, balance problems, and cognitive delays.
When to seek help
Fortunately, a doctor or audiologist can treat the dizziness causations mentioned. Continuous cases of dizziness, even without prior movement, are the most obvious sign that you need to seek professional help. Avoid cheap, quick fixes that are likely to worsen the situation.
The ears are the major facilitators of balance in human beings. When the ears are compromised, they can impact dizziness and hearing difficulties.
For any hearing related questions or to discuss dizziness – please get in touch www.correcthearing.co.uk