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Allergies, sinus infection and dizziness
In May I began to have dizzy spells which coincided with a sore throat and earache, which cleared up on their own. However, dizziness and fatigue continued for several weeks. The dizziness resembled being carsick, with lightheadedness and occasional moments of nausea and feeling faint (but I never passed out). I had a CAT scan and blood work twice, and so far no diagnosis for the dizziness/fatigue. It got better for a few weeks but last week I began to have dizzy spells again, this time accompanied by maxillary sinus pressure. I had just switched allergy medications, from Nasonex to generic Flonase, right at the time my symptoms returned. Could allergies have led to a sinus infection? Can the sinus infection cause dizziness and fatigue?
Due to the holiday weekend I haven't been able to call my doctor, but after 3 prior visits he's never suggested sinuses to be a cause.
Due to the holiday weekend I haven't been able to call my doctor, but after 3 prior visits he's never suggested sinuses to be a cause.
Hello,
Not sure if you still check this website---but I am wondering if you recovered from vertigo. I have gotten it every year for the past 5 years---only once a year and in the Spring time. I just started accupuncture and it seems to be helping me out--- been to a bunch for doctors who all think I am nuts!
Would love to compare notes if you are up to it!
Thanks
Not sure if you still check this website---but I am wondering if you recovered from vertigo. I have gotten it every year for the past 5 years---only once a year and in the Spring time. I just started accupuncture and it seems to be helping me out--- been to a bunch for doctors who all think I am nuts!
Would love to compare notes if you are up to it!
Thanks
Hi, I try Dramamine when it gets really bad, mold count goes high with pollen outside. It helps with the dizziness and then I take a Claritin a day during heavy pollen times. I have gone thru two allergy testings, a lot of sinus infections in the past. I too have Asthma and Allergies so it's just experience to make me feel better. Carry Dramamine with you in your purse and dissolvable Claritin and when you feel it's bad outside take the Claritin and if dizziness starts don't drive when you take Dramamine but any other time. It might make you sleepy so never drive after taking it. I always keep it in my purse going around roads, etc especially when the pollen outside and mold count is bad. One to two days after it rains mold count is usually very high and even if it is dry outside you can have a high mold count...so www.pollen.com sends me a report each day with my zip code. Hope this helps.
Ask for a heavy metal toxicity test ...you may have environmental allergies cause by the aerial spraying of toxins ...Look up 'What on earth are they Spraying'
Hey all, it's nice to see this thread is still going. I started this (as stacia123) six years ago and wanted to share the things I've discovered during this time, hopefully some of it will help you out.
Way back at the beginning of the thread I was talking about my doctor dismissing me and needing to go to an ENT. I finally went to an ENT in 2006 despite my GP, who said I was just a hypochondriac. The ENT took me seriously and did a slew of tests, but then talked to my GP who convinced him I was making it all up. The ENT wouldn't even see me for a followup.
I was at my wit's end, literally crying when I just picked a new doctor out of the phone book. This was the end of 2006, maybe early 2007. I ended up with the BEST doctor I could have hoped for. After a bunch of tests and trial and error over the years, I have had these diagnoses which have all helped my sinus problems and dizziness:
1. Sleep apnea. I was diagnosed with this as a kid in the 1980s but was told it was no big deal. My current doc said it was a HUGE deal. I was put on a CPAP and my immune system response to colds and such has improved, as has the dizziness.
2. Anemia. My mother was very anemic and it looks like I am, too. My old doc apparently knew I was anemic and never told me! It's pretty bad, I'm staving it off with 4 supplements plus vitamin C (helps absorb the iron better) per day, but if it gets worse then I'll need IV iron treatment. This has helped the fatigue and dizziness.
3. PCOS. It affects my immune system, apparently, I was put on metformin to regulate PCOS and have had great results, especially with energy and muscle aches.
4. More allergy control. Twice daily nasal irrigation, Flonase, Claritin and sometimes Benadryl has helped quite a bit. If you do nasal irrigation and are very congested, try a little Alkalol -- it's a menthol and herbal liquid you can get at drug stores that helps thin mucus. I put 1 ounce of Alkalol in with 7 ounces of warm saline and rinse with a nasal rinse bottle. Mucinex also helps, as does a bit of Vicks Vap-O-Rub under the nostrils. When the allergies get really bad, I take OTC pseudoephedrine.
5. Omeprazole. After a CT scan a few months ago showed my left ethmoid sinus was clogged (multiple "cells" within it were clogged) even after 3 rounds of antibiotics and some steroids, I was sent back to the ENT. It was a new doctor, but he somehow got the old doctor's reports and decided before I even walked into the office that I wasn't sick. He was terrible, said I had been diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia years ago (I hadn't) and then lied about the CT scan results just to get me out of the office. After I protested, he prescribed omeprazole -- and it has helped! It took a good 6 weeks on OTC omeprazole, but the infections have vastly improved. The problem is that the side effects of omeprazole are terrible for me. I try to make do with other strong antacids (any of them help: Tagamet, Nexium, Zantac, Pepcid, etc.) but still need omprazole 2 weeks per month at minimum (omeprazole stops acid production altogether, which is helpful for the short-term but I'm not keen on it for the long term.)
All these things have helped over the years, and I feel better in 2012 than I did back in 2006. But it is a LOT of work to do all this just to maintain a decent status quo, and I still get days where I feel rotten, just not AS rotten as before.
Of course, some of these things aren't going to be problems you have -- most of you won't have PCOS or sleep apnea. But I wanted to mention them anyway, just in case.
I really recommend trying a few things and see what works, and keeping a list or journal to jot down results. Remember that a lot of this stuff doesn't work immediately, so give it several days and repeated tries before discounting it. Good luck!
Way back at the beginning of the thread I was talking about my doctor dismissing me and needing to go to an ENT. I finally went to an ENT in 2006 despite my GP, who said I was just a hypochondriac. The ENT took me seriously and did a slew of tests, but then talked to my GP who convinced him I was making it all up. The ENT wouldn't even see me for a followup.
I was at my wit's end, literally crying when I just picked a new doctor out of the phone book. This was the end of 2006, maybe early 2007. I ended up with the BEST doctor I could have hoped for. After a bunch of tests and trial and error over the years, I have had these diagnoses which have all helped my sinus problems and dizziness:
1. Sleep apnea. I was diagnosed with this as a kid in the 1980s but was told it was no big deal. My current doc said it was a HUGE deal. I was put on a CPAP and my immune system response to colds and such has improved, as has the dizziness.
2. Anemia. My mother was very anemic and it looks like I am, too. My old doc apparently knew I was anemic and never told me! It's pretty bad, I'm staving it off with 4 supplements plus vitamin C (helps absorb the iron better) per day, but if it gets worse then I'll need IV iron treatment. This has helped the fatigue and dizziness.
3. PCOS. It affects my immune system, apparently, I was put on metformin to regulate PCOS and have had great results, especially with energy and muscle aches.
4. More allergy control. Twice daily nasal irrigation, Flonase, Claritin and sometimes Benadryl has helped quite a bit. If you do nasal irrigation and are very congested, try a little Alkalol -- it's a menthol and herbal liquid you can get at drug stores that helps thin mucus. I put 1 ounce of Alkalol in with 7 ounces of warm saline and rinse with a nasal rinse bottle. Mucinex also helps, as does a bit of Vicks Vap-O-Rub under the nostrils. When the allergies get really bad, I take OTC pseudoephedrine.
5. Omeprazole. After a CT scan a few months ago showed my left ethmoid sinus was clogged (multiple "cells" within it were clogged) even after 3 rounds of antibiotics and some steroids, I was sent back to the ENT. It was a new doctor, but he somehow got the old doctor's reports and decided before I even walked into the office that I wasn't sick. He was terrible, said I had been diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia years ago (I hadn't) and then lied about the CT scan results just to get me out of the office. After I protested, he prescribed omeprazole -- and it has helped! It took a good 6 weeks on OTC omeprazole, but the infections have vastly improved. The problem is that the side effects of omeprazole are terrible for me. I try to make do with other strong antacids (any of them help: Tagamet, Nexium, Zantac, Pepcid, etc.) but still need omprazole 2 weeks per month at minimum (omeprazole stops acid production altogether, which is helpful for the short-term but I'm not keen on it for the long term.)
All these things have helped over the years, and I feel better in 2012 than I did back in 2006. But it is a LOT of work to do all this just to maintain a decent status quo, and I still get days where I feel rotten, just not AS rotten as before.
Of course, some of these things aren't going to be problems you have -- most of you won't have PCOS or sleep apnea. But I wanted to mention them anyway, just in case.
I really recommend trying a few things and see what works, and keeping a list or journal to jot down results. Remember that a lot of this stuff doesn't work immediately, so give it several days and repeated tries before discounting it. Good luck!
I totally feel everyone's pain on this issue.
For about 10 years now I have suffered to a lesser or greater degree at times from the issues described above...dizziness...lightheadedness...sinus congestion...thank the Lord mine haven't turned into constant sinus infections. I take singulair, loratadine and astepro every day. I also started about 3 days ago...again...taking 1000 mg of vitamin C, a b complex vitamin and vitamin E...that seems to help sometimes not....been diagnosed with vasomotor rhinitis and maybe allergic to some things for which they don't test...the last part is speculative.
I have been tested 3 times for allergies. Twice for airborne allergies...once on the arm...and once on my back. I have also been tested once for food allergies. All of the tests returned negative...absolutely negative. The allergist didn't even want to do the food allergy test but I wanted to be sure. Allergist and general practitioner just smirk and shove some astepro in my nose...don't really like that...doctors take note for improved bedside manner. ENT is more sympathetic but often just sends me back to allergist. I will be trying a new ENT tomorrow.
The first time I remember having symptoms was after vacuuming the floors in an old church...started wearing a mask and the symptoms went away. Then symptoms occurred after moving into an old house....pulled out all the old carpeting which was 3 levels thick. That helped a lot. Sometime later I moved into a mobile home...that was probably the worst experience in my life. Symptoms went away when I moved into a brand new rental house.
I've been married now for 6 years....just about every place in which we have lived has caused me problems....2 apartments and one rental house. The rental house seemed to be worse than any of them though.
Now, we bought a home in January. It has caused endless problems with my sinuses. We had an air quality test done...high particles...high humidity and high CO2. The humidity has been remedied for the most part by a dehumidifier. I take the indoor air quality test with a grain of salt though my wife thinks the guy who did it is bumping some numbers up given that he is pretty much a salesman....and I totally totally have come to not trust AC or air quality people AT ALL....total racket...talk about the evils of capitalism in this area. We had one guy install an extra return to help deal with the humidity...he hacked it all together and had fiberglass particles going into my ac just so the expensive filter he installed would catch them....he did all this after I told him I had issues. Real smart guy.
I wake up in the morning...take a shower and start gagging. This has happened in a lot of my other places too. It seems to be worse when the weather outside is changing. But when I go out side I do a lot better...sound weird yet. My wife is fine...my five year old son is fine. Drinking a lot of water helps...but running to the bathroom every 15 minutes gets old fast...and most importantly it doesn't cure the situation. Mucinex D seems to help a lot but I'm not sure about taking it with all of my allergy meds. I'm also very much more interested in causes rather than treating the symptoms. I'm not completely opposed to treating symptoms in the interim though.
My questions are
Has anyone had any success treating this from an anxiety perspective?
Has anyone had any success treating this type of thing with accupuncture?
Many people who come into my house don't have any symptoms even my mom who has many repsiratory issues.
Don't know what to do.
For about 10 years now I have suffered to a lesser or greater degree at times from the issues described above...dizziness...lightheadedness...sinus congestion...thank the Lord mine haven't turned into constant sinus infections. I take singulair, loratadine and astepro every day. I also started about 3 days ago...again...taking 1000 mg of vitamin C, a b complex vitamin and vitamin E...that seems to help sometimes not....been diagnosed with vasomotor rhinitis and maybe allergic to some things for which they don't test...the last part is speculative.
I have been tested 3 times for allergies. Twice for airborne allergies...once on the arm...and once on my back. I have also been tested once for food allergies. All of the tests returned negative...absolutely negative. The allergist didn't even want to do the food allergy test but I wanted to be sure. Allergist and general practitioner just smirk and shove some astepro in my nose...don't really like that...doctors take note for improved bedside manner. ENT is more sympathetic but often just sends me back to allergist. I will be trying a new ENT tomorrow.
The first time I remember having symptoms was after vacuuming the floors in an old church...started wearing a mask and the symptoms went away. Then symptoms occurred after moving into an old house....pulled out all the old carpeting which was 3 levels thick. That helped a lot. Sometime later I moved into a mobile home...that was probably the worst experience in my life. Symptoms went away when I moved into a brand new rental house.
I've been married now for 6 years....just about every place in which we have lived has caused me problems....2 apartments and one rental house. The rental house seemed to be worse than any of them though.
Now, we bought a home in January. It has caused endless problems with my sinuses. We had an air quality test done...high particles...high humidity and high CO2. The humidity has been remedied for the most part by a dehumidifier. I take the indoor air quality test with a grain of salt though my wife thinks the guy who did it is bumping some numbers up given that he is pretty much a salesman....and I totally totally have come to not trust AC or air quality people AT ALL....total racket...talk about the evils of capitalism in this area. We had one guy install an extra return to help deal with the humidity...he hacked it all together and had fiberglass particles going into my ac just so the expensive filter he installed would catch them....he did all this after I told him I had issues. Real smart guy.
I wake up in the morning...take a shower and start gagging. This has happened in a lot of my other places too. It seems to be worse when the weather outside is changing. But when I go out side I do a lot better...sound weird yet. My wife is fine...my five year old son is fine. Drinking a lot of water helps...but running to the bathroom every 15 minutes gets old fast...and most importantly it doesn't cure the situation. Mucinex D seems to help a lot but I'm not sure about taking it with all of my allergy meds. I'm also very much more interested in causes rather than treating the symptoms. I'm not completely opposed to treating symptoms in the interim though.
My questions are
Has anyone had any success treating this from an anxiety perspective?
Has anyone had any success treating this type of thing with accupuncture?
Many people who come into my house don't have any symptoms even my mom who has many repsiratory issues.
Don't know what to do.
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