Find Out What May Be Contributing to Your Dizziness
Dizziness can make ordinary activities more difficult. Walking through a store, turning your head, getting out of bed, exercising, working, or moving through a busy environment may trigger symptoms. If dizziness is interfering with your life in West Valley City, Tooele in Northpointe, Tooele on Main Street and Grantsville, UT, physical therapy at Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy can help determine whether a vestibular or balance problem may be contributing.
Dizziness can have many causes. Our physical therapists use specialized assessment to understand what you are feeling, what triggers your symptoms, and whether your symptoms may respond to physical therapy.
Understanding Dizziness
Dizziness is a broad term that people use to describe several different sensations.
You may feel:
- Unsteady or off balance
- Lightheaded
- As though you are moving when you are not
- Disoriented during movement
- Dizzy when turning your head
- Uncomfortable in visually busy environments
- Dizzy when changing positions
How you describe the sensation provides important information. So does when it happens, how long it lasts, what triggers it, and what makes it better or worse.
Not every cause of dizziness can be treated with physical therapy. New, severe, or unusual dizziness, especially when accompanied by other concerning symptoms, may require medical evaluation.
How Dizziness Can Affect Daily Life
Dizziness may interfere with activities that require you to move your head, change positions, or process a lot of visual information.
Some people begin limiting activities because they do not know what will trigger their symptoms. Understanding those specific situations helps guide your evaluation.
You may have difficulty:
- Getting in or out of bed
- Turning your head while walking
- Bending down or looking up
- Walking through grocery stores or crowds
- Using stairs
- Exercising
- Walking on uneven ground
- Moving quickly or changing direction
- Completing work or household activities
- Riding in a vehicle
A Specialized Assessment Helps Determine the Problem
Because dizziness has many possible causes, our physical therapists start by listening carefully to your symptoms and how they affect you.
These findings help your physical therapist determine whether your vestibular or balance systems may be contributing and whether physical therapy is appropriate for you.
Depending on your symptoms, your evaluation may include:
- Balance testing
- Walking assessment
- Head and eye movement testing
- Coordination
- Position changes
- Vestibular testing
- Testing for positional vertigo when appropriate
- Strength or mobility testing when relevant
- Activities or movements that reproduce your symptoms
Treatment Based on What Your Assessment Shows
There is no single treatment program for dizziness. The right treatment depends on what is causing or contributing to your symptoms.
Your physical therapist monitors how you respond and adjusts treatment as your symptoms and abilities change.
Your plan may include:
- Vestibular exercises based on problems identified during testing
- Gaze stabilization exercises when head movement affects your ability to keep your vision steady
- Balance training to improve stability
- Habituation exercises for certain movement-related symptoms
- Walking activities that progressively challenge your balance
- Positioning maneuvers when testing identifies BPPV
- Functional training for activities that have become difficult
- Education and home exercises based on your findings
Getting Back to Everyday Movement
Treatment should help you function better in the situations that currently challenge you.
You may want to turn your head while walking, shop in a busy store, get in and out of bed normally, exercise, use stairs, return to work activities, or move through your community with greater confidence.
Your physical therapist can gradually progress treatment toward those specific activities based on how you respond.
Specialized Expertise for Dizziness
At Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy, our physical therapists use specialized testing to determine whether a vestibular or balance problem may be contributing to your dizziness.
We explain what the assessment shows, why specific treatment is being prescribed, and how we will measure your progress. If your symptoms do not appear appropriate for physical therapy or suggest that additional medical evaluation is needed, we will recommend the appropriate next step.
Our goal is to help you understand what is affecting you and find the right direction for your care.
Frequently Asked Questions
Take the Next Step Toward Dizziness Relief
You do not have to keep guessing about why certain movements or environments make you feel dizzy.
Contact Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy today to schedule an evaluation for dizziness in West Valley City, Tooele in Northpointe, Tooele on Main Street or Grantsville, UT. Our physical therapists can perform specialized testing and determine whether physical therapy can help you get back to moving with greater confidence.
Your Next Steps…
- Request An Appointment
- Receive A Custom Treatment Plan
- Work Hard and Progress In Your Recovery
- Recover & Enjoy Life Pain-Free
