Find the Right Treatment for Dizziness and Balance Problems
Dizziness, vertigo, or balance problems can make it harder to walk, drive, exercise, work, or keep up with your normal routine. Finding the right treatment starts with understanding what is causing your symptoms and which parts of your balance system are not working as they should. At Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy, our physical therapists use specialized assessment and vestibular therapy in West Valley City, Tooele in Northpointe, Tooele on Main Street and Grantsville, UT to determine what is limiting you and prescribe treatment based on what we find.
Understanding Vestibular Therapy in Simple Terms
Your vestibular system includes parts of the inner ear and brain that work with your vision and body to control balance. When these systems are not working together properly, you may experience spinning, unsteadiness, motion sensitivity, or difficulty keeping your vision clear while moving.
Vestibular therapy is a specialized form of physical therapy that addresses these problems. Our physical therapists look closely at your symptoms, what triggers them, and how your balance, vision, and movement respond during testing.
These findings help us understand your problem and determine which treatments are appropriate for you.
When Vestibular Therapy May Be Helpful
Dizziness and balance problems can happen for different reasons. Your symptoms may appear when you change positions, move your head, walk through a busy environment, or try to keep your balance when visual or surface conditions change.
Vestibular therapy may be considered for:
- Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, or BPPV
- Vestibular neuritis
- Labyrinthitis
- Migraine-related dizziness
- Ménière’s disease as part of a broader medical plan
- Balance problems related to aging
- Dizziness or balance changes after a concussion
- Motion sensitivity
- Difficulty keeping vision clear during head movement
- Unsteadiness while walking
The same symptom can have different causes. Your physical therapist uses your evaluation to determine what appears to be contributing to your problem and whether vestibular therapy fits your needs.
A Detailed Vestibular Assessment Guides Your Treatment
Care at Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy begins with a detailed evaluation. Your physical therapist will ask about your medical history, symptoms, what brings them on, and what you are having trouble doing. Maybe dizziness makes it difficult to roll over in bed, drive, walk through a grocery store, exercise, or move confidently at work.
Depending on your symptoms, your therapist may assess eye movements, visual stability during head movement, balance, walking, coordination, motion sensitivity, and your response to changes in head or body position. Positional tests may be used when BPPV is suspected, and appropriate neurological screening may also be included.
Your treatment is based on what we find, not simply on the fact that you feel dizzy. Your physical therapist regularly reassesses your symptoms, balance, visual stability, and function and adjusts treatment as you improve.
Your treatment may include:
- Canalith repositioning maneuvers when positional testing identifies BPPV
- Gaze stabilization exercises to improve visual stability during head movement when appropriate
- Habituation exercises to gradually improve tolerance for specific movements or environments that trigger dizziness
- Balance training based on the conditions that challenge your stability
- Walking and movement training to improve control during everyday activities
- Patient education to help you understand your symptoms and how treatment addresses them
- Specific home exercises selected from your evaluation to reinforce progress between visits
What to Expect with Vestibular Therapy at Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy
Your first visit begins with a detailed discussion of your symptoms, medical history, and the activities that have become difficult. Your physical therapist will then complete the vestibular tests that fit your symptoms and explain the findings in straightforward language.
Treatment may begin during your first visit when appropriate. For example, if positional testing identifies BPPV, your therapist may perform a specific repositioning maneuver based on the involved side and canal. Other findings may lead to gaze stabilization, balance, habituation, walking, or movement exercises.
Follow-up visits focus on how you are responding to treatment. Your physical therapist will reassess your symptoms and function, progress exercises when appropriate, and update your home program based on what is changing.
Clinical Expertise Focused on the Right Treatment
Specialty knowledge of the vestibular system gives our physical therapists another way to assess dizziness, vertigo, and balance problems. By looking at how your eyes, inner ear, balance, and movement systems work together, your therapist can determine which findings are important and prescribe the right treatment for your problem.
For example, BPPV requires a different approach than impaired gaze stability or motion sensitivity. Identifying those differences helps us select treatment that addresses your specific findings instead of giving every patient the same balance exercises.
Treatment does not stay the same as you improve. Your therapist measures your progress, reassesses your response, and adjusts exercises and activities based on your abilities and goals.
We treat our patients like family. That means listening carefully to what you are experiencing, explaining what we find, answering your questions, and helping you understand what you can do to support your progress.
Frequently Asked Questions
Improve Your Balance and Get Back to Normal
Dizziness and balance problems can interfere with work, exercise, driving, walking, and everyday activities. A detailed vestibular evaluation can help determine what is limiting you and which treatments are appropriate for your specific problem.
Contact Meier & Marsh Physical Therapy to schedule an evaluation and learn whether vestibular therapy in West Valley City, Tooele in Northpointe, Tooele on Main Street or Grantsville, UT fits your needs. Our physical therapists will listen to your concerns, complete a detailed assessment, explain what we find, and prescribe treatment based on your evaluation. Our goal is to help you improve your balance and movement so you can get back to normal.
Your Next Steps…
- Request An Appointment
- Receive A Custom Treatment Plan
- Work Hard and Progress In Your Recovery
- Recover & Enjoy Life Pain-Free
