Table of contents:
Vertigo can immediately feel paralyzing and make you helpless. Vertigo is often described as a sensation of spinning and floating. You will feel your own body or the world around you spinning randomly and irregularly when vertigo strikes suddenly. This sensation can cause extreme dizziness, ringing in the ears, and severe nausea and vomiting. Symptoms of vertigo can be treated immediately by taking a special vertigo medication. But you also have to master special techniques for dealing with vertigo, if one day you forget to bring medicine or medicine that you can't reach once the disease has recurred. One of the effective maneuvers to treat vertigo is the Epley maneuver.
What is the Epley maneuver?
The Epley Maneuver is a set of movements to treat the symptoms of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) type of vertigo.
BPPV type vertigo occurs when the position of the head changes, so that it churns a special crystalline fluid called canalite in the inner ear canal, which helps you maintain balance. When you change positions quickly (such as lying down to sitting), the crystals in the ear change position, causing a spinning sensation called vertigo. BPPV is a fairly common type of vertigo. About 17 percent of the total cases of vertigo are caused by BPPV.
This maneuver is designed to correct the position of the head following the force of gravity so that the symptoms of vertigo can subside on their own, without taking medication. This position can balance the fluid in the ear back to normal. The Epley Maneuver is effective in curing more than 90% of cases of vertigo due to BPPV. Research shows no side effects from this therapy.
Given its very specific purpose, the Epley maneuver is not recommended for treating any type of vertigo other than BPPV. Therefore, check with your doctor first regarding what the exact cause of your vertigo is before performing this maneuver.
Guide to performing the Epley maneuver to treat symptoms of vertigo
The Epley maneuver is considered safe, effective, and efficient in handling BPPV. The Epley maneuver can be performed alone at home, but it is more effective if you have previously been guided by a doctor.
Here is a general guide to the Epley maneuver that doctors usually teach:
If the source of vertigo comes from the side of the left ear:
- Sit on the edge of the bed with your legs straight out in front of you. Tilt your head 45º to the left (don't touch the shoulder). Place a soft pillow under you so that when you lie down, the pillow tucks between your shoulders instead of under your head.
- With one swift motion, lie down (with your head on the bed but still tilted 45º). The pillow should be under the shoulder. Your head will hang slightly over the edge of the pillow. Wait 30-120 seconds for the vertigo symptoms to stop.
- Tilt your head 90º to the right without lifting it. Wait 30-120 seconds.
- Change the position of your head and body to the right side, so that you are looking at the floor. Wait 30-120 seconds for the symptoms to subside.
- If the vertigo is coming from the right ear, reverse the instructions above.
After that, change your last position very, very slowly to a comfortable sitting or lying position. But stay in bed for a few minutes. Remember: rapid and sudden movements can cause symptoms to recur.
During breaks to recuperate, support your head with 2 to 3 pillows so that your head is in a 45 degree position. If symptoms do not resolve after one set of these maneuvers, you may start over from the beginning.
