Had Vertigo on cruise weeks ago and still have lingering effects

Ears, nose and throat
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Spent the last month travleing with spouse.  Drove 8300+ miles and went on Alaskan cruise for 7+ days.  On 3rd morning of cruise, woke up with Vertigo, room spinning, has happened 4 times in the last 7 years, so I am aware of what it is.  I was able to do the Epply maneauvure to get it to subside within minutes.  Since that episode, I finished the cruise and traveled for another 2 weeks.  It has been 3 weeks since I stepped off the ship and I still suffer light headedness when lying down or looking up from my workspace.  It has always taken me roughly a week to get my "land legs" back after a cruise, but this time I can't seem to shake the light headedness.  Went to ENT yesterday, who performed many positional tests and hearing tests.  I did not have a vertigo episode yesterday, but did get light headed when leaning back in Dr.'s chair.  Hearing is excellent.  He prescribed a steroid for a week and a nightly allergy pill for a week.  Knock on wood, but I have not had a vertigo episode since that time on the ship 3+ weeks ago.  Has anybody else experienced this type of ailment and has anyone had these light headed symptoms last this long after traveling or a cruise?  What were your remedies or discussion points?  Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

A concerned individual

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Hi Mark,

It's known by the French term of "mal de débarquement" - literally disembarkment sickness - and is quite common after cruises etc. I remember getting it as a young woman nearly 40 years ago after a military transport flight from the UK to Hongkong. Because of the war situation in those days, British military aircraft weren't allowed to overfly Vietnam or Cambodia, so the whole thing took 25 hours, with just two half-hour stops for refuelling. We started hitting severe tropical storms over the Indian Ocean and the last 10 hours were very bumpy. Even after such a relatively short period, and in spite of only being in my mid-20s, I had mal de débarquement for a couple of weeks afterwards. I felt dizzy all the time and occasionally unsteady on my feet, and I could still feel the movement of the plane of course. It was very weird, but eventually cleared up spontaneously.

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Thank you for your comments. I've been told it might be that. I just know after a month of driving and sailing it will take time to calibrate my equilibrium. Thanks again.