Hi ! I was diagnosed four years ago, not complaining because I never have vertigo . Just blocked ear and only the right one. Was doing great as I switched to a new ent in February and he is great. I had six months of remission. And blocked up again. Now on prednisone for two weeks. Tapering dishes as I go along. Day three and not much of a chsnge! I think stress pushes my ear up. Also, my doctor noticed how tight my jaw and suggested a bite guard. On a low sodium diet and diuretic. Kilo open at night fir tinnitus . Weather plays a factor! Have had steroid shots with another ent but not sure how much it helped! Right now I feel the ocean in my ear! Just reaching out for thoughts on prednisone . Thank you and glad I found this group. Again I am lucky that no vertigo but my doc thinks the migraine connection is a component . Wow! Got that all in ! Thanks for listening!
Meant to say right now my tinnitus is flaring up!
Hi Liz,
i have never taken prednisone but from what i have read it has some pretty adverse side effects so i would use with caution. I have had MD for over thirty years and i take 48mg betahistine daily and for the most part it does the trick. Since my original diagnosis i have never been back to the hospital but i am not going to try any surgical options so I just visit my GP as and when necessary. You are fortunate not to suffer from vertigo as this is very common with MD. My tinnitus is manageable, most of the time i am able to tune it out. It is there but does not control me but when it does escalate i know a major episode is imminent. Tinnitus can be highly distressing and i have tried various relaxation techniques over the years to get to where i am now. I get migraines too but i have no idea whether these are linked to MD. I do not believe there are any cures as such for MD so it is just a case of managing it as best we can. I am wary of surgery and some drugs, with the latter, the side effects are often far worse than the symptons of the illness they are prescribed to cure. It is a personal thing and what works for one may not for another. My major attacks which last for many hours and are highly distressing are by far the worst part of my Menieres and they tend to appear in clusters over a few weeks or months and then go into remission for a year or so. I believe stress can play a part in MD but i have personally not noted any changes with the weather.
Hi Liz as Linda has said I too take Betahistine and also a diuretic which seems to keep things under control for me. I have not had the tinnitus problem but do get bad vertigo and fullness in the ear when I have an attack. It really is a case of finding what works best for you. It seems different things suit different people and there is no rhyme or reason to having attacks. Having said that I had gone for about 4 years with no attacks and was off medication but had a stressful time recently and it recurred. I was advised on here that stress can lead to attacks and have to say since the stressful situation has gone it seems to have settled down again. I wish you well and hope you feel better soon.
Hi Liz,
I've been having inner ear steroid injections for a few months, and while they've helped a lot with my vertigo, they haven't helped at all with the ear fullness, hearing loss or tinnitus. ;-(.
I've taken oral pred before, for allergy issues, and many years ago when I got addicted to Afrin nasal spray (always fighting sinus issues!) It worked like a miracle, but in terms of side effects, it made me very hyper and tense.
I wish you the best of luck with your treatment!! You're so fortunate to not be dealing with vertigo! Whatever you can do to keep it that way (low salt, etc...) I'd say, stick with it!
Take good care,
J-
Thank you for your help and insight. I woke up quite dizzy and called ent on call and he said to stop the prednisone immediately. I think stress pushes my symptoms up. I should hear from the ent tomorrow regarding what and how to proceed. The prednisone was 60 mg a day and then taper down . Lucky to have good doctor who really cares about his patients. Thank you again!
Liz
Thank you Mary! I woke up dizzy and seems like it was the high disagree of prednisone and Doctor on call said to stop immediately . See what the dr says tomorrow . Stress pushes my ear fullness up and ringing! Thank you for your response . I did try hypnosis for tinnitus and stress and helps a lot.
Take care! Thank you again for the well wishes.
liz
I didn't get vertigo for the first few months, and then it kicked in slowly - I have had it for 3+ years and have now found that my amazing Physio can fix the vertigo. It's due to pressure in my neck (spine) on the nerves, blood vessels etc - which get trapped and need releasing. No doctors seem to recognise this, but it certainly was the cause for me. Still working on trying to get rid of the tinitus, but this is taking a bit longer...
I only get blocked ears and have tinnitus. I go to an osteopath every six weeks. She is wonderful and does something similar to what you mentioned regarding the physio. I have a lot of faith in her. Switching to a different ent has made a big difference. For the better! I hope we all get relief. My ent noticed how tight my jaw was and suggested a bite guard. I clench my teeth. Pressure on ears from that. Take care and let me know how you are doing .
Thank you for your kind words. I forgot to mention myself ent noticed how tight my jaw was and suggested a bite guard. I wish you healing thoughts and take good care, too.
will write more soon.
Stress is often cited as a factor in MD but oddly enough every major attack I have suffered has come during periods of calm in my life so I have come to the conclusion that it really is so unpredictable. It is difficult when you do not want to let it rule your life but need to err on the side of caution.
i have experienced drug side effects in the past and the drug concerned wreaked havic with my body. This was a statin (Liptor) so nothing to do with MD but the experience has left me very wary of any new drugs that I take. Obviously we all need new medication at times but I always read up on side effects and take with caution.
Good luck with your GP visit Liz x