My doctor has me taking Gabapentin and Ibuprofen for the headache pain. I have been newly diagnosed with Chiari. I am constantly getting dizzy, and losing balance. My doctor says that is normal.
Is anyone having this problem? Is there a medication I can take that will help?
Sincerely,
Jon (walking like I'm drunk)
Jon, yes dizziness and unbalance is part of it. I don’t know if it’s also a side effect of the gabapentin too. My balance was worse by the day before I had the decompression, I would walk around work with one hand on a wall- it’s terrible. I’m not aware of a med to help this, but I know that for me turning my head would make it worse. Sorry you are going through this.
Jenn
I was just diagnosed in June of this year and I was super dizzy, doc thought I had a inner ear infection at the beginning. My dizziness has improved but not enough to function normally. I cannot look up or I will fall. I have decompression surgery scheduled for next month.
Reading junkie please keep us in the loop, how are you doing with everything?
I was just diagnosed in June of this year and I was super dizzy, doc thought I had a inner ear infection at the beginning. My dizziness has improved but not enough to function normally. I cannot look up or I will fall. I have decompression surgery scheduled for next month.
Jon yes your dizziness and Imbalance are all retaliated to the Chiari, also short term memory loss as well as foggyness, I had to stop working because the dizziness was so bad,just like Jen said I also would walk around holding 1 hand on the wall to help keep my balance… Doctors thought I had inner ear infections…but that was not the case,anyway this ENT prescribed Klonopin, 1 pill before bedtime because it made me sleepy, it did help me a lot… But I still was unable to stand & walk for a long period of time… You can try to ask your PCP if they will prescribe it… It’s an antiaxiety med. But the side affect helps with dizziness. Also I found that not moving my head to turn left or rite,but turning my entire body instead helped too. Also avoiding places where there is a lot of people moving around you helps.
Good day
I had lots of balance and dizziness issues, as well. No inner ear or medication troubles, would just lose my balance when looking up, turning my head, or even rolling over in bed. I got these great exercises that addressed "primitive reflexes" which are made worse with Chiari and other stressors on the brain and were the source of my balance issues. Your doctor is right in that balance concerns is typical for Chiari folk, but it does not have to stay that way!
I got the exercises from a physical therapist. Nobody on this site has made reference to this approach but I found great relief with these exercises. I finally found this therapist after decompression surgery and found that I have only done them for a short time twice now since surgery. My understanding is that prior to any decompression one might have to do them on a more regular basis for continued relief as the brain is continually being stressed which amplifies the "primitive reflexes".
Gabby
Hi are you in the uk Jon . Or do you have Skype because I’ve just been told I’ve got it to and I’m learning and very scared not sure what to expect plus I’m scared of operations l
Wow. Thank you ALL for your replies! I am still learning about all this (symptoms, medications, treatment, etc). This is a great website. I am glad there is a place to come for discussion and learning.
My next question: I have developed a major sinus problem. The left side is almost always so closed up I can't breath through my left nostril. The pressure is terrible and painful. Sleeping while this is happening in nearly impossible. I have not been to an ENT yet. But I will soon. Was just curious if a sinus problem like this is yet another symptom of Chiari.
Hello Karl, I am in the US. It looks like you've found the right place to come to learn though. I understand being scared of operations. I bet everyone can agree with that feeling. I've wondered if decompression surgery will be inevitable.
Karl gough said:
Hi are you in the uk Jon . Or do you have Skype because I've just been told I've got it to and I'm learning and very scared not sure what to expect plus I'm scared of operations l
Thank you razzle51. I will look into the side effects. Ugh! So much research to do! lol
razzle51 said:
meclizine helps with dizzy . Don't know if I would take Ibuprofen with the Gabepentan. both these drugs have side effects of dizziness .. I would drop the Ibuprofen . go to drugs.com and read all the side effects of both
I was given Serc when I had vertigo really bad and I was put on it again when I first got sick before my chiari diagnosis. I was on Serc, percocet and cymbalta prior to surgery. After surgery I was able to stop taking all of the meds (yay!). I’m not well again and I’m on gabapentin, amitriptaleyn, and percocet for pain but I’m getting cut off the percocet cuz they think I might get addicted… so not sure how I’m going to deal with pain now…
Anyway maybe check out Serc for the dizziness, maybe it will help you stop feeling like you are going to fall off the planet… it worked for me.
Keep us posted xoxo feel better soon.
Thank you NieNie0326! I'll talk to my doc about Serc on my next appointment. I did some research and I think it'll help me out. So tired of not being able to walk straight, or even stand a minute without skipping my feet around to keep me from falling from one side to the other. It's crazy. Hate it. I take Norco for pain on the "bad days'. It helps some. Nothing seems to totally kill the pain though. I need to consider decompression surgery.
NieNie0326 said:
I was given Serc when I had vertigo really bad and I was put on it again when I first got sick before my chiari diagnosis. I was on Serc, percocet and cymbalta prior to surgery. After surgery I was able to stop taking all of the meds (yay!). I'm not well again and I'm on gabapentin, amitriptaleyn, and percocet for pain but I'm getting cut off the percocet cuz they think I might get addicted... so not sure how I'm going to deal with pain now....
Anyway maybe check out Serc for the dizziness, maybe it will help you stop feeling like you are going to fall off the planet... it worked for me.
Keep us posted xoxo feel better soon.
You are welcome, glad I could help.
Definitely weigh the pros and cons for surgery before jumping in. I had the surgery in 2011, basic boney decompression and laminectomy of the first vertebrae. I was at the end of my rope and most of my doctors said to get used to the pain etc because that’s how you could be for the rest of your life. My NS gave me a 50/50 chance of success and I said I’d take it. I was symptom free for 2-2.5 years after surgery, and I’m only having a few recurring symptoms at the moment.
Good luck with everything, and just as a warning if you do have the surgery, be prepared to get mad at an IV pole post op. I could finally walk straight after surgery and the stupid IV pole wouldn’t go straight… very frustrating haha.
Hahaaa! I enjoy reading your posts. Always in good humor! Thanks for that. And thank you for the support. :)
NieNie0326 said:
You are welcome, glad I could help.
Definitely weigh the pros and cons for surgery before jumping in. I had the surgery in 2011, basic boney decompression and laminectomy of the first vertebrae. I was at the end of my rope and most of my doctors said to get used to the pain etc because that's how you could be for the rest of your life. My NS gave me a 50/50 chance of success and I said I'd take it. I was symptom free for 2-2.5 years after surgery, and I'm only having a few recurring symptoms at the moment.
Good luck with everything, and just as a warning if you do have the surgery, be prepared to get mad at an IV pole post op. I could finally walk straight after surgery and the stupid IV pole wouldn't go straight... very frustrating haha.
Anytime 
Hi Jon
Yes It was balance problems and dizziness that led to an ENT referral where my Chiari was found. That was about a year ago now and since then my ears hurt a lot, I have almost continual tinnitus and I cant tolerate loud sounds. I used to really enjoy music and a loud night out would help. Now I cant bear it. I am an optician so when I put the lights off to look at the back of peoples eyes I have literally fallen over. Now I have to just dim the lights and hold on to the instruments, obviously I cannot accidentally grab my patients to break my fall. Its really hard. ENT say my ears are perfect. Neurologist says my Chiari is irrelevant. Told its just Migraine . Currently on Topiromate and Gabapentin neither helping balance or ear pain Good luck Il be really interested to hear how you get on
Hi Jon, I am brand new to this site, I have severe balance problems and now I am starting to get dizzy more often as well. I’m scared. Are you considering surgery? I believe my vision is getting worse as well, scary thought that things seem to be getting worse all the time…