BPPV: who’d ever heard of that, let alone got it?  Turns out, quite a lot of folk.

BPPV or Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo causes brief episodes of dizziness, and is the result of small crystals becoming dislodged and entering the vestibular labyrinth.  It sounds rather like the plot line for a bad episode of The Crystal Maze, but the reality is that it is all happening somewhere deep down in my inner ear.

I first realised that I was suffering from BPPV when I was walking down a quiet, country road and, out of the blue, I did a sudden, involuntary, ten-pint lurch to the left, followed by a similar weave to the right, and then found I couldn’t walk in a straight line for the next minute or so.  I stretched my arms out on either side of me and, feeling rather self-conscious, proceeded to try and regain my balance, like Blondin on a high-wire.  It was distinctly alarming.  I wasn’t unfamiliar with the same kind of sensation at 11 o’clock at night at pub chucking-out time, but at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, stone cold sober, it was something of a new experience.

At the time, I had no idea what was the problem; diagnosis came later.

Thankfully, most cases of BPPV tend to settle naturally after several weeks or months.

In the meantime, I will continue to occasionally stagger like a drunkard, and only I will know whether I have been drinking or not.  Although, the fact is, at the moment, drinking is the very last thing that I want to do.  I’ve suddenly discovered that my balance is precious to me, and I don’t want to present it with any additional obstacles.

However, after I am hopefully cured, I fear that I may still suffer from periodic 11 o’clock recurrences of the condition.

© Beery Sue

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