Diagnosis and treatment.

JonnyT

Has anyone here been diagnosed with vestibular migraine/visually induced dizziness, and been prescribed amitriptyline and had vestibular physiotherapy?

I’ve finally seen 2 neurologists who have both diagnosed this as the issue I’m experiencing leading to symptoms of nausea, fatigue,dIziness, light headedness. It’s also linked with visually induced dizziness/vertigo where we have an overeliance on visual stimuli for balance and need to either take meds to fill the visual cortex or undergo rehab to allow the vestibular system to play a role in balance again. They both say that they’ve had success with patients through taking the meds and the physiotherapy exercises and people are able to use devices again as a result.
They are not sure what about new devices that trigger it but have noticed people predisposed to this condition who were managing OK, get triggered by them- they suspect due to backlighting, pixels and all the issues discussed here.

Dominic

JonnyT

Thank you for sharing this information, I'm really interested in this subject.
I was taking amitriptyline for a month changing a dose from 6mg to 25mg. Suprisingly it gave me a significant relief. Headaches, hot flashes and spasm of accommodation were less intensive. I would say it was 30%-40% better.
Unfortunately I had to stop taking it as I was extremely fatigued all the time. Waking up was a huge challenge, my eye muscles literally couldn't lift the eyelid. Even if it's an antidepressant it made my anxiety and suicidal thoughts worse.
Such side effects appeared from the first day (when I had a problem with holding my head), but I was hoping they disappear with time, but it didn't happen.
After 24h without taking amitriptyline my full symptoms came back immediately, so I guess it worked for the cause, but not the source of my problem.

Do you mean anything specific as vestibular physiotherapy? I saw several physiotherapists, they did something on the back of my head, but I'm not sure if it could be classified as vestibular physiotherapy.
How could a rehab look like? Abstaining from screens for months?

I talked with neurologists, but they were clueless with no intention to help me and none of them mentioned even part of what yours said. Looks like neurology is less developed in my country. Please keep us updated how your treatment goes.

ryans

JonnyT How are you nowadays, any progress?

ryans

I would get checked also for binocular vision dysfunction...I see many people on FB who were misdiagnosed as having vestibular migraines first. I would personally try to get checked for this before trying medications.

JonnyT

ryans thanks. I was actually diagnosed first with convergence insufficiency which is a binocular disorder however this was a wrong diagnosis as confirmed by a few different clinicians at moorfields eye hospital. I think it’s probably the other way round. BVD is more commonly diagnosed I think.

ryans

JonnyT was a wrong diagnosis as confirmed by a few different clinicians at moorfields eye hospital

In the USA at least, and probably elsewhere, optometrists are the best ones to treat BVD. Ophthalmologists will say you have "dry eye" and are fine....or if you have a very visible lazy eye/strabismus, they'll operate.

ensete

I have been diagnosed with atypical migraine, I did not try amitriptyline but was on nortriptalin, but had awful side effects. Since then I have run through every medication under the sun, the only ones that really made any differene was propranolol, which I still take to this day and which helps a little bit, and supraorbital nerve blocks, which almost entirely cure me, but only last about 2 weeks and having a neurologist lean over you with a syringe. stab you right next to your eye socket, and inject a paralyzing agent right into the supraorbital nerve is a pretty harrowing experience and wasn't something I could manage to do every other week.

ameliaaria

Hi, it's great to hear that you've found some answers through your neurologists. Vestibular physiotherapy can certainly be an effective treatment and I've also heard that it's been helpful to people with vestibular migraine so it's great to hear that it's working out for you. I know that the exercises can be tough at first so I am glad to hear you're sticking with them. Hope they help you with your dizziness soon.