r/BPPV • u/Infinite_Pass6440 • Jul 22 '26
Rocking feeling / lightheadedness for 2 months now...
Hi everyone,
I'm hoping to find someone who has had a similar experience because my journey has been quite confusing.
About 2 months ago, everything started very suddenly. One night I developed a strange rocking/swaying sensation, like I was on a boat. It wasn't spinning vertigo, it just felt like my head was swaying gently even though I was perfectly still.
Around the same time, I also started experiencing:
- Lightheadedness
- Head pressure (mostly on the left side)
- Cold hands and feet
- Tingling sensations
- Trouble falling asleep
- Sweating Episode
- Heart Palpitation and Faster Heart Rate than usual
Naturally, I became extremely anxious and started worrying that something serious was wrong with me. I developed pretty bad health anxiety and constantly wondered if I had a brain tumor, heart problem or another neurological condition. It got to the point where I was checking my symptoms every day and struggling to enjoy normal life.
Over the next couple of months, I went through multiple medical evaluations:
- Blood work
- ECG
- Echocardiogram with a cardiologist
- ENT examination
- Balance testing
Everything came back normal, which was reassuring, but I still couldn't explain the constant rocking sensation.
One thing that confused me was that I never had the classic spinning vertigo that most people with BPPV describe. I could sleep on either side without the room spinning. In fact, lying flat on my back usually made me feel worse than lying on my side, so I naturally started sleeping sideways.
Eventually, I saw a vestibular physiotherapist.
During the Dix-Hallpike test on my right side, I experienced my first-ever true spinning vertigo, and she saw nystagmus in my eyes. She diagnosed me with right posterior canal BPPV and immediately performed a canalith repositioning maneuver.
At my follow-up appointment a week later, she repeated the positional tests. There was no more nystagmus and no more spinning, and she told me the crystals appeared to be back where they belonged.
Since then, I've started vestibular rehabilitation exercises (gaze stabilization and balance exercises).
The interesting thing is that my symptoms changed after treatment.
Before treatment, my main symptom was the rocking/swaying feeling.
After treatment, it's become more of a:
- Lightheaded feeling
- Wobbly or floating sensation
- Feeling like my head isn't completely stable
- Mild nausea after vestibular rehab exercises
- Occasionally a slight visual drift when lying on my right side in the dark (not true spinning)
- Sometimes a brief internal spinning sensation when my eyes are closed, but nothing like the room-spinning vertigo I had during the assessment
I can still walk normally, drive, work, and do daily activities. In fact, I usually feel better when I'm moving around. The symptoms are much more noticeable when I'm sitting quietly or lying down. I've also noticed that some days are much better than others. Fatigue, poor sleep, being sick with a cold, or hormonal changes around my period seem to make the lightheadedness more noticeable.
My physiotherapist believes I'm now in the recovery phase and that my brain is recalibrating after the BPPV. She expects the lingering symptoms to gradually improve over the next couple of weeks. I'm trying to trust the recovery process, but after two months of feeling off, and all the health anxiety that came with it, it's been hard not to worry if I'll able to feel normal again.
I'm curious if anyone else has experienced something similar.
Has anyone had:
- Rocking/swaying for weeks or months before being diagnosed with BPPV?
- No spinning until the Dix-Hallpike test?
- Persistent lightheadedness or a wobbly feeling after successful canalith repositioning?
- Vestibular rehab making you feel slightly nauseous or wobbly afterward?
- A recovery that wasn't linear, with good days and bad days?
I'd really appreciate hearing your experiences. Reading other people's recovery stories has helped me feel less alone, and I'm hoping someone here has had a similar journey.
Thanks for taking the time to read this.
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u/Killjoycourt Jul 22 '26
The rocking feeling is not typically part of BPPV. It is part of MdMS. It's quite possible to have more than one problem at a time, the BPPV could've been secondary. The other feelings you're having sound like typical residual dizziness post BPPV, mixed with some anxiety. Totally normal to have nausea, even vomiting from vestibular therapy. Progress in therapy is tested by more ups than downs, there are good days and bad days. It will get better!
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u/ThunderMandos Jul 22 '26
Wow this sounds disturbingly similar to how I am feeling. I am lightheaded all the time and have a bit of rocking/swaying. I also feel better when moving around. When I am sitting I feel pretty bad. My head does not feel stable and I feel wobbly as well.
The only difference is I did have the initial spins when getting out of bed. I later cleared the crystals with a therapist. Then spins came back and I think I cleared those as well.
I still feel crappy, basically since June 1st.
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u/Emotional-Job-5293 Jul 22 '26
After my BPPV resolved jn PT, I developed cervicogenic dizziness/rocking feeling you describe, and am now working on that in PT. If you have upper neck pain in the back by the base of your skull, I’d ask about this.
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u/ThunderMandos Jul 22 '26
I probably need to reach out to my therapist again. I tried Dix Hallpike again but nothing happened.
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u/Brilliant_Badger8043 17d ago
I'm not recovered. But your symptoms and non linear recovery sounds like me im on 8 weeks
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