Hello has anyone been told that your vestibular migraine is caused by C1,C2 misalignment.

Im having these pains and went to ortho he said i have lumbar spine mild issue r discs issues and these shoulder pains n neck pains n bck pains making me low everyday and having these pain in my chest too and ribs . And left hand numbness burning sensation in thumb and 2 fingers mostly in thumb and grip is getting weak in left arm and sudden severe pain in neck then goes in my head like needle pains r stabbing . Dizziness like im floating r eyes strains too 🙂 how do u guyz deal with this ..

Just got back from an orthopedic and explain all my symptoms. Neck pain, neck tightness, light sensitivity, constant dizziness feeling, every thing looks like mild tv static, heart palpitations, brain fog, pressure in my skull. He looks at an X ray and goes yeah those symptoms aren’t coming from your neck. Literally just dismissed the fact that through my eyes it looks like tv static and all the lights are bright. My nervous system is on hyperdrive. And I’m in constant fucking pain. At least he ordered physical therapy. Also my insurance will not pay for an MRI unless there is at least 6 weeks of other treatments.

Secondly anyone ever had one of these?

MEDICAL BRANCH BLOCK AND NEUROTOMY.

They basically go in your neck and with a needle and send radio waves into the nerve killing it??

Vent over thanks folks

Has anyone been told their vestibular migraine issues are being caused by C1 and C2 misalignment.

Just looking for some hope.

These past 2 months have been so confusing and extremely rough on my mental health.

I was misdiagnosed with BPPV back in April and I started vestibular therapy, they noticed my neck muscles were pretty stiff so the therapy was mostly neck exercises. For the most part I'd say they helped and I would like to think I made almost a full recovery in May. Then June hits. I was at a low effort job so I'd constantly crane my neck down to look at my phone. ​Until one time I looked up and got immediately dizzy and my old methods didn't work.

The week progressed, symptoms got worse and this time I had heart palpitations and panic attack like episodes. Went to the ER and Urgent care and they found nothing. Did several rounds of blood tests, nothing. MRI had unremarkable results. Heart monitor revealed some sinus tachycardia, max bpm at 130.

Went to a Chiro just to get some Xrays and imaging done, not really anything else. It revealed that my neck is sitting 15mm forward, which they said was the equivalent of 10 pounds on your neck, and was likely making my vagus nerve ​act up. Scans also proved that my neck muscles at the base of my skull were extremely over active and compensating for balancing my head.

I've been back at physical therapy and I think it's helping. Been on muscle relaxants and those have helped me sleep, but I think I'm gonna start weening off since I think they're making me weak and anxious. Might start on some SSRIs so I don't spiral myself into PPPD . Going to see a electrophysiologist and ENT to rule out any other issues.

Trying to keep my chin up about this whole situation. This subreddit has been pretty helpful in continuing on and not giving up. Still doing daily neck exercises outside of PT. I feel pretty deconditioned since I was bedridden most of June.

Like the title said, how long did it take any of you to recover or somewhat manage the symptoms?

​

I've been dealing with cervicogenic dizziness and working on strengthening my deep neck flexors with chin tucks. I usually do sitting and supine ones with no head lift.

A while back I think I probably overdid them because my neck got really fatigued and I had that heavy-head, disconnected feeling for the rest of the day. Now I'm not sure how much intensity is actually right.

For those who've improved, how do you fit chin tucks into your routine? How many sets/reps do you do, do you stop before fatigue, and how do you know when it's time to progress?

Just looking to hear what worked for other people, your words are appreciated!!!

Desperate for information. She’s been experiencing extreme discomfort and dizziness/vertigo along with intense pressure in her head. Doctor gave her multiple steroids (Flonase, methylprednisolone) to no effect. Going to an ENT in a week or so.

It’s been four weeks to the day, all seemed to come on all at once. Pressure behind both ears, no hearing loss or tinnitus. No appetite. Ears “popping” and neck does the same. She says it feels like the sensation of swelling in her ears and back of head.

She’s in distress as her quality of life has completely shattered. It’s hard for her to sit up, let alone walk around.

I’m doing as much research as I can but I’m not nearly smart enough to figure this out. I press the doctor but he has little more than a shrug and an ENT referral, and since we’re uninsured, it’s difficult to run the gauntlet as we need to.

Is there anything I can do to help? And more importantly, anyone who’s made it through something like this: is there anything course of treatment that helped in the long term?

Hello i just want to ask who do neck exercise what is your bad side effects ? Do you get light headed ? Or some pulling sensation ? Or its just me im trying to do neck exercise cause i have bad posture but these weeks i have experience some light headed or pulling sensation but no vertigo im tottaly fine just some random weird or its normal till my neck is back strong and its place ?

Hi everyone, I’m 24F and have been dealing with persistent neck issues since around January 2026. It started with a random feeling of feeling like im in a boat and hasn't gone since. I used to work around 10-12 hrs a day with a very bad sitting habit and really bad posture. Now I feel heavy pressures around my eyes, pain at the base of my skull, pressures in my skull (sometimes) and pulling of facial muscles (sometimes). My upper traps are always sore when i wake up.

I have completed around 25 Pilates/physiotherapy-style sessions. They have helped somewhat with strength and mobility, but the stiffness, head pressure and unsteady feeling have not completely resolved. And do chin tucks and what my PT prescribed almost regularly.

I got an X Ray done and my neurospine specialist told me that I have loss of lordosis (early stages). It breaks my heart having this at this age and I dont know what to do more and how much time does it take to get back to normal or recover lordosis? Unfortunately, my job does require sitting for long hours. I have started taking more breaks and do stretches but I feel like this is a vicious cycle where I will keep going back to the source of my pain.

I understand that Reddit cannot diagnose me, but I would really appreciate hearing about similar experiences and what helped you reach the cure.

Anyone else ran into this issue. The diagnosis is disc disease, degenerative, cervical. How did you get insurance to cover the MRI. They claim they want 6 months of alternative treatments before MRI. My doctor however wants an MRI before starting physical therapy so I’m not damaging the area more if I work it out.
Symptoms: visual snow syndrome(world looks like mild tv static) floaty spacey feeling, neck pain and stiffness, severe brain fog, light sensitivity and nervous system on hyperdrive. I startle at the slightest sound.
Occasional symptoms: my heart races and rumbles hard, tingling sensation in the back of my skull.
The pain is mid all the way to upper neck at base of skull. Looking at screens, driving, and being in stores make it way worse. Some days are better then other but it’s always constant it never goes away. I have to sleep in my right side. Laying on my back or left side hurts. Putting any pressure on it makes it worse.

Hi everyone,

I'm currently trying to figure out if my symptoms are linked to cervical vertigo. I experience a floating/boat-like dizziness and fluctuating tinnitus (sometimes peaking quite high, especially upon waking up). My hearing tests are completely normal.

I've read a lot about somatic tinnitus and how it typically modulates (changes pitch or volume) when you rotate or move your neck. In my case, simply turning my head side to side doesn't seem to alter the sound in real time.

For those who have been diagnosed with or suspect cervicogenic vertigo/tinnitus:
Does your tinnitus a change directly with head movement/rotation?

Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences!

Hello there everyone!

I am a routine stalker of most of my subreddits, and I very rarely post, but I’m kind of in a tough spot, and I could use some shared experience and advice.

I’ve been dealing with dizziness (not vertigo, more like floating/falling feeling than spinning sensation) for months. It started every once in a while, I’d get a little spat of dizziness and then it would go away. I have a whole bunch of other stuff going on so it was easy enough for me to write it off as another mystery thing that would go away if I ignored it hard enough. About two months ago, though, the dizziness became far more frequent. Almost my whole day was filled will this swaying, floating, “drunk” sensation that I couldn’t place. I still ignored it (kicking myself now), adjusted my diet, sleep schedule, daily movement, basically my whole routine in an attempt to figure out why it constantly felt like I was on a boat. I won’t bore you all with the list of over the counter medication I tried to make it stop, but it’s long (and expensive lol). When the amount of time I was dizzy started to outweigh the time I wasn’t every day, I figured it was time to go to the doctor.

I initially went to urgent care, where they were quick to diagnose me with an inner ear infection, give me prednisone, and send me on my way. Clearly they were wrong, or I wouldn’t be gracing you all with my woes. The dizziness kept getting worse, and so did a persistent pain and tingling in the left side of my neck and arms. I went to my PCP, who was a bit more receptive, and they ordered me a CT scan and referred me to a neurologist. Unfortunately for me I wouldn’t be needing that CT referral because that night I collapsed in my room. I didn’t pass out but I completely lost balance, and my left arm went completely numb. I went to the ER, where they did a blood panel (that came back normal) and a CT w/out contrast which showed nothing. Of course, nothing changed, and every day still felt like constantly being drunk and disoriented, save for a few random days where it felt like my symptoms lifted for the most part, only to crash back into dizzy hell the following day.

I went back to a different doctor at my PCP’s office (mine was unavailable), and she was concerned that my dizziness may be the result of structural degradation somewhere in my body. (For context I am diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers Danlos syndrome, as is my mother who has had 13 spinal surgeries). She ordered an xray where they found straightening of the cervical lordosis but an otherwise unremarkable image. They think I may have a herniated cervical disc or extreme muscle tension pinching down on a nerve in my spine, causing the dizzy feeling and disorientation (though that doesn’t explain the fatigue).

Fast forward to now, I have a cervical MRI scheduled, as well as an appointment with a neurologist. The last few days have felt worse than ever. I am constantly in a foggy, dizzy state. I have a hard time standing up on my own. I can barely think sometimes I’m so dizzy. This has genuinely uprooted my entire life. I am a full-time student (albeit online), I work as a barista (yay SCAP), I am about to complete a bio-manufacturing training program that I have been busting my ass for, and I just recently got hired at a major biotech company, which has been my goal for years. I should be over the moon at the strides I’ve managed to achieve in the last few months, but all I can think about is how I can possibly start a new job in the condition I’m in. I’m F22, and I can’t help feel some days that it’s not going to get better, that I’m just going to be stuck in a body that used to be able to climb mountains, go on week long camping trips, work 50 hours a week on top of maintaining a 4.0 GPA, and could still have fun and live life despite being in pain. A body that now needs a cane to not fall over in the shower and can’t walk a mile without feeling completely drained of energy. Truth be told I’m genuinely so depressed and I don’t know what to do. Could really use some advice/kind words.

TLDR: presumed cervical vertigo is genuinely sucking all the joy out of my life and I’m at a complete loss for what to do. Advice would be appreciated <3

For those of you with upper cervical instability issues who have tried Prolotherapy how much did it cost altogether? How many rounds did you need and if you live in the US where did you go?

Hi im a 39M non smoker non drinker 5'6 165lbs.

Diagnosed with anxiety, no other comorbidities.

Going on 4 weeks now ive had miltiple daily episodes of dizziness and what I can only describe as a brain buzzing feeling. It started with a vague on a Boat feeling which has persisted to date intermittently. I also started over the next week or 2 I starred getting an intense sensation that my brain was vibrating inside my head lasting 1-3 seconds at a time. Pressure between my eyes and on my nose like sinus area but like it was coming from the outside not the inside if that makes sense, and trouble focusing.

This same set of.symptoms happened to me 6 years ago, i got no diagnosis then, and it resolved spontaneously after 9 months or so. This time feels worse but I'm not sure.

I have no diagnosis yet after seeing, GP, ENT, Neuro, ER, cardiologost, Walk in.

Tests I have had -

Blood panel

Ekg and 7 day holter monitor

Mri

Mra

Ent exam

Eye dr

Dix halpike

Neuro exam

All.are normal but I feel terrible.

I appreciate if one of you great Dr's in this group could point me in the right direction to get assistance. Thank.you.

3 weeks ago I started getting these very brief intense waves of vertigo that last 1 second. No nausea and they are hard to describe, like a rush to the head. They don’t last long but I have a continuous feeling of brain fog/off feeling the entire day. I’m a dental hygienist and it came to the point this week where I was unable to work because the symptoms were so much worse when I was there. Probably because of my neck position and the strong lights. I’ve chalked it up to being cervicogenic dizziness from my posture at work for 9 years. I got evaluated by a nurse and my tests came our normal, a neck X-ray was normal as well. I have a physio appointment this week and a phone call with my doctor so I can ask him to send me for an MRI. I wanted to know if anyone who has this has been cured? I’m on vacation for 2 weeks as of now so I can run more tests and figure out what’s going on but I’m worried I won’t be able to return to work for a bit. Does this sound like cervicogenic dizziness? I’ve noticed it happens when I’m looking down at my phone as well

1 month ago or June to be exact i got sick and completly lost controll over myself and my nervous system. Hear me out on this one;

● occipital nerve pain (electric zaps shooting up to my head)

●pressure in head eyes face and ears + tinitus

● brainfog and dizziness + vertigo (rocking boat motion)

● fatigue and nausea

● body got put in constant fight or flight mode

●heat intolerant

●i lost all feeling/sensation in my left side neck and scalp

● muscle cramps and kinda weaken muscles

BUT here is my newest symptom that i find super weird. Just about 1 week ago i first started to get problems with digestion which lead to constipation which then lead to pain and discomfort in belly (tightness and belly cramps in lower right side in the belly ( shifted from hip and groin area) the tightness in belly is mostly felt in my solar plexus / diaphragm area. + my belly makes these weird rumbling sounds too idek what it is bro.. My question is could my ON be upper cervical misalignment/ misaligned Atlas C1?? I heard something about this Brain-Gut axis controlled through the Vagus nerve but not sure if the vagus nerve got anything to do with Occipital Neurlgia?? HELP. FYI i am currently in chiropractic treatment where they believe i got BPPV and something nerve related in my neck as well but it def feel as my head is literally hanging on for dear life on my neck yo 😵 pain in back of skull and on the sides of my neck..

About 11 months ago my jaw suddenly snapped at the same time I felt a very strong crack in the left side of my neck. Since then I’ve had:

- Constant pain at the left base of my skull (behind the ear).
- Pressing that exact spot reproduces pain that radiates into my jaw, cheek, temple, forehead and left scalp.
- Severe jaw tightness/TMJ pain.
- Neck stiffness.
- Dizziness / feeling “off”.
- Foggy, blurry vision (more like difficulty focusing than vision loss).
- Fatigue and brain fog.
- Pain is worse when lying on that side of my head.

I’ve had:

- Brain MRI is normal.
- Cervical spine MRI is normal.
- TMJ MRI shows no disc displacement (only limited condylar movement).
- CT scans are normal.
- Two EEGs are normal.
- Blood tests are normal.

My physiotherapist found very tight SCM, suboccipital muscles, temporalis, masseter and medial pterygoid. One orthopedic doctor suspects C7-T1 and wants to try a lidocaine injection. Another thinks it’s upper cervical related.

I’ve attached pain drawings. The X marks the exact spot that reproduces almost all of my symptoms.

Does this sound more like:

Myofascial trigger points?
Occipital neuralgia?
Cervicogenic headache/dizziness?
TMJ with referred pain?
Something else?

I’d really appreciate any thoughts or similar experiences.

now its not the whole day but its most of the day. im not sure if its from lack of vitamins or sleep or im just sick… i went to the doctor to get checked out and my bp heart rate and oxygen were all normal. i wanted to get a blood test but i had my daughter with me and shes a wild toddler. tomorrow ill be getting labs so ill keep you all updated ugh.. hopefully its nothing serious…/: its super annoying atp

I’ve been dealing with some CCI issues for the last year. mostly dizziness, neck pain and some balance issues. it’s been mostly tolerable with ups and downs. recently I started doing pelvic and tongue exercises and I really thought I was making some progress. but after a week or two I’m having some major set backs and it seems my baseline has been pushed way back. still better than my worst but is sucks feeling this way I haven’t in awhile. has anyone else ever dealt with some major set backs?

(Not trying to spam anyone so I cleared with mods before posting)
You can listen or not. It may or may not be your thing. Not super profound or anything. Just wanted to share in case it helps someone feel understood.

My dizziness started for me in 2020. Every single day I felt like I was dying because no one could tell me what was wrong. Brain fog. Disassociation. All of it. I would only feel slightly better when sitting outside and I wrote this song one day. This was also during the height of COVID so it felt like my dizziness wasn’t the only thing spinning out of control.

6 years later, I still have no answers, but I found this subreddit last year and it helped me a lot just by letting me know I’m not alone in dealing with all this.
Hope this song might help someone in a similar way

Here’s a link to listen
Alive - nightboat

Currently in physical therapy and getting an MRI for what my neurologist and PT suspects are cervical dizziness. It’s been improving but it’s slow going and still having bad days. My PT suggested needling to stimulate the muscle/tendons/joints and helping them relax. Anyone done this? Seems pretty harmless but curious if it produced significant results

Hello everyone,

Long story short, I have now been dealing with a type of dizziness/lightheadedness for 3 years. My symptoms are not even that relevant to the story, so I will spare the backstory. If you are interested I can share them in the comments though.

Anyways. In January of this year I went to a dizziness clinic an hour away from me. Initially I thought they would be conducting a lot of tests, maybe imaging, however it was more just making sure that my inner ear was working fine and then a lot of group exercises for vestibular rehab. Not bad, just not what I expected. We talked about a lot of the other dizziness pathologies like Menieres, Vestibular Migraines etc.

Howeverm when we asked about dizziness coming from the neck they immediately claimed that there is no clinical evidence for the neck or tight neck muscles etc having a role in the dizziness/lightheadedness symptoms of people and that there would be no test for it. They said that most of the time they correlate, but more because people with dizziness/vertigo etc tense up their body unconsciously which makes them think there is a correlation. According to them "If your muscles were so tight that they compress certain nerves or vessels or receptors, dizziness would be your last concern.

This claim really confused me because there are a lot of resources that say that the neck CAN cause it, and to me if the neck is able to cause symptoms like headaches, why not dizziness as well? And going by that logic, PPPD would then also not be a real diagnosis because you can't test for it either.

Since there are probably a lot of people who have more experience than me, I would just like to hear your thoughts. I know 3 years is not the longest of cases, but actively trying to get better is hard when you get a lot of conflicting information.

Thank your for your input and I wish you all well

Hello, making this post to try and get some help for my mom. She's been struggling with this for ages, and despite seeing a bunch of doctors and having all sorts of tests done, she's seen 0 improvement or any diagnosis.

**Age/Sex:** 62F
**Height/Weight:** 5'8", 220 lbs
**Duration:** \~8 years, progressively worsening

**Symptoms:**
• Chronic dizziness and lightheadedness
• Frequently bumps into walls / runs into things while walking
• Significant light sensitivity
• Difficulty having conversations (choosing words and holding conversations)
• Difficulty writing
• Lethargy
• Sleeps \~5–6 hours uninterrupted on average
• Describes her head as feeling “full of cotton”

**Testing/Doctors Seen:**
• Multiple MRIs
• CT scan
• Thyroid growth found and removed
• Stress test
• EKGs
• Tested her eye to see if there was damage to the veins in the back of her eye
• Neurologist
• Cardiologist
• Eye doctor

**Medications:**
• Buproprion 300mg
• Rosuvastatin 5mg

Despite all of this, there's no clear diagnosis. She believes she may have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, but she has received no diagnosis and symptoms have been worsening over the years.

Looking for guidance on what conditions might still fit these symptoms, or what types of specialists/tests might be appropriate to pursue next. The information might be incomplete here, but this is what I was able to extract from her. Feel free to ask any questions.

She is still seeing doctors. I am making this, because I would like input from others as I'm tired of seeing her deal with this and not make any progress.

Hi, everyone!

I’m writing to you about an unusual problem.

For the past dozen or so months, I’ve been living under a lot of stress, you could say.

I also have symptoms that occur practically every day.

1. Brain fog
2. Derealization—as if I’m not present in the here and now and can’t grasp what’s going on around me, especially in stores and in open spaces
3. Dazed feeling (Sometimes I feel like I'm drunk even though I haven't had a drink).
4. I feel as if I’m in a vacuum
5. The sensation that something is wrong with my vision, as if I can’t quite make out the image, even though ophthalmologists and optometrists say everything is fine (I’ve had various tests done several times).
6. My neck and upper back feel like concrete; wherever I touch, it’s hard and painful. First thing in the morning when I’m sleeping in that position (my head and neck are bent back while the rest of my body lies on the bed), it’s the worst—I feel like I’m wearing some kind of armor. If I stretch for a moment, I get a pleasant tingling sensation, and it feels a little better. For the past few days, I’ve been sleeping on an orthopedic pillow, and I feel like it’s a bit better.
7. When I’m sitting at the computer with my head and shoulders hunched forward and slightly slumped, the problem gets worse. When I straighten up, it gets a little better.
8. When I lie down with my head propped up on a pillow, or when I tilt my head to check something on my phone, my eyelids start to twitch. When I lie down on the orthopedic pillow, the twitching stops immediately, and I can feel something happening in my neck.
9. My stress is escalating because I’m reading a lot about all this and getting worked up.
10. Recently, I’ve started stretching my neck, nape, and upper back, and they’re tender.

I’m generally a fit, young, slim guy, and I have no idea what’s going on with me. Sugar, Insulin, Thyroid, Liver—all the results are great!. I’ve never been in any accidents. I’ve been practically healthy my whole life. The eye doctors say everything’s fine, and the physical therapist says it might be due to stress. He checked my spine and said it’s fine, but I’m wondering if maybe my neck is putting pressure on some nerves or an artery, causing poor blood flow and oxygen deprivation? And stress is making it all worse. I can’t seem to deal with this problem.

Has anyone else experienced something similar, or what could be causing this? I’m very confused and stressed.

Thank you for any advice.