How to get rid of “inner-ear crystals” and reduce vertigo
If by “inner-ear crystals” you mean BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo), tiny calcium crystals called otoconia have moved into one of the semicircular canals. When you move your head, the displaced crystals can trigger brief episodes of spinning. BPPV is particularly common in adults over 60.
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Johns Hopkins Medicine
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The treatment that usually works
The main treatment is a canalith-repositioning maneuver, most commonly the Epley maneuver. It uses a sequence of head and body positions to move the crystals back to where they belong. It often works after one or two treatments.
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Mayo Clinic
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A healthcare professional can determine which ear and which canal are affected and teach you the appropriate maneuver. A home Epley can be appropriate when you’ve been diagnosed with BPPV and have been shown how to perform it.
J
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Don’t perform the maneuver on your own if you have significant neck or back problems, certain vascular conditions, or a detached retina without first asking a healthcare professional.
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Johns Hopkins Medicine
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While you’re dizzy
Sit down immediately when an episode starts.
Move your head slowly and avoid movements that reliably trigger spinning.
Use good lighting, particularly when getting up at night.
Take extra precautions against falls.
Don’t drive or operate machinery while you’re still experiencing vertigo.
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Mayo Clinic
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BPPV can sometimes disappear on its own over several weeks or months, but it can also come back, so recurrent symptoms are worth discussing with a clinician.
J
Johns Hopkins Medicine
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When vertigo needs urgent attention
Don’t assume every episode of vertigo is caused by crystals. Sudden severe dizziness accompanied by weakness or numbness, trouble speaking, double vision, severe headache, difficulty walking, fainting, chest pain, or other new neurological symptoms requires urgent medical evaluation. Persistent vertigo, significant hearing loss, or symptoms that don’t fit brief position-triggered attacks should also be evaluated.
If you tell me whether the spinning happens when you roll over in bed, look up, or turn to one particular side, I can explain which type of BPPV is most consistent with those symptoms and how the appropriate maneuver is performed.
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