Hi I have been suffering from dizziness & nausea since Nov last year, have seen ENT consultant & have been referred for further balance tests. Was warned to expect a long wait so was really surprrised to get an appointment for 10 days time. Now am in a major panic as can't see how I an travel that far,being in a car makes me feel really bad, sick, dizzy & disorientated. T make things worse I have a phobia over being sick & have been relying on stemetil & sturgeron to get me through short car journeys. I do want the appointment & desperately would like some idea of what is wrong with me but can't envisage being in the car so long. My partner although sympathetic over my symptoms can't see the problem over this & I feel like I am going a bit razy. Just thinking about it is making me feel tearful & shaky.

Hi rosey, how long is the car journey? Would it help to sit in the back and watch a portable dvd player or play a handheld game? Some people find these things help.Also, have you tried Sea Bands for the nausea? Lots of people find they work very well - besides, I don't think you can take things like Stugeron or Stemetil when you're having the tests done because you won't get a proper result.
I find that with dizziness, if we push ourselves we can do the things we absolutely have to - and it feels so good when we've done them
Also, practice breathing in through your nose and lifting your tummy instead of your chest as you inhale - this will help when you're feeling anxious because it will stop you overbreathing and feeling even worse. Don't breathe deeply, just slowly.
Lots of us have been through the testing and we'll be rooting for you on the day so don't feel alone
(Lots of us have felt we were going crazy at one time or another with this complaint, so you're not alone in that either!)

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We strongly advise anyone wishing to take up vrt or change/stop medication should consult their doctor first.

Hi ! I am one of those who panics hugely when having to go in a car !

4 months ago ! I managed a 22 hour long road trip unbelievably and simply amazed myself that I could do it !
Like pamela said , with the help of a DVD I brought my lap top and watched movies and disappeared into another world but I did it !

Keep yourself strong as easy as it is to say,
The way I look at it now for me

Is if its to help get rid of this dizzy stuff I will drive to the end of the world and suffer just a few hours, so I dont have a lifetime of it !

good luck , stay strong , keep positive ! you can do it and in the end pat yourself on the back for it because I know how hard it can be

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Michelle

Thanks for your replies, the hospital is about 40 miles away so will probably take just over an hour hopefully. Since my dizzies started I've not been further than 15 miles away & that was to hospital appointments. I drove then as it stops me feeling too sick, problem is I'm not too sure where I'm going this time & it involves going on the motorway so know I won't just be able to pull over & let my partner drive if I feel ill. The nausea & vomiting bothers me more than the dizziness, I've tried sea bands & they have helped a little. When I'm a passenger I find I have to look where I'm going else I feel really sick, this doesn't help you relax any though! May suggest that I drive at least part way there, & then my partner takes over when we get near the motorway. In my mind I rationalise it & I think the worse that will happen is I will be sick so what! But the thought of that still makes me panic. I've had very little info on what tests they will do which doesn't help my worrying either. Sorry to keep whining!

Roseyrose

Id just add you can definately pull over and change drivers on the motorway! obviously as soon as u feel ill - but ive done it several times whilst feeling ill and i tend to stick to the inside lanes (slow lane) just a precaution.

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"Fate, it seems, is not without a sense of irony."




We strongly advise anyone wishing to take up vrt or change/stop medication should consult their doctor first.

Before my surgery, you should see me when I had to make a 2 hr drive to my doctor's office. I would take a plastic trash can to throw up in, A plastic bed pan and toilet paper because the vertigo would cause me to have to urinate and a wet washcloth in a Baggie. I never went on the road without them. Can't you get your GP to give you something for the nausea? Seeing things move would make me dizzy and nauseous so I would lie in the back seat. My doctor gave me an Rx for Phenegren suppositories for the bad nausea. Just prepare yourself the best you can and hope for the best. I'll bet everything will be fine.

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Shellpointer

Hi,

I know just how you feel. The car gives me nausea and i too have a fear of being sick. I live in the peak district and all roads are winding country lanes and to get anywhere you have to travel a reasonable distance. It's made it very difficult for me. When I had my appointment in Sheffield I dreaded it the whole day, had a fear of getting in the car. I think the anxiety makes it much worse. I find if I do drive somewhere it's always easier on the way back, knowing I'm coming back to the safety of my own home.

One tip that has helped me is to lean your head against the head rest as it stops your head moving about so much. It also means that each movement feels more definite. If I'm a passenger and I feel bad then i shut my eyes and that helps alot.

I've not tried the bands but am tempted to.

I would recommend listening to an iPod/other portable music player if you have one, to help take your mind off the journey. Also keep the window wound down. I'd steer clear of books or handheld games though, they're a sure-fire way to tempt motion sickness!
Good luck at your appointment!

I end up feeling pretty sick when I'm a passenger in a car, but when I am driving myself I feel much better. It's because I'm so used to how I drive, and I control the manoeveres, plus my concentration is on the road instead of how I feel. But if someone else is driving.... bleeergh, I feel uncertain, ill and awful!

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"Look to your health; and if you have it, praise god and value it next to conscience; for health is the second blessing that we mortals are capable of, a blessing money can't buy." - Izaak Walton

Thanks for all your replies, I'm a bit up & down at the moment, really pleased that I have an appointment & may be a bit nearer to getting a diagnosis (at the moment I don't have a clue where to post apart from misc) but am so scared of the journey. I'm lucky in that I live in a small town & so am near to all amenities, I have a 2 year old daughter & don't work. So although suffering with dizziness & nausea for 9 months have managed to get on with a lot of my normal activities. Problem is that I haven't gone out in the car for except for short journeys & hospital appointments in all this time, so haven't really confronted the problem as such just avoided doing anything that makes me feel ill. I do feel better when driving but worry as sometimes I feel disorientated, so don't drive alone. I'm hoping to go on a drive with my other half & see how I get on this weekend, as I've not been driving I've lost my confidence as a driver too so am worried about driving in unknown territory city, motorways etc as it's quite rural where I live. Forgive me if this doesn't make much sense, my daughter is on my lap wanting to look at the Wiggles website!