Introduction
A newly occurring dizziness in the head is a common symptom. About every 10th patient complains of dizziness to their family doctor. A vertigo in the head can be due to organic causes as well as psychological factors and diseases.
Causes
Dizziness is a general symptom that can have many very different causes. The most common of these are low blood pressure, alcohol consumption and benign paroxysmal storage dizziness. The benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is characterized by dizzy spells, which occur especially after changing position.
This disease is caused by detached structures of the vestibular organ, which send incorrect information to the brain due to their changed position. Another possible diagnosis is migraine, which is statistically very common but can cause very different symptoms. Diseases whose cause lies in the inner ear, such as Meniere’s disease or inflammation of the organ of balance (labyrinthitis) or the supplying nerve (neuritis vestibularis), can also cause severe attacks of vertigo.
In Meniere’s disease, the affected person experiences sudden attacks of dizziness due to a disturbance in the reabsorption of fluid in the inner ear. Very rarely, pathological processes in the central nervous system, i.e. the cerebrum or brain stem, can also cause dizziness. Depending on the symptoms, it may be necessary to rule out such so-called avoidably dangerous processes.
Psychological strain and persistent stress play a major role in the development of vertigo in the head. Dizziness can occur as a result of mental illness such as depression or anxiety disorders. In many cases, everyday situations can be very stressful for some people and are accompanied by a greatly increased level of stress.
Especially for people with an anxiety disorder, dizziness is often accompanied by palpitations, trembling, shortness of breath and a great sense of fear. Dizziness, which is caused by a lot of stress at work, is often accompanied by a feeling of being overwhelmed and exhausted. In general, dizziness in the head is increased under stress and strain, even if it is due to an organic cause.
It must therefore be remembered that the increased occurrence of vertigo in the head in stressful situations is not a sufficient criterion for a purely psychological cause. In order to counteract stress, relaxing exercises or even the incorporation and observance of rest phases in everyday life help. Illnesses in the area of the visual organ can be accompanied by a newly occurring vertigo in the head.
A disturbed or incorrect processing of the impressions gained during the visual process can lead to confusion in the brain, which manifests itself in the form of vertigo. Especially visual defects that are not properly compensated, wearing new glasses, or even newly occurring strabismus as a result of paralysis of the eye muscles, can lead to perception errors and dizziness. Many patients who need glasses because of a visual defect often notice early symptoms such as dizziness or impaired concentration.
- Dizziness and visual disorders
- Dizziness and eyes.
During the menopause, the female body undergoes a fundamental change in the hormone situation. This leads to a wide range of symptoms, which are not only gynecological in nature, but can also affect the circulation, temperature sensation and psyche. The exact symptoms vary from woman to woman.
The change in circulation can also affect blood pressure. Too low blood pressure can in turn cause dizziness. The blood vessels are also affected by the hormone change.
Statistically speaking, menopausal women have an increased risk of diseases of the vascular wall. Such diseases also favour the development of dizziness attacks. Dizziness in the head is very common during pregnancy.
Pregnancy is a challenge for the female body, as the entire body’s circulation changes to supply the unborn child. Especially in the first third of the pregnancy dizziness attacks are very common. Dizziness in the head can be caused by both too low and too high blood pressure or a derailment of the blood sugar level.Standing up or sitting down also often causes discomfort, which can be accompanied by dizziness and vertigo.
Another cause of dizziness in the head during pregnancy is reduced blood return to the heart due to the growing uterus. Due to the steadily growing uterus, the inferior vena cava may be squeezed when lying down, reducing the blood return to the heart. In addition to dizziness and light-headedness, this can lead to acute shortness of breath and unconsciousness.
To counteract this, the supine position should be avoided as far as possible and lying on the left side should be preferred. Care should also be taken to ensure an adequate fluid intake, movements that are not too jerky and sufficient breaks to prevent dizzy spells during pregnancy. Anemia, which often occurs during pregnancy, can also be accompanied by dizziness in the head and discomfort.
The cause of the dizziness in the head, which occurs when lying down, is in most cases benign positioning vertigo. It develops a rotary vertigo, which can be triggered especially by jerky changes in the head and body position and is often associated with nausea and vomiting. The cause of the rotary vertigo attacks are small stones in the ear, which irritate the sensory cells and thus trigger the vertigo in the head.
Above all, changes in body position, such as a jerky turning of the head or lying down from a sitting position, cause the small stones in the ear to send out false stimuli that cannot be properly perceived by the brain and thus trigger a feeling of dizziness in the head. Increased alcohol consumption can also cause a dizzy feeling, which is intensified when lying down. Patients experience dizziness due to a disturbed coordination of the body position and what the eyes perceive, as the alcohol leads to a temporary inhibition of some sensory cells (see: Dizziness with alcohol).
Muscular tension, for example due to an incorrect lying position, can also be the cause of dizziness in the head. Dizziness develops as a result of the transmission of false signals from the muscles to the brain. When lying down, disorders of the cardiovascular system (high or low blood pressure), tachycardia or shortness of breath can also be associated with dizziness.
The trigger for dizziness when lying down can also often be benign positioning vertigo. This form of dizziness is a paroxysmal form of rotational vertigo, triggered by a disorder in the organ of equilibrium. The dizziness in the head can be corrected by specific postural training.
Problems of the circulatory system, such as an incorrectly adjusted blood pressure or blood sugar level, can also cause dizziness in the head when lying down. If too low a blood pressure (hypotension) is the cause of the dizziness that occurs, it usually improves again after a certain time in a lying position. Dizziness is often caused by the heart not being able to supply the brain with sufficient blood.
In a lying position, the blood from the legs can quickly flow back to the heart and thus more blood is available to supply the brain. A tumor in the skull, for example, which originates from the brain cells, can cause many different symptoms. These include dizziness symptoms.
In fact, dizziness is an extremely rare symptom of a brain tumor, since the tumor must then disrupt precisely those structures that are responsible for the sense of balance. Dizziness caused by a brain tumor, i.e. only localizations at the brain stem or inner ear or the organ of equilibrium, are possible. Furthermore, brain tumors are generally very rare. It is therefore extremely unlikely in most cases that the cause of dizziness is a brain tumor.
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