Introduction
Dizziness in itself is not an independent clinical picture, but rather the expression or symptom of numerous different clinical pictures from the most diverse medical fields. The sensory organs play a major role in the balance: Important are the eye, the “sense of position” of the muscles and the organ of equilibrium in the inner ear. A disturbance of these systems triggers feelings of dizziness. Regardless of whether the dizziness occurs as a result of an external influence, such as when riding a merry-go-round, or as disease-related vertigo (lesion vertigo), it is characterized by a combination of similar symptoms. Difficulties occur in the area of perception (dizziness), gaze stabilization (“nystagmus“, eye tremor), regulation of posture (falling tendency and insecurity when standing and walking) and the vegetative system (nausea).
Forms of vertigo
The complaints are described in completely different ways by those affected. One form of dizziness is rotational vertigo, which feels like riding a merry-go-round. A short-lasting and very severe form of dizziness is called attack vertigo.
Often the dizziness is so severe that the tendency to fall is very pronounced, whereas nausea occurs less frequently. Persistent vertigo lasts longer than attack vertigo, often for several hours or even days. Another form of vertigo, positional vertigo, is caused by the lateral inclination of the head to one side.
Also with this form of vertigo, the attacks of vertigo are rather short. Furthermore, there is the vertigo, which is compared by affected persons with a boat trip. In addition to the dizziness, patients complain about gait and standing difficulties and a tendency to fall. Another form of vertigo is dizziness and lightheadedness, which occurs mainly when a patient has taken an overdose of medication or consumed excessive amounts of alcohol.
Causes of dizziness in the morning
Often the causes of dizziness are to be found in the sensory organs responsible for balance (especially the inner ear and eye). However, cardiological (heart) or neurological (brain) diseases can also cause dizziness. The most common cause of dizziness while lying down is benign paroxysmal positioning vertigo (BPLS), which occurs when turning the head or changing the position of the body.
This form of vertigo occurs particularly frequently in the following situations: When turning around in bed, when turning to the affected side and when standing up on the bed. After getting up in the morning, the patient may also suffer from nausea and impaired vision. This is caused by small “ear stones” which are deposited in the inner ear in the organ of balance and can irritate it.
Through small exercises with the upper body and head, the stones can be removed from the ear and the spontaneous dizzy spells do not reoccur for the time being. In connection with excessive alcohol consumption, a typical spinning dizziness also occurs, especially if you lie down in bed and turn off the light. This dizziness is a sign of incipient alcohol poisoning and very often occurs with nausea and vomiting.
Alcohol addiction damages the body in numerous places and dizziness can also occur during withdrawal. If the dizziness occurs together with balance problems, diabetics should always consider hypoglycaemia. In this case, the affected person should be given sugary food or drinks as soon as possible and the blood sugar should be checked regularly.
Young or slim people, especially in the growth phase, often have low blood pressure. This low blood pressure (hypotension) can lead to dizzy spells, especially in the morning when getting up. The blood sinks into the lower part of the body when getting up.
This leads to a drop in blood pressure when getting up and the brain is supplied with too little blood for a moment. In addition to dizziness, disturbances of consciousness and ringing in the ears also occur. To avoid this type of dizziness, the process of getting up in the morning should be slowed down.
In concrete terms, this means that you should not get up too quickly. Between lying down and standing, a sitting break should be built in, in which the body can adapt to the changed body position. Another possibility for dizziness in the morning in connection with getting up quickly and jerkily is tension or problems in the cervical spine.Tense neck and shoulder muscles can compress the nerves in this area and thus sensitively influence the vestibular system.
The early symptoms of pregnancy include morning sickness as well as morning dizziness. Such dizziness attacks occur during pregnancy due to changes in the cardiovascular system during pregnancy. The cardiovascular system must also supply the child with additional nutrients, and so such attacks of low blood pressure can occur more frequently.
Dizziness during pregnancy can also be caused by hypoglycaemia. To avoid such dizzy attacks and the associated risk of falling as much as possible, it is important to get up as slowly as possible during pregnancy. To avoid the dizziness and nausea caused by hypoglycaemia, it is important to eat small meals regularly to keep blood sugar levels at a constant level.
