I have an underactive thyroid. Since June ive been having dizziness occasionally in the morning. Happened twice in June, once in October. Doc reckons its labryinthitis, diagnosis made over the phone. Have had blood tests to check for other things, all fine. Given me tablets to take when it happens. Its always 1st thing in the morning when im still in bed.
The last 3 days, including today, ive had it again. I have a sore throat and my ears feel a bit uncomfortable, one more than the other. Im getting frequent headaches and feel generally a bit off colour. Also think ive got tinnitus!
Trying to get a doctor's appointment at the moment is obviously difficult.
Will ring up on Monday to try to get a proper appointment.
In the meantime does anyone have any advice or thoughts on this?
Many thanks
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sueoathall
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I've also had labrynthitis and know how very unpleasant this condition is as the balance of our whole body is affected. I was prescribed stemetil tablets.
My OH had labyrinthitis last year. Don't know if it was an unusually severe presentation, but i found him literally clinging on to the kitchen floor in the early morning, he couldn't even lift his head without vomiting, because as soon as he opened his eyes or moved his head the whole room was spinning horribly fast. Had to call an ambulance , who i think thought he was drunk at first, when they tried helping him to a chair , he was promptly sick on one of them.They made a call to to the hospital, then came back in and said 'oh, we don't normally see it this bad unless people are already in a hospital bed' and gave him some tablets , i think they were the same as shaws mentioned , they did work but it took about a week until he felt safe to go for a walk on his own. He had the tablets for a couple of weeks until they were finished , and was Ok after that.
So hopefully you'll be better soon with the tablets, (and hopefully you can skip the part that involves being sick on the nice ambulance man)
Ah that's very interesting. I have an appt to speak to my GP on 1st December re asking him for blood tests. I have thought about having them done privately but its quite expensive, so hoping to get them done via GP. Thanks for your help
I was diagnosed with labrynthitus in September/October last year, then went on to be diagnosed with hypothyroidism in November, I often wonder if it was the thyroid that caused it because when my thyroid plays up now as I’ve not been on a stable dose since diagnosis I often suffer with waves of dizziness and being momentarily disoriented if I turn too quickly. Bizarrely when my dose is increased again it goes away. X
I had it my first bout 13 years ago & have never really recovered fully. I'm no longer able to lay flat without the room spinning or look up for too long without feeling like I'm going to black out. Also, Intermittent tinnitus at first but that became permanent when a few years ago when I discovered I had Pernicious Anaemia. I get flares every 18 months or so but not as severe as the first time. I tend to increase my b12 injections & folic acid temporarily until it fades away again. There is some research that suggests that labrynthitis could also be autoimmune in nature which could explain why it flares up.
Edited to add: Make sure your B12 & folate levels are optimal as they can cause dizziness and balance issues at lower (in range) levels too
I was diagnosed with labyrinthitis in 2011 and had two more severe episodes in 2014 and 2017, but turned out to be caused by B12 deficiency - vertigo is one of the symptoms, but doctors seem quick to diagnose labyrinthitis. It was one of the worst symptoms I've had in my life, my balance went completely and I literally couldn't move without vomiting. Tinnitus and headaches can also be symptoms. Definitely check your B12 status, and be aware of the difficulties with test results! pernicious-anaemia-society....
Given there seem to be links between hypothyroidism/autoimmune thyroiditis and Ménières disease I can’t see how it would not be linked to labyrinthis too:
I went quite hard of hearing before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism but once I started medication it dramatically improved, even on T4 only. The tinnitus never went, but it’s the type you can ignore in my case.
About 3 years ago, I had what I thought was a 2nd bout of labyrinthitis (had a mild bout previously). Dr told me that as it occurred typically whilst lying in bed (room spinning like a drunk person) it was more likely to be BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo). He gave me an Epley Manoeuvre to do (video on YouTube). It took a little while but it did help. As Physio son tells me, it often gets a little worse with this treatment before it gets better.
Ps.....also hypothyroid and mild tinnitus so I imagine they are all related. Pps...... the manoeuvre is used to get the crystals within the inner ear to be moving in the correct way (like a Newton’s cradle) rather than randomly as they are when suffering from BPPV.
I had a few more very mild instances of this morning in bed. Ive been taking B12 vits for about 4 days.
The 1st ever attack in June was much worse. I was very dizzy, sweating a lot and feeling sick. I was actually sick quite a few times .i stayed in bed all morning, apart from going to the loo and getting water and food to take back to bed.
Got up at lunchtime feeling much better but exhausted. Went back to bed after an hour and slept for a few hours and then felt a bit better. Took me a good 3 days to feel normal again, no more dizziness etc but felt wiped out. Couldnt work.
Hi sueoathall, I have also been diagnosed with labrynthitis recently and was beginning to wonder if there was a link to hypothyroid. Still got a slightly sore inner ear and sore throat (after 9 weeks). Had to discontinue the tablets (Prochlorperazone) because they were causing issues with my kidneys. Interesting to read just how many people have remarked on this forum they have suffered with this awful condition and also very interesting to read that Vit B12 deficiency may be implicated.
Has to be more than coincidence. I am going to start taking Vit B12 tablets and see if they make a difference. I had been thinking of introducing them anyway as I suspected that I may have some issues as I was at the low end of the range after I got results of private test 6 months ago but with one thing and another didn't get around to doing anything about it. Will let you know in about 3 months if any improvement.
You may also want to look into something called Vestibular Migraine and see if that resonates wit you. I went misdiagnosed for a very long time. Sore throats aren't part of this but I get them in addition to the vestibular dx. Hashimoto's and vestibular problems are "a thing" according to research.
You're welcome! Some people don't get all of the symptoms of VM and some get it very mild. Allergies are common with hypo as well. I have it all :)Hope they find a permanent fix for you and you feel better soon.
Hi, my husband has had what was diagnosed as labrynthitis for years. He had one blood test which pointed to under active thyroid but the next test 3 months later showed thyroid as normal. His hands shake and he gets tinnitus on and off. I not convinced his thyroid isn’t on the blink but drs go by blood tests and theyve gone back to ‘normal’
Nasty feeling! I’ve had labyrinthitis twice. In 2003 and 2015 😩 it was awful and lasted for 6wks plus !
However I think they are too quick to call it labyrinthitis in some cases when it could actually be something other than an inner ear infection. I would pray to what ever god would listen that I never get it again because I remember screaming every time I ‘spun’ uncontrollably.
I also have all three - tinnitus, "spasmodic labyrinthitis" and hypothyroidism. I don't know if there's a connection. I had an MRI scan of my brain in 2009 when the labyrinthitis started, including vertigo, but they didn't find any problem. I had alreadt had tinnitis for a few years by then, and they thought there might be a connection between the tinnitis and the labyrinthitis/vertigo, but couldn't find anything. My hypothyroidism was diagnosed a couple of years after that but I had the symptoms for over a year before anything showed in the blood tests. Maybe there is a connection as all three came on within a few years, when I was in my late 40s/early 50s.
Thanks Diana. My hypothyroidism started about 25 years ago, the tinnitus and labryinthitis in the last 4 months or so. Im 60 now. Im rapidly losing confidence in the GP knowing what theyre talking about to be honest!
I sympathise, and at present I can only get a telephone appointment with a GP who has a strong French accent - I find it difficult to understand him on the phone. Before Covid I could ask to see a GP of my choice, but no more. But I've just found out from this Forum that tinnitus can be due to a shortage of vitamin B12 so I will investigate.
A couple of years ago my son was very ill and taken to hospital, eventually he was diagnosed with dangerously low B12, dizziness, shaking hands, brain fog and tinnitis were among some of the symptoms he had, apparently he doesn absorb it well from food and will have to supplement for the rest of his life.
Well another episode this morning, feels like things are escalating. I feel more disoriented this morning and had pins and needles in my hands when lying in bed. Im up now but dont feel with it. Will ring the doctor as soon as they open
Hi all, ive spoken to doctor. She was very helpful. Listened to my list of symptoms.Still thinks its labryinthitis but i do feel more reassured. She says it should start to improve soon. Ive asked her to email me the results of my recent blood tests and she said she would. I know they did T3, T4 and TSH but not sure what else.
Im hoping it was ferritin, folate, B12 and Vitamin D.
Fingers crossed! Thanks for all your help everyone.
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