Hi all. My dad was diagnosed with PSP 6 months ago. It was all a bit of a shock as we were expecting a Parkinson's diagnosis. Since Christmas though he's been experiencing dizziness on and off when he stands up - is this just a normal part of the PSP or is it something else? Many thanks in advance.
Newly diagnosed - is this normal?? - PSP Association
Newly diagnosed - is this normal??
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sarper69
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24 Replies
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Hi. It may be psp. My guy complained of dizziness a lot at first. Still, since dizziness can be caused by things that can be treated, like high blood pressure or inner ear trouble, it might be worth checking. Just because someone has psp doesn't exempt him from having other problems. We have spent a fair amount of time chasing various symptoms, but not knowing would have been worse. Good luck, Easterncedar
Thank you. I know it's tempting to blame everything on the psp which is why I thought I'd post. Thanks for your help x
Yes it probably is the PSP. One of the first symptoms my husband had was a sort of dizziness and certainly a lack of balance. However, as Eastercedar says, it may be worth checking that it isn't something else.
Vicki x
My husband is early stages, but dizziness is one of his main symptoms , nuerologist said it was due to lack of eye movement
She is supposed to be refering him to an optamathologist(not sure of spelling!) she said some bespoke prism glasses may help, we are still waiting for the appointment
Hope this helps
Debbie
DebbieAnn
We went to our eye doctor Friday but that is when we realized that my husband see double only 40% of the time so we had to put the prism idea on hold until there is more double vision. At the time of the visit he was not seeing double! Ugh! The doctor said when he is seeing double to go over so that he can test and we may have to get a pair of glasses with prisms on his double vision days and then he can use his regular glasses when there is no double vision! Our doctor is so ready to help my husband and has been researching PSP. This disease is so darn strange!
As for the dizziness...lots of it!
NSH
Hi - as easterncedar commented, it may be due to other factors so please get those checked as well
Dizziness is expected in PSP - usually patients have quite a few falls, quite sudden so you have to be very careful - they can get bumps on the head at least or even hip/rub fractures so it's very important for a strong person to be with them whenever they walk...
Thank you. I know he's started to stumble a lot as he's walking.
Sarah x
My dad was first diagnosed with Meniere's Disease before any other Parkinsonism/PSP symptoms. He had vertigo and would fall without warning. The doctors prescribed valium and motion sickness meds and put him on a very low salt diet. I believe now that it was part of his PSP. He also has had unrelated bouts of Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) that occur when tiny crystals get stuck in the inner ear canals. He would get dizzy and nauseous if he moved his head in a specific direction, or could be dizzy/nauseous for days. There is physical therapy (very specific head movements) to help move the crystals out of the ear canals. This can bring immediate relief for BPPV.
My wife, at start of PSP symptoms well before diagnosis, used to complain of a sort of "dizziness but not dizzy", this was before her falls started. The feelings slowly got worse as the backward falls started. Only happened when she was standing, not when sitting or lying down, so not inner ear issue, and as symptoms persisted when standing not just at standing dr's said not a drop in blood pressure issue.
It stopped M swimming or paddling as the water movement made the dizzy feeling worse causing her to fall and caused her to spin while trying to swim, ruined a couple of beach holidays, it also meant aqua fitness or Aqua exercise suggested by physio's was out.
So to answer your question dizzy/muzzy feeling is one of the early PSP signs but not everyone gets it.
Best wishes Tim
I don't recall my wife complaining of being dizzy. She started with a few occasional forward falls. But then she began having backward falls, which are much more dangerous, as you don't usually use your arms to protect you in the fall. Usually she had a hard hit to the head, but sometimes would get a big cut/split to the head, if she hit something sharp, like a edge of a door or wall. And since it is so hard to bandage and stop the flow of blood from the head, it usually meant a trip to the ER to have her wound either stapled or stitched.
She also started talking a lot softer at that time.
I would have his blood pressure checked during these dizzy spells. MSA has issues with BP and they can unexpectedly pass out.
Check out CurePSP.org for more info on all of these rare brain diseases.
Best wishes,
Ketchupman
Thanks, I'll check the site out - really know very little about the PSP tbh, never even heard of it until his diagnosis and I feel that information is pretty limited, so it'll be good for me to research.
Sarah x
Like other replies, my husband complained of feeling dizzy and very tired for over a year before being diagnosed with PSP. Thankfully no falls yet, just balance not good when trying to get up from a chair. Nanny857
sarper69, it could be his blood pressure. When you get up or sit down your blood pressure changes. That could be a cause. Check his pressure and make sure he moves slowly.
hi me too, love, alice
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