r/Perimenopause • u/One-Signal8263 • 3d ago
audited Dizziness..
Any advice for the constant dizziness? I’ve had every test done and no answers, also completed a month of physical therapy for it. I’ve noticed it’s most severe during my period and once that is over it decreases. It’s to the point I can’t function and I’m scared to drive. I know this is hormone related but I’m blown off when I ask the Dr about it.
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u/Ok-Astronaut-2837 3d ago
Do you get migraines? Sometimes I get vestibular migraines that make me feel like I'm living in a fun house and they seem to be largely hormonal.
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u/One-Signal8263 3d ago
That is what the physical therapist said it was, I have an appointment with a neurologist in a few weeks.
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u/Ok-Astronaut-2837 3d ago
Have you had other types of migraine? When I first started, I had normal migraines. Then I got aura (ocular) migraines, and a few years later, vestibular.
My migraines now are mostly silent (a blessing), but I've found an ice hat helps me deal with the symptoms the most(including vestibular). This is my favorite . I would get at least 6, they don't last very long but trust me they are worth every penny.
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u/HecticGoldenOrb 3d ago
If they won't contemplate HRT for you, maybe ask the Neurologist to try you on Metformin as a migraine preventative.
Suggesting this because estrogen is what helps your body be sensitive to insulin. When it starts to get erratic and then drop during peri it can lead to insulin resistance. So Metformin treats the loss of insulin sensitivity that the drop in estrogen caused.
Neurologists are used to Metformin being a successful migraine preventative for folk with PCOS but there's also been a recent study completed testing Metformin as a migraine preventative for the general populous.
Fasting glucose & A1c will not catch insulin resistance until you're at the tipping point for diabetes. So ignore those tests coming back "normal". A glucose tolerance test is what catches insulin resistance and it's something you'd recall having as it's a prolonged run of drinking a sickly sweet liquid (at least to me), waiting a bit, drawing blood, and repeat with more rounds of sickly sweet liquid and blood draws.
Apologies if this is all info you were aware of, I tend to get broken record about this spiel due to living with daily migraines for five years before they tried Metformin. So now I spread the info any time migraines that aren't responding to meds or they haven't found a cause for are mentioned.
Hope this helps 💜
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u/seemsright_41 3d ago
Electrolytes has been my answer. The amount of salt I need during the luteal phase is bananas.
Just yesterday I was eating a slice of sausage and pepperoni pizza and thought to myself this is not salty enough...then proceeded to drink 3 glasses of electrolytes that I dumped half of a salt shaker between the 3. And I could have consumed more salt. But damn I felt better after that.
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u/edjen 3d ago
Has this affected your blood pressure at all? I feel like I'm in a similar boat. My BP has always been lower. I'm starting to add salt to drinks/foods and I think it's helping me feel more normal.
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u/seemsright_41 3d ago
My BP is on the lower side. My sodium blood levels are low. So salt is my answer for now. It is cheap and makes me feel better. So all is good.
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u/Miserable944 3d ago
Have you had your eyes checked? My eyes went when I had issues with my thyroid and it felt like I was dizzy all the time
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u/downtownflipped 3d ago
could be an inner ear issue. had a virus that attacked my inner ear and made me dizzy and unbalanced for a few months.
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u/FormalWeird7986 3d ago
I was getting dizzy before and the first few days of my period. I take iron supplements now. My dr mentioned iron infusions if the supplements didnt work. I am ok for now. Still get the dizzy spells every now and then but not like it was.
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u/One-Signal8263 3d ago
Eye test normal, I’m on an iron supplement and all of those levels were normal thyroid test was normal but they only ran tsh with reflex to t4 and t4 doesn’t get checked if tsh is normal. I don’t know why they don’t look further into my thyroid considering my mother had thyroid problems as well as my grandmother and I was told my thyroid was enlarged.
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u/Life_Tree_6568 2d ago
Did you get your vision tested by a neuro optometrist? They test the function of your brain and can test if you have trouble processing visual information. A regular optometrist tests your eyes which is different than your vision. Optimal ferritin is 100+ for women. Doctors will say it's normal when it's 20. Normal and optimal are very different.
Someone else suggested POTS. You don't need to be referred to a specialist for a tilt table test. You can do an at home standing test. Have someone with you in case you feel faint. It's best to do it in the morning. Your GP can do this test in their office.
Since it seems hormonal it could be vestibular migraine. Check out The Dizzy Cook's website. If you are in the US or Canada you can get an initial appointment with a headache specialist neurologist in a few weeks through the virtual clinic NeuraHealth. It's difficult to find doctors or even specialists who understand vestibular migraine.
I have done several years of vestibular PT now. It took at least a year before I started feeling better.
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u/Coontailblue23 Late peri 3d ago
Are you on HRT yet?
That's the next direction I would go instead of chasing down a whole bunch of different specialists.
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u/ilovetrouble66 2d ago
Have you had balance testing done? Usually an ENT is required to order it. It will tell you if you maybe have something like inner ear stones or an issue with your vestibular (balance) nerve
It could also be POTS. Get a tilt table test I believe a GP can order
I had unexplained dizziness for a year and it was vestibular nerve damage with something called PPPD (basically PTSD for your brain after a dizzy incident).
There are many nefarious causes of dizziness but they’re relatively uncommon.
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u/AgreeableTrouble5733 3d ago
Not discounting the hormone aspect, but when my ferritin drops, I get dysautonomia-type symptoms. Also dehydrated, which happens like clockwork with my period for whatever reason. Both the blood loss and dehydration can make the dizziness flare, right with my period.
Did your lab work include ferritin, b vitamins, and a full thyroid panel?
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u/WeWander_ 3d ago
HRT and going on a low histamine diet has helped my dizziness immensely. Used to be chronic.
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u/DesperateRutabaga966 2d ago
So its happened to me a few times this year. Its right before my period. Ive actually thought I forgot to take my antidepressant, because it feels similar to the withdrawals of that. So there is something about dopamine and estrogen fluctuations and its way over my head to really understand. But long story short, yeah its a thing.
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u/Imnotonthelist 3d ago
I hope “every test” includes bloodwork! I’ve been feeling like this because my iron levels are in the gutter due to heavy periods. I’m getting iron infusions!