Hi there, as you may remember i was re referred to ENT by the neurologists as they couldn't find anything wrong and a reason for my dizziness and problem with my ears.
Just a refresh of symptoms: ears shutting off, tinnitus, going deaf in one or both ears independantly or together.  Feeling of blood being shut off from my neck up, sometimes this feeling when standing, sometimes when lying down, turning my head, for no reason, leaning forward with my neck, laughing or coughing.  Feeling of fullness in ears and under ears.  Sinus pain.  Ears affected by a certain 'tone' e.g. the hoover drives it mad, going in and out repeatedly until the noise stops.  Whoosing sounds, echoing sounds.  
That is a broad outline of symptoms as well as being off balance and walking into things and the dizziness that sometimes is totally unbearable.
Had another hearing test today, which was still normal but worse than the last one.  I did tell them that i had a migraine last night, head and facial pain was unbearable and also felt very sick, so this might have affected my ears today as they have been bad all day.
I then saw the consultant.  Explained my symptoms, or tried to, and he didn't seem bothered and was quite sharp with me, he even read my notes and said that a special manouvre was done on me at my last visit by the last doctor!!  Both myself and my husband told the consultant that the previous doctor had not laid a hand on me at all, so i just wonder what other lies he had written in my notes.  All he did have me have a hearing test and look in my ears!
I explained and carried on telling him my symptoms and as i carried on all of a sudden his face lightened as if he suddenly believed me, realization dawned on him as if he was thinking 'hang on a minute perhaps there could be something here after all'.
After this he became 'nice', he was totally different again and much nicer and approachable.  He said that this was definately not anxiety related which is what everyone has been putting it down too.  It was definately not menieres disease, which was good, it was definately not down to my neck or my sinus's.  He did not know why my ears 'shut off' and act the way that they do, no idea, fits no catagory at all he said.  But he is pretty sure that i have benign positional vertigo.  Now i remember one of your previous posts to me suggesting that it could be that, and i looked it up on the web.  I know that it does sound plausable, although i have other symptoms too which he cannot account for, but everyone is different.
Anyway, sorry long post, he is now sending me for more tests, to find out if it is BPV.  He said that he is certain that i will test positive to these tests, then he will see me again following the tests and apparently there is not much of a waiting list for these to come through.
Obviously now because i have been diagnosed with GAD, anxiety, phobia and mild depression, i am worried about the tests.  I know that they will not be invasive, but i also know that they are going to do things that will promote dizziness, this scares me of course.  I believe that they may spin me in a chair, ok i guess even though i know i will panic, may tilt me on a table, even more scarey and then the possibility of the 'espley' manouvre which i think he was talking about.  If i were to have these tests two years ago i would have flown through them without much problems, but because of my current mental state i am, to say the least, worried.
Would it be possible for you to take the time to explain to me what they will do at me and how it will be for me please to put my mind at rest a little.
Thankyou for taking the time to read this 'epic'.xxxxx

Hi there
Try not to worry - none of the tests are dangerous at all, all they might trigger is what you are already experiencing. Nothing worse - so you know you will be okay.

You might feel anxious or panic - but so what? - you're a pro at that!  (just like many of us here - we know what panic is, we know it won't hurt us really even tho it is horrible!)

I''m not being flippant at all here just trying to say - you'll be okay and if BPPV is what he thinks it is, no worries, it will go away.

best of luck, bead xx

Hi angie
That is what a couple of specialists told me too, that it is impossible to be dizzy all the time for that long. We know this is not true! But what I do want to say is that all hope is not lost because I am sure you will get better.

If it's any consolation I have had two long periods of dizzy-ness in my life (I may have told you this before). Once when I was about 27 which lasted for about a year and they thought I had MS because of another eye problem I had (which was a case of wait and see and now over 10 years on they can categorically say it is not MS). I had actually forgotten about this horrible possibility because I was well again. I started having brief spinny vertigo spells which moved on to constant dizziness when I was about 37 and they got progressively more frequent to becoming constant. Of course my brain told me this was what I had before and felt sure that this was the multiple sclerosis which they thought I might get. The dizzy feeling went on for well over a year and is now only short lived and from time to time (particularly when I am tired - I think it might be related to my eyes as they don't work together properly any more). so to console you - I have had dizzyness for ages and it will go away. I had lots of tests not as many for the dizzy thing as you though as they didn't take me seriously. Just put me down as neurotic.   Each time the constant dizzyness went on for well over a year, and then started to tail off. (I didn't get ectopics and palpitations last time though.)

I can now cope with the dizzy stuff as it is not so frequent and I do sympathise because it makes you feel so ill all the time (I lost a lot of weight when it first came on because it was so hard to eat with feeling that sick).

Whatever it is keep telling yourself it is not dangerous and there really will be a day in the future when it is gone. There really will be. When my dizzyness started to go - it surprised me and I actually used to sit trying to will it on, because the doctors I saw had me believing it was all my imagination, but I could walk around and feel steady and sit there and turn over in bed without any weird motion or dizzy fuzzy ness. I could hardly look at the computer. You will get better!

I have read and I dont know if this is true - anxiety delays the recovery time from things like inner ear disorders and BPPV. Maybe this is true - my GP told me that anxiety can play havoc with your balance system. so the important thing is to tackle the anxiety issues (well, that is the biggie, and if we all knew how, we would do that) so that you are in the best possible health physically and mentally to recover as quickly as possible!

Just allow yourself time and I promise you will one day get better and I hope you remember - oh yes, that crazy bead woman she said I would feel better one day  

Sorry for the ramble - just wanted to let you know about my dizzy stuff so you can see there is hope!

bead x