confused need some advise please

I am wondering the some thing. Always been deaf in one ear, hearing declining in other. I definitely share some triggers with MAV- bright lights, red wine, cheese, aspartame, MSG... and exercise/movement.

 

The two conditions are not mutually exclusive and so many people have both. It makes diagnosis harder and the identification of multiple trigger points more complex.

It is a challenge. I wonder if it could be that AVs can help to suppress the MD symptoms and not the MAV ones?

 

I also have been thinking more about MAV. I am trying to get an appointment with a doctor that is familiar with it. My ear fullness is bad as well, but so many other signs point to MAV. I want to at least pursue that route or I will always wonder. Besides the ear fullness/tinnitus I have light sensitivity, almost constant head pressure, headaches, almost constant dizziness/rocking and it all seems to be greatly influenced by big hormonal changes. I keep reading that chronic migraine can be kicked off by a big hormonal event. All of my flare-ups have lasted months on end following a big change (stopping hormonal birth control, and then the births of my 2 children).

 

For what it's worth, I saw a Meniere's specialist in Denver a couple years ago (Dr. Foster -- her work has been mentioned on this forum a few times if you search on it). Her opinion at the time is that Meniere's and MAV (which she called vestibular migraine) are "two heads of the same coin". Although you don't have to have both, a person can have symptoms that are intertwined in both.

At the time, she had me start a migraine medication and try the migraine avoidance diet. I tried them for at least 6 months... unfortunately it didn't help a lot. Since then, my symptoms have veered more toward being Meniere's like than MAV (at the time I was sort of in a grey area).

Redbird - we've discussed this before... I've also tied severity of my Meniere's symptoms to hormonal changes. I felt GREAT (Meniere's wise) during my last pregnancy, 4.5 years ago and it all went to hell after I gave birth. When my Meniere's started about 6 months before that pregnancy, I had suspected the Mirena IUD played a role and I had it removed. Fast forward 5 years now... I'm contemplating going off the Pill (which I've been on since finishing breastfeeding) and want to see how things go with my ears. I'm a little nervous about that. (my tubes are tied now! No more babies for sure!)

 

Hi PleaseNoDizzy. Yes, I am always very interested in your story because of the apparent hormonal link. I am with you on the not having any more kids. I have my boy and my girl and I am done. I cant go through this all again. My husband had a vasectomy a few weeks after our daughter was born. I have always been too afraid to try birth control pills again.

About a year after I had my first baby I was put on a low dose of Fluoxetine (Prozac) by my GP for depression/anxiety. 4 weeks or so later I felt so much better, was it coincidence? My symptoms were mostly gone including that awful ear fullness. I continued to feel great for a while. Got pregnant with my second baby and felt great through that pregnancy. All my symptoms came roaring back a few weeks postpartum. I am on my low dose Fluoxetine still but having awful symptoms. I had been convinced that the Fluoxetine helped but now I don't know. Do I need to up my dose? Do I need to try a new med? Or maybe it never helped in the first place and it was just a coincidence. That's why I want to see a doctor that is familiar with MAV.

 

It's hard to distinguish between the two and many doctor's don't "believe in" MAV so it's very easy to get differing diagnoses depending on who you see. I've been told I have MAV, MM and all of the other dizzy disorders at one time or another. I am also extremely sensitive to motion and odors which is all part of the migraine syndrome. During my vertigo attacks I am extremely sensitve to light. Neurotologists are generally better able than ENT's or neurologists to help with this though that doesn't mean there aren't some darn good ENT's or neurologists out there.

 

AEC, sorry for your suffering. I really am not that familiar with MAV other than what I have read. Sadly Vicki doesn't participate on this board any longer as I have found her to be one of the best resources of knowledge, especially with MAV.