Hello to my fellow menieres sufferers. I am a 64 yr old female diagnosed with MM in 2008. My one complaint then was the roaring in my right ear and hearing loss which was helped somewhat by a hearing aid. Things began to worsen in 2014 with vertigo attacks. I've had 2 endolymphatic shunt surgeries since then. I've had several sessions of physical therapy because of my balance issues and have improved enough that I'm not walking like a drunken sailor most days. A lot of the time i am just "floaty" as they say. Im also taking a diuretic and watching my salt intake. My question today is concerning flying. Major airlines not puddle jumpers! Has anyone had much experience? I don't know how I would deal with the change in air pressure as I'm sensitive to fluctuations in the barometer here at home.
I was in your situation, recovering from a bad few months and doing vestibular therapy. Part of our goal was to help me make a trip to Mexico with my daughter and enjoy it as much as possible. The biggest challenge turned out that the patterns in the airport carpet were real triggers for imbalance and vertigo. My vestibular therapist suggested calling ahead and requesting a wheelchair, and I'm so glad I did. Delta was fantastic about getting me from security to the gate and meeting me at the gate at the other end. I had to close my eyes while in the wheelchair. I also carried a walking stick, and security was fine with that. The service is free, but I wasn't sure how much to tip. Also in preparation, my vestibular therapist had me watch videos of palm trees and waves each day to acclimate to the constant motion of the ocean. I don't remember the flight itself being terrible. It was about 4 hours, and I was glad it wasn't longer at that point. I was meeting my daughter in Mexico, and the first several days were great. On the last couple of days Mr. Vertigo decided to join us, which sucked. It was probably because of the inability to control the amount of sodium in the food -- canned beans, canned tomatoes, and cheese are a few of the worst offenders, and neither of us spoke enough Spanish to ask about it. My advice would be to give it a try. You don't want the disease to own you, and sometimes you have to test new things to find out where your limits are. I learned it's ok to fly with proper planning, med supplies, and preferably to places where I speak the language well enough to manage food requirements. Bon Voyage!
My experiences have been similar to Clare's. I've travelled numerous times since my 2011 diagnosis, including overseas. I'm very sensitive at home to barometric changes, and we live at 6500ft altitude so wasn't sure how coming down would be. My biggest issues ended up being controlling the sodium in my diet when traveling, and especially when a language barrier was involved. Mexico was tricky as we were supposed to be wary of fresh fruits and veggies so that left me with not a lot of easy choices.
Thanks for the tips on travelling. I think I could attempt a short flight. My hubby & I will be on the beach in Florida next month so I will find out if the constant motion of the waves will be bothersome for me. I would love to plan a cruise but for obvious reasons i think it would be impossible.
I haven't had much trouble with water, but for beach getaways it has taken some adjustment walking on loose unstable sand. Not impossible, just more effort.
A lot of people feel better on planes believe it or not. Getting to the plane is where the problems may be.The noise the lines,the stress. I have flown a lot Trans Atlantic etc.With no problems.Get yourself some Earplanes for the pressure changes.They really do help.Also a Valium or your sedative of choice before you go to the airport. Good luck!
I flew to Dubai during my really bad relapse on DEC 2016 and the flight didn't make anything worst. This was a really long flight from Florida so for me flying is fine. I asked my doctor to write me a note on one of his prescriptions papers indicating I had Meniere's and to let me board the aircraft immediately. It work! Karina