Feeling down slope when I drive on highways

I have cochlear hydrops. There was one occasion when the whole world tilted to the right for a few hours. It was never explained except that my dr has said on occasion, ‘we know the balance system is not 100%’ . She said it matter of factly When i reported my balance being a little degraded. I dont know how we know it unless she assumed it was an expected part or progression of cochlear hydrops. I have not had an incident like this for years. I have always thought the antivirals stopped the progression of the disease in me.

I think you should report this to your ENT soon, not wait fo the next far off appointment. You need to know what is going on, if you can improve it and what the likely progression will be. I hope you press for a more specific answer than i got.

 

The three components to balance are the vestibular system, the proprioceptors in ankle and leg muscles, and vision. Your brain uses all three of these to maintain balance. You might consider seeing a neuro-ophthalmologist in addition to a neurotologist.

 

Welcome to the forum, sanj.

Tilted downward? Do you ever feel as though you or your surroundings are falsely tilted or sloped upward, or to the left or right?

The next time you perceive yourself on a downward slope (when in fact you're not) note any possible visual cues within your environment that aren't either vertical or horizontal.

For instance, when you're driving on a flat highway, or a walkway paved on level ground, is there a hill, or hills, on either to the side of the road/walkway that slope in any particular direction? Are you able to see the horizon, or are object obscuring the horizon, possibly giving the impression that the horizon is sloped in one direction or another?

When on the sofa, were you sitting completely upright, or were you possibly slouched, your head at an angle, & your vision focusing on items that were vertical & horizontal? If you were watching TV while on the sofa, for instance, is your TV screen perfectly vertical, or is it angled in any particular way?

I say this because when the vestibular system is compromised, your brain places a greater amount of reliance on your vision, & visual cues, so to determine your position &/or movement.

For example, due to meniere's my brain places a greater amount on reliance on my eyes to compensate for my compromised vestibular system (a biological gyroscope). When I drive through the "portal" archways (which are built at an angle) located on Montague Street, Port Melbourne, my brain (or instincts) presume that the road's surface is built 90 degrees to the archway. However because the archway isn't vertical, but rather built at a 70-80 degree angle to the road, my brain concludes that the road is sloped 10 - 20 degrees to the left or right (depending which direction I'm driving), because my eyes do not have any other visuals cues, other than the angled "portal" to decipher what is & isn't truly vertical.

So rather than perceive the archway as built at an angle, my brain concludes that the road is sloped & the archway is vertical, when in fact it's the reverse. This then results in my queasiness while driving through the archway.

 

*nods... And vertigo is experienced when one input, or possibly inputs contradict an other.

 

When I first started with Meniere's symptoms in the first ear, one of the things I experienced was a type of dizziness where I felt like I was tilting to the right. I reported this to my Dr. and he said that it would probably progress to full-blown vertigo. It did.

Years ago, I was prescribed Nystatin by my doctor at the House Clinic. This is an antifungal used to treat thrush. It didn't work. Just like everything else I've tried.

 

I had a very similar thing on my first ear up until my laby. Would feel like my office building was tilted forward when walking in hallways. I was diagnosed with endolymphatic hydrops at that time and in that ear. Best of luck with your symptoms.

 

At the time I took the Nystatin, "systemic candidiasis" was something of a fad diagnosis. This was maybe 30 or so years ago. I actually ingested the Nystatin, didn't just rinse my mouth with it. At the time systemic candidiasis was being blamed for all sorts of ills, kind of like how gluten intolerance has been blamed for all sorts of ills in recent years. At the time I was first diagnosed with Meniere's, hypoglycemia was the fad diagnosis du jour. I have seen these fad diagnoses come and go over the years. These various things are real medical conditions of course, but tend to become a catch-all diagnosis for things that have no known cause, Meniere's being one of those things.

I have never heard anything in regards to Nystatin being helpful or not for Meniere's but with this monster just about anything is worth a try if it's something that won't cause you harm. Keep an open mind but at the same time take it all with a grain of salt.