Sydney Headache & Migraine Clinic
1800 HEADACHE
I Suffer From Vertigo
Vertigo headaches and vestibular migraines present a debilitating combination of symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, dizziness, unsteadiness and ringing in the ears. But there is hope. This debilitating condition can be addressed without medication or surgery through our unique vertigo treatment solution. Book a vertigo treatment today!
Understanding Their Differences
Sufferers of cervical vertigo headaches, or vestibular migraines, can experience significant instability. The condition affects the sensory system that aids in balance and spatial orientation within our body; everything from maintaining posture to keeping the head stabilised during movement.
It is essential to recognise that vestibular disorders can originate not only within the vestibular system, but also from disturbances in the nerves located above and below it. Even those with healthy functioning of their vestibular systems may still suffer from vertigo headaches and migraines due to external disruptions to the nerves located above or below the vestibular system, which can interfere with the signalling processes that support a balanced equilibrium.
Cervical Vertigo or vestibular headaches are a type of headache disorder caused by abnormal activity in the inner ear. They can present with a variety of symptoms, such as dizziness, vertigo, nausea, and balance problems. If you have these symptoms along with head pain, it is important to receive a diagnosis from your healthcare provider to properly manage the condition.
Our Vertigo treatment is non-medical and non-invasive and is available in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Headache Types Can Include
Symptoms You May Experience
About The Assessment Stage
1. Comprehensive and in-depth examination
We instigate an in-depth assessment to identify all possible related factors that could be causing your headaches or migraines. The upper cervical spine, in particular, is thoroughly examined to identify possible issues.
2. Ligamental stability and vertebral arterial tests
We undertake careful examination of neck ligaments and vertebral arteries, ensuring only the highest standards of patient safety and comfort.
3. Temporarily reproduce your headache and migraine symptoms
As a part of the treatment process, we apply gentle and selective stress to the upper cervical spine in order to reproduce headache symptoms, which subside after 20-30 seconds. This helps to identify and treat the cause of your headaches.
BPPV is characterised by periods of vertigo and dizziness, brought on by head movements. The severe nature of the symptoms, and the ease of which they are brought on, makes it a very debilitating condition for sufferers.
Physical tests and a subjective history are generally all that is needed in order to identify BPPV as the cause of your vertigo. These tests are designed to assess structures in the inner-ear, which is known to be the underlying cause and mechanism of BPPV.
In cases where these tests are unable to identify the true cause, or if conventional BPPV treatment isn’t effective, there is another option.
Headache is a commonly described symptom of hypertension, or high blood pressure, but the link between the two has not been accurately established. GP guidelines still encourage a headache history to be used as an assessment tool for hypertension, even though it has only been confirmed that headaches are commonly present in patients who reach ‘hypertensive crisis’ (Assarzadegan, Asadollahi, Hesami, Aryani, Mansouri, & Beladi moghadam, 2013).
Blood pressure readings of 140-160/90-99 mmHg indicate a diagnosis of ‘mild hypertension’ and there has been a reported link to headache symptoms in this population (Hannson, Smith, & Reeves, 2000). 10% of the Brisbane population have hypertension, with more prevalence in people aged over 75 (Statistics, 2018).
Vertigo Cervical Headaches, commonly known as Vestibular Migraines, are often over looked as a cause of dizziness, loss of balance and vertigo. Patients who experience these symptoms are often mis-diagnosed with BPPV, however when treatment is ineffective, Vertigo Cervical Headache is a likely diagnosis. As well as dizziness and vertigo symptoms, patients may experience the classic migraine symptoms.
Soreness or stiffness in the neck is commonly described by patients and can be an indicator of more severe symptoms. Attacks are often triggered by changes in visual inputs, like; bright lights, flickering lights, or visual disturbances.
As opposed to the secondary causes of vertigo symptoms, like BPPV or Meniere’s disease, vertigo cervical headaches are thought to be caused by sensitivities in the brainstem.
Why Clients Come To Us
We only treat those vertigo or vestibular migraine sufferers who have gone through our unique assessment procedure, and who we determine are suitable for treatment – approximately 85-90% of those we assess. This approach ascertains a high likelihood of success.
Your first 6 sessions of vertigo treatment is all that it takes to notice a significant change in you vertigo or vestibular migraine condition.
Our Prevent Headaches4Life Treatment Plan involves a unique assessment procedure, vertigo treatment and ongoing support strategies that treat your vertigo or vestibular migraine condition and assists you to significantly reduce the risk of recurrence.
