Dizziness can be used to describe a variety of medical conditions. General descriptions of “dizziness” may include sensations of spinning, unsteadiness, light-headedness, disorientation, imbalance, wooziness, visual difficulty, floating or a “drunk” feeling. Many patients may also have problems with mood, anxiety, depression, short-term memory loss, poor concentration and cognitive abnormalities.

Imbalance can accompany dizziness and is usually described as a sensation of unsteadiness. This is often related to damage to the inner ear or abnormalties in muscular strength or control.  Patients with inner ear abnormalties will perceive their imbalance as being “in their head”, while patients with muscular control problems typically describe their imbalance being “in their feet”.  Imbalance patients are at high risk for falls and usually show outward signs of their imbalance.

In the past, neurological symptoms (such as dizziness, vertigo, pain, tingling, numbness, etc.) were impossible for physicians to see, leaving the doctor using his best educated guess in treating these disorders.

Because these conditions present themselves as “symptoms”, most patients do not typically appear ill to their doctor, friends or family. The inability to be recognized as ill often causes the patient to express their abnormality to family, friends, co-workers and even strangers. They are often viewed as being hypochondriacs, chronic complainers and many patients are labeled as “problem patients” by their doctors. Although their problems are real, some patients may even be told” it’s all in your head.”