Vertigo

Hi, I’m Abbey, a hospice social worker. For a few months, I covered two territories, which meant the workload of two social workers. When my mental health provider suggested I might be dealing with more than just “work stress” and recommended a new medication to help with my negative symptoms, I was eager to try it.

The medication was wrong from the start. It made me dizzy and tired, making it hard to keep my eyes open. People kept saying, “You look tired.” I talked to my provider, but she said those side effects were “normal” and told me to “hang in there.” Things got worse, and I didn’t feel safe driving. I couldn’t reach my online mental health provider, so I contacted my local primary care provider, who told me to stop the medication.

Once I stopped the medication, the dizziness became vertigo, making the room spin, especially when lying down. I started vomiting, so I went to Prompt Care, which sent me to the Emergency Department. They did various tests and concluded that my medication should have been gradually reduced instead of being stopped abruptly.

I was going through withdrawal and felt awful—I was shaking, vomiting, and had cold sweats. The Emergency Department suggested I restart my medication, but I had already gone for a few days without it. The medication that was meant to help me actually made things worse. I had to take unpaid medical leave from work because I ran out of paid time off, and I couldn’t drive due to fatigue and vertigo. It felt like I was losing everything I had worked for.

If you’ve never had vertigo, you’re fortunate. There were few answers to my situation. My doctor referred me to a physical therapist who checked for BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo), but the test was negative. Still, I went to physical therapy. My physical and mental health both deteriorated, and I lost my independence. My parents had to take me to appointments, and I struggled with negative thoughts. I thought my life was over, but eventually, the spinning stopped. I was able to eat more than just crackers and drink something other than sugar-free ginger ale.

After a week, my doctor cleared me to drive. I started the medication on June 22nd, and now it’s July 18th, meaning I’ve spent nearly a month adjusting to a medication that wasn’t right for me. I feel a bit hopeful. What did I learn? I learned that medication isn’t always the solution. I learned that when I’m unwell, I struggle to communicate and focus too much on myself. I learned that my parents love me deeply, and I need to find better ways to handle work stress. I never want to experience this again.