Supporting Vestibular Migraine Treatment at Home
If you live with vestibular migraine symptoms, then you know how important managing this condition is to keep your routine from being disrupted. Vestibular migraine affects upwards of 3% of adults and is roughly five times more common for women than men1. Even though it impacts many people worldwide, it’s often left undiagnosed or mistaken for brainstem aura because of the irregularity of the symptoms compared to traditional migraines. Finding effective home remedies for vestibular migraine will noticeably improve your quality of life.
Continue reading to learn about vestibular migraine treatment at home so you can get back to living your life to the fullest. From low-stimulation environments to useful tools like a zero gravity chair, discover how you can take back control over your symptoms as efficiently as possible.
What Is Vestibular Migraine?
If you’ve been following our guides, you’ve already looked into the differences between a tension headache vs migraine as well as some chronic migraine treatment options to find relief, but a vestibular migraine is a little different. When it comes to vestibular migraine, you may not actually experience the head pain that comes along with traditional migraines. It’s because this condition affects your vestibular system, which is the system of your inner ear that helps you keep spatial orientation and balance.
The first step towards vestibular migraine treatment at home is being properly diagnosed. Your doctor will usually base a diagnosis of this condition on your medical history and after ruling out other conditions that have similar symptoms, such as Meniere’s disease or vertigo. It’s important to note, however, that vertigo can be a symptom of some types of vestibular migraine, so giving your doctor as much information as possible is critical for a proper assessment.
Common Vestibular Migraine Symptoms
As with all medical conditions, successful home remedies for vestibular migraine treatment are reliant on recognizing the symptoms. This helps you manage them more effectively now, as well as with how to avoid migraine triggers in the future. Unlike traditional migraines, vestibular migraines may have a wider range of symptoms that don’t necessarily include head pain. That’s what makes it harder to diagnose when talking with your doctor.
Common symptoms of vestibular migraine include:
- Dizziness or vertigo
- Sensitivity to light, sound, or motion
- Nausea or vomiting
- Being off balance
- Feeling disoriented or confused
You might also experience things like hearing change including tinnitus, which manifests as a ringing in your ears, or visual symptoms like flashing lights or blurry vision.
Home Remedies for Vestibular Migraine Treatment
You’ve spoken to your doctor and gotten your diagnosis, familiarized yourself with symptoms to help manage them, and now it’s time to learn about home remedies for vestibular migraine treatment. These natural options for vestibular migraine treatment at home can make a noticeable improvement in your daily routine, keeping symptoms that could disrupt your activities to a minimum or eliminating them altogether.
Ready to try? Give these home remedies for vestibular migraine treatment a try and see which works best for you:
- Creating a low-stimulation environment
- Doing vestibular exercises
- Practicing relaxation techniques
- Staying hydrated and eating right
- Getting enough restful sleep
Additional Info: Experiencing regular migraines and need help to feel better? Check out our migraine self-care guide after this to learn solutions you can implement right away.
1. Creating a Low-Stimulation Environment
One of the best ways to start vestibular migraine treatment at home is to create a low-stimulation environment. One of the triggers for this condition is sensory overload, so reducing your exposure to things like bright lights, loud noises, and other external stimuli can be particularly beneficial. You can achieve this by putting your lights on a dimmer, using noise-canceling headphones, or making a zen spot in your home where you can relax and unwind each day.
If you’re unable to use an extra room as a relaxation room, you can easily incorporate methods into main living areas. Soft lighting, minimizing screen time, and using tools like a zero gravity chair make it your go-to spot to relax and unwind at any time during the day.
2. Doing Vestibular Exercises
If symptoms of this condition have you feeling off balance, there are exercises you can do that serve as home remedies for vestibular migraine. These are sometimes called vestibular rehabilitation therapy, and work to retrain your brain to navigate triggers more effectively and keep your balance.
Vestibular exercises can be as simple as slowly turning your head from side to side several times. Go slowly and take your time so as not to make things worse and wind up feeling dizzy. You can also gently move your eyes from side to side to help improve balance and retrain your vestibular system.
Doing these kinds of exercises for even just 10 to 15 minutes each day can have a noticeable positive impact towards vestibular migraine treatment at home. You can also do them in other places like work or even while sitting in your parked car, if you find yourself out and about for the day.
3. Practicing Relaxation Techniques for the Vestibular System
Relaxing and recentering yourself can have a positive effect on vestibular migraine symptoms. This is why it’s good to start practicing relaxation techniques as part of your home remedies for vestibular migraine treatment. Try activities like deep breathing exercises, guided meditation, or yoga to help calm your nervous system and temper your symptoms. Practice mindfulness to slow down your thoughts and ease the tension that can cause vestibular migraine symptoms to flare up.
This is another area where zero gravity chair benefits come into focus. These modern recliners are more than your average chair. They’re designed to recline in the zero gravity position, which alleviates excess pressure on your joints, increases blood circulation, deepens relaxation, and positively impacts many potential triggers for your vestibular migraine symptoms. Bonus features of zero gravity chairs, like heat therapy and massage functions, take it a step further as you integrate them into your daily routine.
4. Staying Hydrated & Eating Right for Vestibular Migraine Treatment
It should come as no surprise that drinking enough water and being mindful about following a healthy diet are effective solutions for supporting vestibular migraine treatment at home. Dehydration can easily trigger vestibular migraine symptoms or cause them to worsen. Highly processed foods, alcohol, and caffeine are also potentially harmful for those living with this condition.
Try to drink plenty of water throughout the day. If plain water isn’t your favorite, you can always get creative by drinking herbal teas or decaffeinated coffee to supplement your water intake. Make sure you’re eating meals that are rich in whole grains, vegetables, and lean proteins to decrease the likelihood of vestibular migraine flare-ups, as well.
5. Getting Enough Restful Sleep for Vestibular Migraine Prevention
Sleep is fundamentally important to your overall holistic health, meaning it applies to vestibular migraine treatment at home, too. Not getting enough sleep or having poor sleep quality can trigger symptoms and disrupt your daily routine. One of the easiest ways to integrate this home remedy for vestibular migraine treatment is to try waking up and going to sleep at the same time each day. Setting this routine for yourself not only helps manage symptoms of the condition, but helps train your mind and body to go to sleep faster and stay asleep through the night.
You should also create a relaxing night time routine where you’re limiting screen time before bed to reduce blue light exposure, avoiding caffeine, and utilizing relaxation tools like a zero gravity chair to unwind for the evening. For your bedroom, consider blackout curtains, a white noise machine, or any other accessories that could help improve your sleep hygiene.
Start Treating Vestibular Migraine at Home
As you’ve learned in this guide, there are very simple ways to support vestibular migraine treatment at home. Creating a calming environment, avoiding potential triggers, and learning to relax with tools like a zero gravity chair all come together to help alleviate symptoms now and potentially prevent them from recurring in the future.
The first step towards effective home remedies for vestibular migraine treatment is being properly diagnosed. Ensure you speak to your doctor and give them all the information so they can make an appropriate assessment. With a few simple changes, you can improve your quality of life and get back to feeling your best.
Bonus Info: Want to learn more about the difference between a migraine vs headache? Check out our guide next.
Disclaimer: This content is not medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare professional when considering implementing changes to your health or workout routines to ensure it’s compatible with your needs.
Additional Sources
- https://americanmigrainefoundation.org/resource-library/vestibular-migraine
