Finding Balance: Healing From A Decade of Vestibular Disorders

by Sue Hickey

Over 10 million adults in the United States have chronic problems with dizziness and imbalance – vestibular problems. This compares to 400,000 with multiple sclerosis or 1.5 million with autism for example, both chronic illnesses with much greater name recognition. Vestibular problems are difficult to diagnose and treat. While vestibular problems come with various medical names (Meniere’s, Perilymph Fistula, Endolymphatic Hydrops, Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV), Mal de Debarquement Balance (MdDS) and others) they present a common challenge for the affected person on how to deal with the dizziness and eventually find balance.

Finding Balance addresses over a decade of illness, from the initial two years searching for a diagnosis, through the long years of treatment and finally to the period of rebuilding a life within the confines of what dizziness and vertigo will allow. Finding Balance provides a detailed description of symptoms, what can trigger them, the emotional reactions to symptoms, how to recognize their subtle differences, and how to track them in order to contribute to your diagnosis. It also emphasizes the patient's responsibility for healing and eventually how to find the inner balance in life that will be necessary to equitably live with these symptoms over time.

Genres: Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2011

Reviews

[Shawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sue is a former executive who has various vestibular disorders and this book takes you on her journey to finding a better quality of life. She gives great information and advice for others and I like her businesslike approach to being your own advocate and working on finding health solutions like you do when you have a business issue... all while struggling to learn to deal with the limits of vestibular issues. Her decade long search for a solutions (at first) and then a better quality of life means she has a lot of great information and advice to share. While this is her story, I would have liked the book better if there was less information about her personal life that was not relevant to her vestibular disorder.

A great book for those who have a vestibular disorder and those who care for or love someone who does.

She also provides a list of resources to read and review and provides summary advice at the end of each chapters.

Resources she recommends:
+ The National Institute of Health - peer reviewed sources http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
* VETA - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

Suggested reading from her book. Professional references
* Vertigo and imbalance: clinical Neurophysiology of the vestibular system - text reviews common vestibular disorders and their treatments

* Cognitive-vestibular interactions: a review of patient difficulties and possible mechanisms (2006) from the Journal of Vestibular Research - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17...

Her website provides additional resources
Message Boards
www.thedizzylounge.com
www.dizzytimes.com
www.menieres.org

[Allie Godfrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sue Hickey does an amazing job illustrating the different types of vestibular disorders and their impacts on her life and others. Her methodical and perseverant pursuit of a solution to her condition is incredibly inspiring, and this book is an important read not only for vestibular patients and doctors but for anyone who has ever been a doctor’s patient. By providing an engaging narrative to her personal struggles with vestibular disorders, she brings awareness to under-diagnosed conditions and highlights the imperfect nature of getting medical care. She makes a strong case to work with doctors rather than expecting them to have all the answers, a lesson that is important even outside of vestibular care. Moreover, if it wasn’t for her self-advocacy, dedication to her recovery, and willingness to think outside the box, she may have not improved at all.

This book is as educational as it is motivational. As a young professional myself, Hickey’s ambition and dedication to her career, and then to her getting better, really resonated with me. There are many takeaways even for those readers who do not suffer from vestibular disorders or are chronically ill. I highly recommend this book.