Vertigo

When the World Won’t Stop Spinning

Vertigo — the sudden, disorienting sensation that the room is spinning or that you are moving when you’re not — is one of the most disabling and frightening symptoms a person can experience. Whether it comes in brief, intense episodes or as a persistent background dizziness, vertigo affects everything: driving, working, exercising, even sleeping. Many people with vertigo live in constant fear of the next episode.

Most conventional treatment for vertigo focuses on the inner ear — BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo) is treated with the Epley maneuver, and other vestibular conditions are managed with anti-nausea medications, vestibular suppressants, or physical therapy. These approaches help many patients, but a significant number of people with chronic or recurring vertigo continue to struggle despite these treatments.

That’s because an underappreciated cause of vertigo is structural — specifically, dysfunction in the cranial bones, the upper cervical spine, and the interplay between these structures and the vestibular system.

The Structural Dimension of Vertigo

The organs of balance — the semicircular canals and otolith organs — are housed within the temporal bones of the skull. When the temporal bones are compressed or misaligned, they can directly distort vestibular signaling, producing the classic symptoms of vertigo and dizziness.

Additionally, the upper cervical spine (the atlas and axis vertebrae) contains an exceptionally high density of proprioceptive nerve endings that feed directly into the brain’s balance centers. Misalignment at C1-C2 can profoundly disrupt balance and spatial orientation, producing dizziness and instability even without any pathology in the inner ear itself — a phenomenon called cervicogenic dizziness.

At SpringBack Chiropractic in Surprise, AZ, Dr. Patrick Bain addresses both of these structural dimensions through two complementary techniques.

How SpringBack Chiropractic Treats Vertigo

Endonasal Correction: Dr. Bain’s endonasal correction technique gently mobilizes the temporal and sphenoid bones of the skull, releasing compression around the inner ear structures and restoring proper cranial bone motion. Many patients with long-standing vertigo that has not responded to conventional vestibular treatment experience dramatic improvement after a series of endonasal correction sessions. This is often the missing piece — cranial compression that conventional practitioners never assess or address.

Advanced BioStructural Correction: ABC addresses upper cervical misalignments and the meningeal tension that can distort the entire cranio-spinal axis. When the atlas and axis are properly aligned and the meningeal system is decompressed, cervicogenic dizziness often resolves entirely. ABC and endonasal correction work synergistically — addressing the top of the structural system from both the spinal and cranial perspectives simultaneously.

Cold Laser Therapy: Inflammation and vascular compromise in the posterior cranial fossa and upper cervical region can contribute to vestibular symptoms. Cold laser therapy applied to the upper cervical spine and cranial base helps reduce inflammation and improve circulation in these critical areas.

Conditions Causing Vertigo That We Address

• Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) with a cranial structural component
• Cervicogenic dizziness from upper cervical misalignment
• Meniere’s disease — cranial compression can contribute to the endolymphatic pressure changes associated with Meniere’s
• Post-concussion dizziness — often involves both cranial and cervical structural dysfunction
• Orthostatic hypotension and lightheadedness — sometimes related to thoracic spinal dysfunction and autonomic imbalance addressable with ABC
• Vestibular migraine — with significant postural and cranial structural components

Emotional Connections to Vertigo

Interestingly, vertigo has a documented connection to emotional stress and unresolved emotional experiences. The vestibular system is closely linked to the limbic system (the emotional brain), and significant emotional trauma can sometimes manifest as persistent dizziness or balance disturbance. Our Emotional Healing sessions using the Emotion Code and Body Code can help address this dimension when it is part of the picture.

What to Expect at Your Visit

At your first visit, Dr. Bain will take a thorough history of your vertigo — onset, triggers, duration, associated symptoms — and perform a structural and cranial assessment to identify any mechanical contributors. He will explain his findings clearly and outline a treatment plan tailored to your specific pattern of symptoms.

Most patients with structural vertigo respond well within 4-8 sessions. Some patients with long-standing cranial compression require a more extended series of endonasal corrections before the full benefit is achieved.

SpringBack Chiropractic serves patients with vertigo throughout Surprise, Peoria, Sun City, Sun City West, and the surrounding communities. If you’re tired of living with dizziness and haven’t found lasting answers, let Dr. Bain assess the structural dimension of your condition.

Call (623) 294-6564 or request your appointment online.