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By: Ikedi Ani-okoye

Managing dizziness and fainting

Dizziness, or a feeling of unsteadiness, is a common complaint and is usually a momentary sensation of no consequence. Dizziness may lead to fainting, which is a short-lived loss of consciousness that usually resolves the giddiness. A brief dizzy spell, with or without fainting, can be caused by a hot, stuffy atmosphere, fatigue, anxiety emotional shock. lack of food, blood loss, or standing still for too long. Vertigo, or the sensation that your surroundings are spinning for no apparent reason, may have a more serious cause.

Causes of dizziness

Non-vertigo dizziness might be felt as wooziness or light-headedness and may be due to anything iom low blood sugar (not eating regularly) to high blood pressure, anaemia, or wax in the ears. If this type of dizziness occurs regularly you should see your doctor who will determine whether an underlying condition is to blame. The dizziness will have to be controlled, so that activities such as driving can be continued.

One common trigger for dizziness is standing up suddenly. This is often caused by your blood vessels not adjusting fast enough to accommodate a changed body position. It can also happen if you bend down or turn around very quickly. If this persists, see a doctor.

Causes of vertigo

Balance is controlled by a part of the inner ear called the labyrinth, and also central in the brain. A problem with any part of this system might cause dizziness. The dizzy sensation in this case is more dramatic and is known as vertigo - the person feels their surroundings spinning around them alarmingly (for example after drinking too much alcohol or going on a fairground ride).

Vertigo is often due to a viral infection of the labyrinth, known medically as labyrinthitis, which may last a few weeks but From which complete recovery is usual. It responds well to medication that controls the dizziness and nausea that often accompany true Vertigo.

Another reasonably common, but unfortunately life-long, illness that cause dizziness is Ménière's disease. In this instance, typical symptoms that accompany the vertigo include intermittent deafness and tinnitus (noises heard in the ear that are Similar to an aircraft taking off). This condition casually develops in middle age and is treated with drugs.

Fainting

This occurs when there is a temporary lack of oxygen to the brain. It may happen for many reasons, including hunger, a sudden change of atmosphere from cold to warm, or standing still for a long time. If a person stands still without regularly clenching their calf muscles, the blood pools in their legs and they may faint as the brain does not receive enough oxygen. By fainting, the body is able to get blood and oxygen back up to the brain again - and so the person "comes to" as the brain recovers its function.

Fainting can often cause a lot of worry about more serious complaints such as brain tumours or epilepsy. The following features distinguish simple fainting from other causes of brief unconsciousness:

There may be certain brief sensations that warn of a fainting episode: a sense of narrowed vision or of voices becoming distant, for example.
The victim's skin looks very pale and feels clammy to the touch.
The victim's pulse becomes slow.
When they recover, there is no prolonged drowsiness (as there is with epilepsy). They may jerk slightly after they pass out, but there is no epileptic-type fit.