Dizziness: Symptom

Date Updated: 09/26/2024

Definition

People use the term dizziness to describe many sensations. You might feel faint, unsteady, or as if your body or surroundings are spinning. Dizziness has many possible causes, including inner ear conditions, motion sickness and medicine side effects. You can have bouts of dizziness at any age. But as you get older, you become more sensitive or prone to its causes.

Dizziness can make you feel:

Lightheaded, as though you might pass out.
Less steady or at risk of losing balance.
Like you or your surroundings are spinning or moving, also known as vertigo.
A sense of floating, swimming or heavy-headedness.

Often, dizziness is a short-term issue that goes away without treatment. If you see your healthcare professional, try to describe:

Your specific symptoms.
How the dizziness makes you feel as it is coming on and after it has passed.
What seems to trigger it.
How long it lasts.

This information helps your healthcare professional find and treat the cause of your dizziness.

Causes

The causes of dizziness are as varied as the ways it makes people feel. It can result from something as simple as motion sickness — the queasy feeling that you get on twisting roads and roller coasters. Or it could be due to various other treatable health conditions or medicine side effects. Very rarely, dizziness may stem from infection, injury or conditions that reduce blood flow to the brain. Sometimes healthcare professionals can't find a cause.

In general, dizziness that happens without any other symptoms is not likely to be a symptom of a stroke.

Inner ear problems

Dizziness often is caused by conditions that affect the balance organ in the inner ear. Inner ear conditions also can cause vertigo, the sense that you or your surroundings are spinning or moving. Examples of such conditions include:

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV)
Migraine
Meniere's disease
Balance problems

Reduced blood flow

Dizziness can be caused if your brain doesn't receive enough blood. This can happen for reasons such as:

Arteriosclerosis / atherosclerosis
Anemia
Overheating or not being well hydrated
Hypoglycemia
Heart arrhythmia
Orthostatic hypotension (postural hypotension)
Stroke
Transient ischemic attack (TIA)

Certain medicines

Some types of medicines cause dizziness as a side effect, including some types of:

Antidepressants
Anti-seizure medicines
Medicines to control high blood pressure
Sedatives
Tranquilizers

Other causes of dizziness

Carbon monoxide poisoning
Concussion
Depression (major depressive disorder)
Generalized anxiety disorder
Motion sickness: First aid
Panic attacks and panic disorder

When to see a doctor

In general, see your healthcare professional if you have any dizziness or vertigo that:

Keeps coming back.
Starts suddenly.
Disrupts daily life.
Lasts a long time.
Has no clear cause.

Get emergency medical care if you have new, severe dizziness or vertigo along with any of the following:

Pain such as a sudden, severe headache or chest pain.
Rapid or irregular heartbeat.
Loss of feeling or movement in the arms or legs, stumbling or trouble walking, or loss of feeling or weakness in the face.
Trouble breathing.
Fainting or seizures.
Trouble with the eyes or ears, such as double vision or a sudden change in hearing.
Confusion or slurred speech.
Ongoing vomiting.

In the meantime, these self-care tips may help:

Move slowly. When you stand up from lying down, move slowly. Many people become dizzy if they stand up too quickly. If that happens, sit or lie down until the feeling passes.
Drink plenty of fluids. Stay hydrated to help prevent or relieve various types of dizziness.
Limit caffeine and alcohol, and don't use tobacco. By restricting blood flow, these substances can make symptoms worse.