Saturday, November 21, 2020

Dizziness

I've been having dizzy spells since I was about 13 years old, so it's nothing new for me.  I remember my age when this started because I know where my parents and I were living at the time:  Harlem, an unincorporated area of Kansas City, Missouri.  It happened when I'd get up too soon after sitting down reading for a long time.  I suppose I remember where we lived because of an incident caused by my dizziness:  We had an old house, so the bathroom had been added later, I'm sure.  To get to the bathroom from the living room, one had to pass through the kitchen, then through my mom and dad's bedroom.  On this particular day, my parents were both at work; I was reading.  Now, the dizziness never hit immediately, so I had reached my parent's bedroom when it caught up with me.  Their dresser was on my right, I reached over to grab it in order not to fall.  Mother had a Stanley-Home-Products hand-held mirror that was a regular mirror on one side and a magnifying mirror on the other laying on their dresser.  My hand swiped past it and knocked it on the floor, breaking the magnifying side.

I told Mother what happened as soon as she got home from work but she didn't believe me, and that is why I remember it so well, I'm sure.  She never did believe my story, ever.  That would have been natural if I had been a chronic liar, but at that point I never lied.  When I thought I was going to get in trouble over something, I told her immediately just to get it over with so I wouldn't be worrying and wondering what the consequence would be.  Notice the "at that point" part of that statement, because I've lied since then, usually to avoid hurting somebody's feelings or avoid a painful discussion.  

Back to the dizziness:  It happened often during my teen years, but was only an occasional event later on.  I had super low blood pressure throughout my first forty-five years of life, and from what I've read, that's what caused the dizziness.  Doctors have a name for it.  A few years ago, I began having the dizziness again at times, either after getting up too fast from a sitting position or when I bend over too fast to pick something up.  My blood pressure doesn't run low these days; even on medication that's supposed to lower my blood pressure, it's up and down all the time.  So I guess the dizziness is another surprise gift caused by old age.  Not a day goes by that I don't get dizzy at least once; it's already happened this morning, which is why I decided to blog about it.  I've learned to sit down at once if there's a place available.  If I'm outside, I'll plunk down on the ground.  This morning I was in the hallway going to the bathroom when it hit, so I turned, braced my back against a wall, and slid to the floor, then sat there for 30 seconds or so until it passed.   

Cliff has dizzy spells too.  Sometimes it's difficult for him to recline under a tractor and look up into its innards.  He has a lot of trouble if he's on a ladder and looks up, too.  Oh yes, and when he turns over from one side to the other in bed.  Crazy, right?

I've mentioned my dizziness to doctors in passing, and so far nobody has said anything about it.  I don't want to make a big deal about it because you know how doctors are... they try to find a pill that will help.  I'd rather take my chances than have to take another pill.  It's the same with my weak-bladder problems:  I know from watching television ads that there's a pill for that (gotta go, gotta go, gotta go right now) but I'll deal with it rather than take some pill that may or may not work and is bound to have side effects.

Well well, my dizzy husband just got up, so I had to stop long enough to make his breakfast:  An egg, a leftover, heated-up piece of sausage, cheese, and a leftover buttermilk biscuit, all in the form of a sandwich, made him very happy. 

I've decided not to attend either of my churches until after Christmas and beyond, which makes for some long, tedious weeks.  But I'm doing it as much for the doctors and nurses as I am for myself and Cliff.  My only holdout is the grocery shopping, which I will do for myself, but I will do it quickly and carefully with mask in place.

Enjoy your weekend, folks.  One day at a time we'll get through this.  Meanwhile, every day is precious.

Sincerely,

Donna


7 comments:

  1. Man oh man, I'm so sorry to hear about your dizziness, Donna... and I'm sorry your Mom didn't believe you. That makes my heart sad. :-( My husband recently looked me in the eyes and told me he didn't believe me about something I'd said to him. It was something menial and trivial but it was the truth... and the fact he challenged me about it was the epitome of everything wrong with our relationship.

    Whoa... how did I get that far off course in my comment. *lol*

    Anyway, I find myself getting dizzy whenever I ride on the motorcycle in the cool weather. I never wear a hat or ear covering so the wind blowing in my ears really messes with my equilibrium for days afterward. Could it be the same for you, as far as being outside on a windy day causing your dizziness to be worse than usual?

    That breakfast sandwich sounds absolutely delicious. I love breakfast food! I don't eat breakfast, per se, but I love to eat breakfast food for dinner any day.

    ~Andrea xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  2. Glad you have the good sense to sit down when feeling dizzy. It'll save you from falling. Yes we all will get through this, the question remains. ... when.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous11:05 AM

    I think Cliff's dizziness might be inner ear problems (vertigo) and I would have guessed low BP for yours, but you have said that is no longer the cause. Have you ever googled inner ear dizziness, wow, the causes are many and varied! Thank goodness you have the sense to sit before you fall. Could your spells be brought about by dehydration? Getting older is not for the feint of heart!!
    I'm sorry to hear you won't be attending church for a while, do they have virtual services. Wouldn't be the same, especially the singing part. Not sure how some of the churches are going to survive. Sad.
    I can't believe you still have green grass to lay down on (your previous posts). I suppose I could too, make snow angels at least! Every year this cold gets a little harder to take. Stay safe and well.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Northern AB gal11:06 AM

    Not sure why I'm anonymous today, lol.

    ReplyDelete
  5. That breakfast sandwich sounds amazing. I've gotten very fond of them during this semi-quarantine. Eggs have always been comfort food. My dad gets dizzy too. It could be some kind of inner ear thing but if it's been happening to you since 13, it doesn't sound like a huge worry. Just don't fall!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have the same dizzy disease. Had since puberty. Mine I still pretty low. I try not to get up suddenly. A few years back,I fainted and my head hit the table. Black eye and broke glasses. Guess I prefer to high blood pressure. I take no prescribed medication but I guess that’s coming.

    ReplyDelete
  7. My Bob had that problem and it was an inner ear problem as well as low blood pressure. It could be very dangerous if you're driving and even if you just are outside somewhere. If you fall or lose consciousness over it, My brother-in-law, Bob's girlfriend fell on her bedroom carpet and even at that she broke her right arm.

    ReplyDelete

I love comments!