Daily Dizzy Spells

[Lovey25]

I have been getting daily dizzy spells, well, since adolescence. I'm not passing out or blacking out or falling over myself onto the floor... nothing dramatic. I just mean that I get very lightheaded, but just enough so that I can still function fine. I have Hashimoto's and problems with Candida and am also gluten-free. I eat extremely healthy (no allergens for people with autoimmune disease [dairy, gluten, sugar, starches, fermentation] and nothing processed AT ALL, and eat all my veggies raw -- my diet consists of about 85% raw veg. And I have been eating like this for quite a while. But I'm still getting the dizzy spells and am very perplexed. My medication dosage is great and doesn't need to be changed (my levels are all perfect). I believe strongly in the power of the body to heal itself through natural means, and because I take such good care of myself, I would think I wouldn't have this problem so often. I even make my own organic veggie juices, and take supplements and probiotics, including "PROgreens" which contains a bunch of good vitamins and minerals and strains of good bacteria. I get enough iron and good fats and take vit b-12. I eat organic and don't ingest chemicals. I exercise moderately and weekly. I drink plenty of water. My weight is within range for my height. So, I'm just stumped.

I know that some people who have Hashimoto's also have M

[georgie]

How is your Blood Pressure ? Have you had Sodium/Potassium checked ? Aldosterone/ Renin ? Cortisol ? I am wondering re Addisons Disease. Primary Addisons is autoimmune and can happen suddenly within days, or creep up on you over a period of years. As you have other autoimmune diseases you are at more risk of getting others. There is a blood test for the Addisons antibodies although it is not always accurate. Maybe worth checking - as Addisons can be fatal if not diagnosed and treated in time.

[Lovey25]

How is your Blood Pressure ? Have you had Sodium/Potassium checked ? Aldosterone/ Renin ? Cortisol ? I am wondering re Addisons Disease. Primary Addisons is autoimmune and can happen suddenly within days, or creep up on you over a period of years. As you have other autoimmune diseases you are at more risk of getting others. There is a blood test for the Addisons antibodies although it is not always accurate. Maybe worth checking - as Addisons can be fatal if not diagnosed and treated in time.

Thank you very very much! I appreciate that advice! I will definitely look into all of that -- especially the Addison's. The only thing is that I have some of those symptoms, but not all... so just like the other illnesses I have, it may not be a clear-cut diagnosis. Everything is always so vague for me.

Any other ideas are greatly appreciated as well.

[georgie]

Hopefully it is not Addisons but it may be important to check - just to be safe. This site has a lot of good info. You don't have to have all the symptoms - and it is possible that you may have a partial deficiency at this stage - so the symptoms may not be as severe yet. For eg - you may not have the weight loss if you also are HypoThyroid , or the darkening skin may not happen. Some people even crave sugar instead of salt etc

Signs and symptoms

*The slowly progressive loss of cortisol and aldosterone secretion usually produces a chronic, steadily worsening fatigue, a loss of appetite, and some weight loss.

*Blood pressure is low and falls further when a person is standing, producing light-headedness.

*Nausea, sometimes with vomiting, and diarrhoea are common.

*The muscles are weak and often go into spasm.

*There are often emotional changes, particularly irritability and depression.

*Because of salt loss, a craving for salty foods is common.

*Finally, the increase in ACTH due to the loss of cortisol will usually produce a darkening of the skin that may look like an inappropriate tan on a person who feels very sick.

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[kenlove]

Hi, My dizzy spells come from too many carbs. Although I eat mostly fruit I need the energy and will sometimes have to much rice or gluten-free breads and on occasion have passed out or just keeled over. Was told it was from rapid changes in blood sugar levels from the carbs.

Good luck

Ken

I have been getting daily dizzy spells, well, since adolescence. I'm not passing out or blacking out or falling over myself onto the floor... nothing dramatic. I just mean that I get very lightheaded, but just enough so that I can still function fine. I have Hashimoto's and problems with Candida and am also gluten-free. I eat extremely healthy (no allergens for people with autoimmune disease [dairy, gluten, sugar, starches, fermentation] and nothing processed AT ALL, and eat all my veggies raw -- my diet consists of about 85% raw veg. And I have been eating like this for quite a while. But I'm still getting the dizzy spells and am very perplexed. My medication dosage is great and doesn't need to be changed (my levels are all perfect). I believe strongly in the power of the body to heal itself through natural means, and because I take such good care of myself, I would think I wouldn't have this problem so often. I even make my own organic veggie juices, and take supplements and probiotics, including "PROgreens" which contains a bunch of good vitamins and minerals and strains of good bacteria. I get enough iron and good fats and take vit b-12. I eat organic and don't ingest chemicals. I exercise moderately and weekly. I drink plenty of water. My weight is within range for my height. So, I'm just stumped.

I know that some people who have Hashimoto's also have M

[ravenwoodglass]

This was an easy mystery to solve, before you look for other issues you need to realize that Progreens is one of those items that is thought to be gluten free but really isn't. Stop taking this and I bet those dizzy spells will soon be gone.

Here is part of the ingredient list that is really significant:

Wheat Grass Powder 350 mg **

Barley Grass Powder 350 mg **

Alfalfa Grass Powder 350 mg **

Oat Grass Powder 350 mg **

Wheat Sprout Powder

[CaraLouise]

I am dizzy daily and nauseous too. I have been for a few months now. Mentioned it yesterday to the doctor and he thought it might be inner ear. I guess something to look into.

[Lovey25]

This was an easy mystery to solve, before you look for other issues you need to realize that Progreens is one of those items that is thought to be gluten free but really isn't. Stop taking this and I bet those dizzy spells will soon be gone.

Here is part of the ingredient list that is really significant:

Wheat Grass Powder 350 mg **

Barley Grass Powder 350 mg **

Alfalfa Grass Powder 350 mg **

Oat Grass Powder 350 mg **

Wheat Sprout Powder

I will definitely look further into the PROgreens. It does say that everything is derrived from gluten-free sources. Wheat grass is actually gluten-free even though it seems like it wouldn't be. I got that information from "Living Gluten-Free For Dummies". Alfalfa grass shouldn't contain gluten either, but I will look further into the barley grass. From what I understand, those grains that we are allergic to, when in the grass form have not developed the gluten protein yet. But, thank you for the suggestion and I will do some investigating.

However, as I said, I've been getting these dizzy spells for about 10-15 years now and I've only been using the PROgreens for about two weeks at this point. So, of course there could be a connection, but nothing has improved or gotten worse once I went on an allergen-free diet.

[Lovey25]

I am dizzy daily and nauseous too. I have been for a few months now. Mentioned it yesterday to the doctor and he thought it might be inner ear. I guess something to look into.

CaraLouise,

Yeah, the inner ear disorder/disease is what I mentioned in the first post I made here. It's called M

[ravenwoodglass]

I will definitely look further into the PROgreens. It does say that everything is derrived from gluten-free sources. Wheat grass is actually gluten-free even though it seems like it wouldn't be. I got that information from "Living Gluten-Free For Dummies". Alfalfa grass shouldn't contain gluten either, but I will look further into the barley grass. From what I understand, those grains that we are allergic to, when in the grass form have not developed the gluten protein yet. But, thank you for the suggestion and I will do some investigating.

However, as I said, I've been getting these dizzy spells for about 10-15 years now and I've only been using the PROgreens for about two weeks at this point. So, of course there could be a connection, but nothing has improved or gotten worse once I went on an allergen-free diet.

Although wheat and barley grass are considered by many to be gluten free there are quite a few of us that will react to them. You might want to post a query under products and get some other opinions on it. The alfalfa grass would not be an issue it was just in the middle of the ingredient list. Have you ever been evaluated by a neurologist? Ataxia is sometimes part of the celiac picture and those of us who do have it are usually very, very sensitive perhaps because it means there is autoimmune impact going on with the brain.

[Lovey25]

I think I may have figured this out. I was reading up on Addison's. I think I have something related to Addison's called Polyglandular Autoimmune Syndrome type 1. I will be getting tested for it. I'm not in the habit of self-diagnosing, so I can not be sure as of yet. But I feel hopeful because it explains so so much, after all these years. It's making the picture come into focus.

[kenlove]

Good Luck!

Hope you can figure it out!

I think I may have figured this out. I was reading up on Addison's. I think I have something related to Addison's called Polyglandular Autoimmune Syndrome type 1. I will be getting tested for it. I'm not in the habit of self-diagnosing, so I can not be sure as of yet. But I feel hopeful because it explains so so much, after all these years. It's making the picture come into focus.

[Lovey25]

Thank you

[AliB]

Hi Lovey. do you get the dizzy spells at certain times of the day? After meals? How often?

Even after going G and dairy-free and for about 5 or 6 months into the SCD I would still get very lightheaded around 11.30/midnight most evenings. I would go clammy too, but just the other day I realised that I hadn't been getting that for some time as my gut is recovering.

I also had a situation some weeks back where I had awful colic. Now I used to get that quite often before I got IBS-D about 10 years ago and it was not pleasant, I never passed out but I would be close to it and would writhe around on the floor in agony for quite a while before it would pass off. My colon would be very sore for a day or two after.

The bout I had recently though caught me by surprise as I just passed out like a light. It was pretty frightening and my Hub was just about to call an ambulance when I came round. I spoke to the doc after and she said that can happen.

Although I have been on the diet for a while my body is still healing and I do go through odd and weird things every now and again as it is sorting itself out. I suspect that the light-headedness and even the fainting occurred as the 'waste' (and possibly after eating something my gut couldn't cope with) hit a damaged area in the colon.

What I am trying to say is that problems within the digestion can affect the brain - quite how, I haven't a clue, but it does happen.

What I have just started doing is taking digestive enzymes as a course. I have taken them in odd doses now and again, but never regularly. I have been doing a fair bit of research on them and am pretty sure that a lot of our issues are due to a lack of enzymes. Without them we cannot digest our food properly.

You will be getting some from your raw diet and that will undoubtedly help but how long have you been eating that way? Long enough for your gut to have healed? You might also still be eating (or drinking) something that is keeping the damage going in your intestines.

I bought 'Enzymes for Health and Healing' by Ellen W Cutler and have been reading through that today. It is extremely enlightening. I would recommend it. Enzymes are used for so many metabolic functions within the body in digestion, repair and support - without enzymes, your heart would stop beating - and many of them, especially digestive are produced in the enterocytes so any damage to those will impact on enzyme production. We also have an enzyme 'bank' when we are born that depletes as we age - elderly people have a fraction compared to the young and fit. Illness, trauma, injury and stress can also draw on the bank and without replacing the enzymes the body struggles to cope (I just had a thought - I wonder if when people die of a 'broken heart' it isn't in fact due to a radical and profound depletion of enzymes due to the trauma of their loss, especially if their body is already low in them!).

Enzymes are deplete in soil that is nutritionally dead, in fruit and vegetables that are not freshly picked, when they are cooked, when dairy is pasteurised and food is processed. As that makes up most of our food today, what chance do we have?

If you analyse the diet of long-lived people, they all tend to eat a good fresh highly nutritious diet full of fermented foods which yes, do provide probiotics, but also provide generous amounts of enzymes.

[Lovey25]

Thank you for this reply. I'm going to look into all that you've mentioned.

[georgie]

I think I may have figured this out. I was reading up on Addison's. I think I have something related to Addison's called Polyglandular Autoimmune Syndrome type 1. I will be getting tested for it. I'm not in the habit of self-diagnosing, so I can not be sure as of yet. But I feel hopeful because it explains so so much, after all these years. It's making the picture come into focus.

Why Type 1 ? I am under suspicion for Type 2 ...but it is a long road to be dx ... Try not to delay .... Addisons can be very serious if not dx in time ... And has you have found - the PolyEndocrine disorders require a Addisons ( or adrenal insufficiency or adrenal fatigue ) ... diagnosis