Experiencing dizziness during balance exercises is common, and it’s important to stop and restart the activity if this occurs. The exercises outlined in “Better Balance: Simple exercises to improve stability and prevent falls” are designed to be performed twice daily. They aim to enhance your balance system, which may initially cause dizziness—a normal response to these stimulating exercises. This guide provides step-by-step instructions for workouts that improve posture, increase muscle strength and speed, sharpen reflexes, enhance flexibility, and strengthen your core. Additionally, it offers advice for making your home safer to prevent falls.
For those suffering from cervical pain, a combination of manual therapy, patient education, and sensorimotor exercises is recommended. A particular type of spinal mobilization, known as sustained natural apophyseal glides (SNAGs), has proven effective in reducing the severity and frequency of dizziness, lowering scores on the Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), and alleviating neck pain.
Cawthorne’s Head Exercises, performed for 15 minutes twice daily and gradually increasing to 30 minutes, involve movements such as looking from side to side and focusing on a moving finger. These exercises form part of Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy, which aims to retrain the brain in processing vision and movement input from the senses. This therapy includes exercises for better balance, head movement, walking, stretching, and standing. For more information on these exercises, visit Cawthorne’s Head Exercises.
The Epley maneuver, though highly effective in about 90% of vertigo cases, can be challenging to self-apply due to the severe vertigo it induces and the need for precise head movements, often requiring an assistant. For further details, explore Vestibular Exercises and Home Exercises for Vertigo.
