Many people are suffering from vestibular (inner ear/balance) disorders in the United States. A person living with a vestibular disorder may experience a decrease in their quality of life that may negatively impact many aspects of their life. Those who suffer from vestibular disorder often report a variety of symptoms, including vertigo, loss of balance, and dizziness to name a few. Some patients have also experienced vomiting and lacked the ability to focus. If you or your loved one is experiencing the above-mentioned symptoms, vestibular rehabilitation may be the cure. At Oklahoma Physical Therapy we have compassionate clinicians with the most advanced and customized training and certifications in vestibular rehabilitation therapy.
Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy (VRT) is a specialized type of therapy that utilizes exercises and manual (hands-on) techniques to reduce the following symptoms:
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Migraines
- Imbalance
- Nausea
- Low muscle strength
- Decreased muscle flexibility
- Joint stiffness
- Emotional problems like depression and anxiety
- Vertigo
- Visual disturbances
How We Help You
VRT is a problem-oriented approach to promote compensation and is customized for each patient based on a clinical examination completed by one of our trained physical therapists. Your exercise treatments may consist of habituation, gaze stabilization and/or balance training.
Habituation exercises focus on treating symptoms of dizziness that come from self movement or visual stimuli. During habituation exercises, your brain is repeatedly exposed to specific movements or visualize stimuli that often trigger dizziness. Through this exposure the brain learns to ignore unusual signals that it is receiving from the inner ear which over time will decrease the dizziness.
Gaze Stabilization exercises are used for eye movement control and can include fixating on an object while repeatedly moving the head in various directions for a period of time. Another type of gaze stabilization is gaze shifting.
Balance training exercises may include the following exercises:
- Dual Task: performing a task while balancing
- Visual Cues
- Coordinating movement strategies (movements from ankles, hips, or a combination of both)