What to do to prevent dizziness due to anxiety?

Some psychological guidelines to prevent the occurrence of dizziness due to anxiety.

Dizziness is one of the common symptoms of anxiety-related problems. While it is true that there are many people who usually feel anxious and do not get dizzy when suffering from this form of discomfort, in psychotherapy consultations it is not uncommon to meet patients for whom one thing is linked to the other in many cases.

In this article we will see a series of guidelines and habits to apply to the day to day to prevent the dizziness generated by excessive anxiety..

Why do dizziness caused by anxiety appear?

The exact mechanism by which anxiety leads to dizziness is not known in detail; there are hypotheses to understand the relationship between the two phenomena, but it must be taken into account that a large number of psychological and physiological processes are involved in both phenomena, as well as individual differences.

On the one hand, it is known that anxiety goes hand in hand with relatively rapid variations in Blood Pressure (which is logical, because (which is logical, because it is an emotion that orients us to adapt quickly to possible dangers or windows of opportunity that we should not let pass, reacting as soon as possible); these changes can affect the organs responsible for the sense of balance, located in the vestibule of the ear, and also the parts of the brain that work in coordination with the former.

On the other hand, sudden changes in the energy demand of the nervous system in situations of stress or anxiety can lead to a mismatch between the resources the body sends to the brain and those the brain needs to function. a mismatch between the resources that the body sends to the brain and those that the brain needs to function..

In addition, it is known that excessive stress causes our neurons to lose their ability to adapt to the demands of the environment by modifying their interconnection patterns with the rest of the nerve cells, both in the brain and in the vestibule area; this can also lead to a decompensation in times of anxiety, resulting in dizziness.

As we have seen, the chain of events that leads anxiety to produce the symptom of dizziness is not very clear, but that does not mean that nothing can be done to treat this problem when it comes to significantly damage the quality of life of people, or even apply measures to prevent its occurrence.

How to prevent these problems?

Many people feel frightened every time anxiety meets dizziness.However, it should be noted that this phenomenon does not constitute a significant health hazard. In any case, you can take measures to prevent it from wearing down your quality of life.

This is a summary of several psychological keys that you can apply to your life to prevent anxiety dizziness. However, do not forget that the most effective measure of all is to go to therapy, since in this way you will have personalized attention adapted to your case.

1. Eat well

The onset of dizziness is facilitated by the lack of available nutrients in the blood. To reduce the chances of suffering from this form of discomfort, start by eating well.

This does not mean simply not going hungryInstead, incorporate into your diet foods in which you have all the vitamins, macronutrients and minerals you need.

2. Get used to tolerate anxiety

A certain level of stress or anxiety is normal, and in many cases, even beneficial. Remember that the problem is the excess anxiety and the intense symptoms that appear when it accumulates and is not well managed, not the anxiety itself, which helps us adapt to the challenges of everyday life and makes it easier for us to learn.

That's why, when you start to feel anxious, don't try to block that emotion; it will only make it stronger.It will only give it more strength and make it grow, because you will be paying too much attention to it. Just accept and tolerate its presence, and that will leave the door open so that your attention can be directed towards other more satisfying or stimulating sensations.

3. Learn relaxation techniques

There is a wide variety of relaxation techniques that are easy to learn.Some of them are designed for specific moments and last a few minutes, and others last a little longer (around 20 or 25 minutes) and can be incorporated into your schedule to help you regulate anxiety periodically. Mindfulness exercises, for example, are very helpful in this regard, as well as Jacobson's progressive muscle relaxation (the latter is part of the long ones).

Are you looking for psychotherapeutic help?

If you are interested in attending psychotherapy to overcome anxiety-related problems, please contact me.

My name is Fernando AzorI have been treating patients with all kinds of emotional, behavioral and cognitive problems for more than 20 years. In addition, my work is based on cognitive-behavioral therapy, which is very effective for anxiety disorders and stress-related problems. Currently I attend both in person in Madrid and Tres Cantos, as well as online through video call sessions. My contact details are available on this page.

Bibliographical references:

• Brandt, T. & Dieterich, M. (2020). 'Excess anxiety' and 'less anxiety': both depend on vestibular function. Current Opinion in Neurology, 33(1): PP. 136 - 141.
• Furman, J.M.; Balaban C.D. & Jacob, R.G. (2001).Interface between vestibular dysfunction and anxiety: More than just psychogenicity. Otol Neurotol., 22(3): p. 426 - 427.
• Saman, Y.; Bamiou, D.E.; Gleeson, M.; Dutia, M.B. (2012). Interactions between Stress and Vestibular Compensation - A Review. Frontiers in Neurology, 3: 116.