Sudden onset of dizziness?

Hey there,

Last night I was lying on my side with my body pillow in bed talking to DP. Had been lying down for half an hour, then all of a sudden, my head felt like it was full of sand and I got this massive dizzy spell. It was so bad, that everything was moving (like when you are a kid and you spin around, then lie down and watch the ceiling move). My eyes started watering heaps and I couldn't hear very well. This lasted about 10 minutes before it totally subsided. I rolled onto my other side (left) and in about 20 more minutes, the same thing happened again.

I had been feeling nauseus all day and just generally off. I went out shopping earlier in the morning and was very dizzy then, but that's quite normal for me when on my feet for sometime being this big.

Just wondering does anyone know if sudden onset of dizziness when I've been lying down like that and not moving is a concern? Should I be maybe contacting the hospital if it's gone today?

I"ve had BP problems and I guess I'm worried that this might mean I'm getting big spikes or something.

Thanks in advance!

Hi Tara -without wanting to alarm you, I think you see your health care providers ASAP to get checked out. It might not be anything - I was having some really weird dizzy spells the other night that persisted after I went to bed and later realised I hadn't drunk as much water as usual! I was dry as dry the next day and it took me a full day and a half to drink enough to feel better again.

But given your BP has been high and dizziness is one of the warning signs, and you're in the end of the PG where it can be a problem, I'd get it checked out.

Good luck, I'm sending you good vibes :hug:
xx

Hi Tara, I know you don't really want to hear this, but I'm with Marydean, I think you should be checked out straight away. It could just be one of those pregnancy things, but better to be safe than sorry :) You'll feel more at ease after being checked out. Let us know how you are hun.

Yep I'd just like to add that I think you should get it checked today. Sorry, bummer to have to go in on a Sunday. Let us know how you go.
xx

Thanks MaryDean :hug: and Sez.

I actually rang the hospital and spoke to a midwife there earlier after I posted this. She said dizziness and blurred vision is a sign of low BP not high BP....go figure? Everything I've read and experienced (I had PE in my first pregnancy and was induced due to early HELLP) says the opposite. She says if I still feel iffy tomorrow to go to the GP and get it checked (BP).

I like hearing this response because the hospital is so far away and I avoid going there if possible, I don't like hospitals, but I do have to admit I don't feel right....she said maybe I have a virus. I have a bad pain down where my right ovary is and I'm wondering if I've done something to the ovary and that's what's causing the dizziness. I've had ruptured cysts and endometriomas before and it is feeling like that. My hand and foot is also quite swollen on the right side only.

Argh, I don't know. I don't want to go in if that's what they told me not to do on the phone, she's obviously on duty and is going to be annoyed probaby if I go in anyway. It's over an hour from here and a big hassle with the kids, so I'd rather not. Just unsure.

Thanks for the advice!
:hug:

Tara, I would go in anyway and insist on being seen by a DR! Alternatively, go and see a GP today - and if there is a problem, they will refer you straight over to the hospital.

:hug:

Oh, that's a tough one for Tara! I'm still inclined to think you should be checked out, but I understand why you don't really want to go in, esp. with that midwife on duty.

Have you got a GP or anyone else that you trust that could check you out today? I know that you hate hospitals etc, but I guess you also know that PE is not something to be messed with, so you'll probably feel better once reassured that everything is okay.

I really hope you can work something out, or better yet, feel better ASAP! :hug: for you hun.

I'm having BP issues also, and that's the same kind of thing i'm having.

Even if you have high BP, it could be caused by a sudden dip in your BP that goes back to normal. I would still get it checked out. Do you have a BP machine? Or a lot of chemists will take it for you also, perhaps have it taken and call the hospital back?

Thanks Fletch,

I never did it, it was suggested to me, but i have my own BP machine.

But you don't take BP differently when pregnant, so why would that make a difference?

Ah, i'm only 14 weeks (so mine isn't caused by pregnancy), so maybe this is why i haven't been told any of this.

I would def. get it checked out though, better to be on the safe side.

Hi Tara,

I also suffer from low BP and it sounded like that at first so make sure you drink heaps and heaps of water as it helps bring the BP up. I also suffer from endo etc and pains in the ovary also makes me feel light headed and lowers my BP... don't know why yet im having tests done to make sure there is no cyst etc...

Another thing that can cause the dizzy spells is vertigo. Read up on it and get your DR to check you out as it is caused from an in balance in the middle ear sometimes due to a virus. I also suffered from severe heads spins ealy this year and as you did i felt nauseus the next week cause of it. I saw a neurologist and its just vertigo which can be controlled with a healthy diet and lots of iron, rest and plenty of fluids.
Good luck !

Thankyou so much for all your replies and advice.

I didn't end up going in yesterday as I just cried thinking about the logistics of it and I just felt too unwell to go in.

I waited till DP came home from work at lunchtime and went back to bed to see if that helped and ended up sleeping till after 5pm.

I'm feeling very nauseas today and have been vomitting overnight so I'm not sure if this is a virus or a sign of BP, high or low. I've decided since I've woken up feeling so bad again that I better go get checked somewhere, so I managed to get an appointment at my GPs just to see the nurse (GP is booked out for weeks here, I have to book my an appointments 3 weeks ahead!). So she can check my BP and protein if needed and then if it's all high I can see the doctor.

I'm still quite swollen so it wouldn't surprise me if it's at all up.

I'm over living here at the moment, its so nice but when there isn't even a local hospital or clinic to just go into on a Sunday rather than having to drive to and through a major city just to get a BP check, it's ridiculous. There is actually no where locally on a Sunday to have these things done, not even a clinic or any GPs in the area open. I could have gone to the chemist, but find like you do Fletch that the reading is inaccurate and it can cause panic LOL.

Thanks so much again girls! I bet I've just got a silly virus after all this

Thanks Fletch :hug: I didn't end up going. I was worried I would vomit on the way there and I had to catch a bus and take my two kiddies with me as they aren't back at school yet, and thinking of doing all that feeling so dizzy and nauseas seemed like a bad idea so I ended up cancelling it. My AN appointment is on Thursday at the big hospital and I'm just going to wait till then I think and hope it's okay in the meantime. Last thursday, BP was 135/88 so it's not too high and there was just a trace, if it was at all higher I'd probably be more worried and getting it checked straight out.

This nausea and dizziness has been so strong today that it just must be a virus one would think. And even if it is PE coming on again, whilst I don't have a headache, tummy ache or spots, I think it's safe to wait three days. I just think of those scary stories and worry I'll hurt bubs waiting, but I just can't go feeling this blek or it will go wrong.

Maybe it's m/s getting me back, I only had it for 2 weeks in first tri LOL.

Love your belly BTW, LF looks like he's growing great!

Hi Tara, I've got to say I'm worried about you as well. Can someone mind the kids so you can get a decent rest in during the day. Try to lie down as much as you can until you get seen.

xxxTake Care!

Awww thanks so much for your concern Fletch and MaryDean. Kids are back at school today, the biggest problem is due to silly phobia's I have, I don't drive and that is why the hospital thing is such a big deal. DP and I own our own business, so just driving on a 3 hr round trip isn't that easy most of the time.

I felt a lot better today and went into get my BP checked, just by a nurse. It's getting there, 140/90 and i didn't do the protein check because I'm feeling better. 140/90 is usually hospitialized here if protein shows up, so I'm still going to wait till thursday and gently spend the next two days getting things ready in case they keep me in. i'm not panicking, it could have been worse, but I'd say it explains why I've been off, it probably has been higher than that the last few days and going up and down, hence the extremely strong dizzy spells.

Would you believe I'm nearly 36 weeks and have nothing set up for bubs, it's still all in boxes, big stripy bags and big tubs. Half only is washed and I haven't packed my hospital bag yet, so that's what the next few days is going to be about. DP can do the heavy stuff after work. If I go into hospital now like the nurse wanted, and they keep me in indefinately, I reckon my BP will just stay up anyway with nothing done here at home LOL.

IL's are visiting this weekend which never helps my stress levels, and MIL was obsessed with the hope of me going into labour while she is here. Now I"m scared that all her vibes might have done something and I"ll have to be induced or something LOL. Great time for getting BP checks :rolleyes:

Thanks so much for your advice and concern and kind words :hug: