Before you can start looking for the possible sources of your Meniere’s disease triggers (causes), you have to know how your body works. After all, it is your body that is reacting to make you feel these balance or hearing symptoms.
The very basic premise you have to understand and believe, is how your body functions, NATURALLY and AUTOMATICALLY.
It is always going to follow this “maintenance” process as long as it is healthy and “well-fed”. That means you have provided all the nutrients it requires in one form or another.
The only way the body slows up is through the natural aging process. You have no control over this: it happens to all of us. Our body parts wear out and eventually we die. This is aging. It is inevitable: you can count on.
Aging is natural, degeneration is not. Degeneration can start early in life and has a cause. Degeneration is anything that wears down your body’s natural wellness mechanism over time.
You NEED to believe and understand that your body is programmed to:
- automatically protect you,
- heal you,
- detoxify all your body systems,
- rebalance itself to keep you healthy.
The body’s “default” position is to always to revert back to this state of well-being, i.e. health. This is all about having a healthy immune system. Again, you have no control over this default position: it is a natural automatic process.
However, you do have control over what “thing” you choose to put INTO or ONTO your body.
That “thing” now influences the overall health of your body. If you put in good, healthy things, your body will maintain its healthy state and support your immune system. This doesn’t require any special diets, just wholesome, balanced groups of foods. Your body needs macronutrients (carrots, broccoli, cabbage, etc.) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals, etc.). Either you eat them via meals you prepare, or you use supplements or do both.
If you choose to put in “less than healthy” things, your body will strive to regain its healthy state (immune system), but it will have to do some “cleaning up” and that slows down restoring this healthy state.
Once you understand the natural state of your healthy body, only then can you look to see why it’s not working as you wish it to. THAT means you have put some “thing” into or onto your body that is conflicting with its automatic healthy state.
In order to find this conflict, you need to look at everything you are putting into and onto your body. I get people to make lists by sitting quietly and thinking. Sadly, most people don’t want to do that, but it’s crucial to your success in the search for your cause.)
So how do you look for the trigger of your Meniere’s disease symptoms, this “thing”, this cause?
Recognize WHEN you don’t feel well or normal.
- Note the date
- Place
- Time you first noticed this unwell feeling.
for instance:
- when you started to vomit
- when you first noticed the vertigo
- when you hear the tinnitus
- when you notice the hearing fluctuation.
Please understand that a CAUSE always precedes each incident. And each incident did not happen “a few days ago”, or “last month”. Realize that until that episode, your body as fine, then some “thing” showed up to upset this healthy state.
Be a specific as to date, time and location.
Do not document anything until you are well again. Then recall the episode in as much detail as possible: date, time, location.
Why is your body reacting to a cause?
It will be something that your body feels is potentially harmful to you. Remember its purpose is to protect you. So it automatically reacts.
How does the body react?
In the case of Meniere’s disease, the symptoms will most likely relate to balance or hearing irritations, but often vomiting goes unrecognized as another reaction.
And….some reactions can be milder than others:
- Vomiting is a very serious reaction.
- Mild tinnitus is a lesser reaction than a shrieking noise.
- Vertigo is a stronger reaction than dizziness.
- Hearing loss is often “silence” but hearing fluctuation can be very bothersome.
Here is a list of what a cause could look like. (There is no order to this list of potential “things” or irritants: I simply collected every cause I heard about from readers.) And….please realize that NO ONE has all of these.
This “possible cause” list will be never ending, but this gives you an idea of what to look for.
- dental issues, such as root canals
- low blood pressure
- decaffeinated/specialty coffees
- air fresheners
- fabric softeners
- red wine
- mold
- sulfites
- MSG
- dust
- facial products
- artificial sweeteners
- diet drinks
- drugs
- chemicals
- botanicals
- herbal drinks
- sunscreens
- hair coloring
- deodorants
Can you see how difficult it is to guess at any cause?
Let me give you a couple of examples.
1) a teenage ballet dancer is diagnosed with Meniere’s disease and had to abandon her career. On exploring her situation, it was discovered that her symptoms started after she started using a very strong deodorant (in response to unpleasant body odor). When she stopped using the deodorant, she was fine.
2) a lady was given a dental appliance for her TMJ. Once she removed the appliance, her balance and hearing symptoms vanished.
So search for the cause scientifically: cause and effect.
- Note the date, time, and location of the episode.
- Recall what you were doing in the hours preceding it. if you noticed hearing fluctuation about noon, then go back to 11:30, then to 11:00 AM, then to 10:30 AM, etc.
- Do ONE incident/episode at a time.
An important word about vomiting: it is the body’s way of eliminating a toxin. So look very carefully at the timing of the vomiting. The cause would have shown up not too long before.
Absolutely NOTHING happens in your body without a cause: you may not recognize it easily, but there has to be one.
Know it. Believe it. Find it.
Is this too simplistic? Maybe, but it certainly works if you put the effort into searching for the cause.
- If you would like a copy of our Meniere’s Disease Study Guide, please click here. This guide is a step by step journey exploring your symptoms and what may be causing them.
- If you would like more information on the system that David, and numerous others, have used, please click here; What Finally Worked.
- If you have any health questions or concerns, please feel free to Contact Us and we will be happy to share our knowledge and ideas with you.
Karin Henderson, Retired Nurse
(604) 463-8666 – Pacific Standard Time