I am disappointed not to find a reply to this post, because it describes my symptoms precisely.

Bethh523, assuming you have gotten better from this, how long did your dizziness last? I have been dizzy and borderline nauseous for the last two days and it does not seem to be getting any better.

Anyone?

Hi alex- its been awilen now are you better,i have the same thing and am so tired of it any good news or advice? cheers

I have been to the hospital multiple times since Jan 22 when the problems started, and after all that time they've finally told me, "You have an inner ear virus, which is causing all of your 'balance' issues. It will go away slowly." Slowly. No medications or anything because it will go away slowly. It was really severe at the start as I would get vertigo from looking down ten feet, I had severe photo sensitivity issues which are now mild photo sensitivity issues. I can't look at ink blots, certain colors or anything that normally would be ok for me because they're now a problem. I'm not allowed to be myself until it goes away...slowly. It's been four months. They have not told me how long slowly is, or how one gets an inner ear virus. I think inner ear visus is BS for I don't know what the hell I'm doing and I give up.

I feel the same- am totally fed up. had a problem with my ear since Jan, started like an inner ear infection with dizziness, nausea, and tinnitus. Got progressively worse, there began to be pain in my neck on one side, feeling tired and run down constantly. 2 courses of antibiotics had no effect (presumably as it's a virus) and had an MRI scan which came back normal (I do NOT feel normal) now waiting a month to see the ENT consultant again. I cut out alcohol, which has helped a bit, taking so many vitamin supplements am rattling. It's been 5 months now and its still here, some days are worse than others. what worries me is that its spreading to my other ear, now i can hear a faint ringing there. I'm a teacher, so the ringing is a nightmare, and it hurts to use my voice. I hope it goes away soon.

I understand. All of my tests came back saying that I'm either normal, or better than normal though I definitely cannot be myself. My problem seems to also include memories of the day in which suddenly all these problems started. The memory of anything that brings my mind back to my situation causes the problems as if they had just started. I think it is an EEG problem. Which I have to check with a neurologist for, but i've spent somuch money on worthless doctors who know nothing about their practice, that I really can't arrord to see a neurologist, or a neurologist who doesn't know what they're doing. My eyes seem to cause most of my troubles, so I've been taking vitamin C and B complex B2 B6 B12 which seem to have helped decent amount. The issue hasn't gone away, and doctors seem to try to keep our situation hush hush so people never know what is it until they have it. Eating healthy, and taking vitamins corresponding to the parts affected is the best advice i can offer. Find a naturalist book and look up all your symptoms, then follow the processes no matter how over the top it may seem. It'll help you feel at least better, though I can't say I know when of if this problem will go away by itself. If anyone find a solution, please do post it. I have this forum linked to my email because I too would like to get rid of this problem as soon as possible.

Something that has helped a bit, at least with the fuzziness I get on one side, and the feeling of being 'blocked up', is an aqueous nasal spray given to me by the doctor. I think back to the day this started- if only I knew it was going to last this long! I know it sounds dramatic, but it's really affected me and made me quite depressed, and an awful person to be around. I'm taking a lot of Vit C (definitely too much, 2000mg a day...) 1000mg of echinacea, zinc, vit B complex, vitamin D, Gingko Bilboa, Ginseng and probiotics.

Yeah, nasal spray is all I've gotten. I try to stay positive and not dwell on the problem, it depresses and paranoys. It's important to keep your composure. Only your mind can help you through not being allowed to be yourself.

i have had this ear virus? since may and i'm about to lose my mind! my ear didn't hurt at first. i was getting tingling in my arms and hands and a lot of dizziness/vertigo. i went to the ER and they told me i had a pinched nerve in my neck. i do suffer from a spine injury so it wouldn't surprise me. then a few days later my ear had excruciating pain to the point that all i could do was hold my head and cry. the Dr. prescribed me some antibiotics which made the really bad pain go away but it still hurt and felt really stuffy. i was still dizzy and had the neck pain down one side almost like a burning pain and my jaw was a little sore. i went to the ER cause i started having problems with my sinuses which was giving me headaches, racing heart, arm tingling, sensitive skin and so on...i swore i was dying! the ER said i had a sinus infection and gave me more antibiotics. after the 10 days it still didn't go away but i felt a little better! after about a week or so everything started coming back so i went back to the ER and they did a CT of the brain and found nothing and referred me to an ENT, the ENT looked in my sinuses and throat with the scope and said he couldn't find anything wrong with my EAR or my sinuses. all i could do was cry cause i was so frustrated for once in my life that there was nothing wrong??? last week the ENT did a CT of my throat with contrast, sinus and brain and some bloodwork and still nothing...i thought for sure these doctors must think i was nuts and i was starting to think it was all in my head and so did everyone else! after arguing with the ENT he said to take 2 more weeks of antibiotics and come back and he will refer me to neuro probably just to shut me up. i haven't picked up the antibiotcs yet and don't want to since i know they will only make me feel a little better for a few days and it's not good to take that much. i still have the arm tingling and pains,stiff shoulders, ear stuffiness with faint pains that come and go, heart racing, sensitive skin and extremely tired. you don't know how relieved i am that a lot of people have had this and it's not just me!!!!!!!!!!!! i think there is hope that some day i will be back to my old happy self...oh also my 3 1/2 year old is complaining that his ears are itching so i think he has a mild case of it as well....has anyone's symptoms completely resolved and how long did it take?

Nope, not completely. I've been to the ER after some complications with the muscles on the left side of my body twitching, but after a CT and a quick heart check, they said there was nothing wrong even though I pointed out that whenever I laid back for a while my heart would "thump" and I'd feel the dizziness. But W/E. I went to the Ophthalmologist and they said there was nothing wrong with my eyes even though I had vertigo issues and got dizzy whenever I looked at the color peach. I then went to the Entomologist and they did some strange tests only to tell be that everything was fine except for the fact that I had an "Inner Ear Virus", not to be confused with ear "infection". They are by far not the same thing. They pretty much cut me off by that point. No follow up or nothing, only to find out that inner ear virus is pretty much a term for a similar case they don't understand. It's like saying "good luck with that". Any way, my problems started abruptly on Jan. 22 around 2:00 PM. Specific I know. From that point, I didn't feel like myself and couldn't explain it to anyone better than that and telling them, very specifically, my symptoms. Now I at least feel like myself again, and I am very grateful for that, but I'm left with a slight paranoia of the things that used to bother me as the stupid doctors had no better advice than "it should go away slowly". Certainly I can feel that I am a lot better after a long fight with myself trying not to develop severe paranoia and the last thing I will do before I ease myself back into my normal lifestyle is go see a neurologist. If you've seen just about everyone, then make sure you see the neurologist. That will be your ultimate reliever in my opinion as they will be able to officially tell you if there is really nothing wrong with you. The way I see it, because we are the ones who have to figure out how to deal with the issue, the symptoms after a while become mental. Early Freudian studies show that with mental sicknesses sometimes just a memory of the sickness would cause a person to feel the effects again. This, of course, only happened when the patient was under the impression that they were still in someway sick. If after everything, the neurologist says you're ok, then take their word and ween yourself back into your normal way of things. Your kid may have an ear infection. Inner ear virus isn't something you can contract, though doctors don't seem to know how anyone gets it in the first place. Its such a rare thing that pretty much the only people you'll find who know about it are those with it. Generally speaking, maybe 1 in 100 doctors may even hear the term "inner ear virus" in their entire career. Don't believe me on that, then ask yourself this: "Why haven't any 'doctors' posted on this forum on a medical help site yet?" Hope that helps.

wow! thank you so much for responding to my post! i am really glad i have someone to talk to that knows how i feel....the muscle twitching and the rapid heartbeat for me comes and goes and it's mostly in my arms and legs and it's pretty annoying! i have body aches but it's only every couple of days. my legs feel really tired a lot...kinda like sciatic nerve pain. i have noticed that my symptoms get worse when it's going to rain i guess cause the pressure is dropping. today i didn't feel much ear pain only the pressure but they were both itching like crazy!i know it's only short lived cause every time i have an ounce of hope that i am going to wake up better it's gone within minutes! the paranoia drives me crazy too. i even went as far as letting everyone know what i wanted for my kids and checked on my life insurance to make sure they would be set....i have gotten a little stronger with thinking i'm gonna die and i just keep saying to myself, "i have lived with this for 3 months and i haven't died from it yet!" the more i read the forums the better i feel and confident that it's gonna go away some day. i have become addicted to the power-c vitamin water (which i guess is better than alcohol...LOL)and hand sanitizer is my best friend..i think i have nearly washed off all my fingerprints from washing so much! i don't commit any crimes anyways...i am still having a hard time getting comfortable in bed so i have been sleeping on the couch for months and my sex drive has almost withered away to nothing! thank god i have a really understanding boyfriend! hopefully tomorrow i will lose another symptom and i will be back to my old self! have a wonderful day everyone!

Yes, it will go away. The symptoms will wither bit by bit.

how are you feeling??? have your symptoms gone away?

Yeah, for the most part almost all the symptoms are gone.

good, i'm glad you feel better!!!mine are slowly slowly going away...i feel a tiny bit better every day....

no one's posted so i guess everyone is feeling better...if anyone else has this..are you having stomach problems along with all the other crazy symptoms this virus comes with???

I just got diagnosed yesterday and my Dr. sent me home from work fo the week. The spinning was so scary and the balance is so far off. I just can't believe that it could last for weeks or may never go away.

Hi all,
I just found this forum and I feel like I am not alone. About 2 weeks ago my throat and right ear started hurting, progressively got that "popped" feeling, you know - like you're under water too. That, along with sharp pain. I saw my family doctor and tried 2 different kinds of antibiotics, and they gave me a pain killer (thank God). After a week with no relief I saw an ENT doctor - the result being a third antibiotic. After 5 more days I went in & the ENT doc cut a little hole in my ear. Over the next couple of days a thin bright yellow fluid kept draining out, especially when I used a heating pad. Now that seized too. Doc gave me antibiotic drops......Long story short - no change whatsoever. The pain is not that bad anymore but other than that, my life is a mess! I can't hear a damn thing, work, school & family life is really hard because of it & I feel dizzy all the time and sometimes get chills. I am tired of going to the doctor, spending a ton of $$$ and no relief.
Seriously, is there anything I can do to make it go away quicker? Please help!
Thanks in advance,
Diana