It’s a condition that can leave your head spinning. You may sense it when you are standing up or even lying still. But that strange wobbly sensation may not be just a dizzy spell.

“Usually the type of spinning, whirling, that’s the term vertigo. When people say vertigo often times they misuse the word by meaning dizziness or lightheadedness,” says physical therapist, Nathalie Grondin with Lee Memorial Health System.

So, what’s the difference? “Dizziness is really an all encompassing term. Kind of an umbrella and under that umbrella are different types of feelings. One of which is vertigo,” she explains. Grondin defines vertigo as a feeling that you or your surroundings are moving, but there is no actual movement. You may feel a bit tilted, you may even feel like you are falling. “Usually if a person has an episode of vertigo that’s more related to the inner ear, they may stumble and have difficulty balancing, but they’ll be able to get up on their feet and get from point a to point b. If a person says, I really can not walk, I really can’t stand up. That’s a more serious cause of vertigo and that needs serious help, urgently,” adds Grondin.

A doctor can determine what is causing your vertigo. Often times it’s an inner ear problem. A problem that in some cases can be fixed in just a few visits to physical therapy. “So what we do in therapy is we try and figure out which motions, which positions are causing the problem. Through guided help, say, okay, do this exercise, it may possibly increase the symptoms, but we retrain the brain to kind of recalibrate itself so symptoms decrease overtime.”

Next Saturday, we’ll take a closer look at the exercises that could help you get back to a balanced life.