Finding Balance: Healing From A Decade of Vestibular Disorders

Finding Balance: Healing From A Decade of Vestibular Disorders has been incredibly helpful to me. I have been struggling with Meniere's disease for 5 years, and I just now feel like I'm finding helpful information. Sue Hickey had the foresite to document everything from the time she was diagnosed with vestibular problems through the process of healing. The practical information is invaluable, and the summaries at the end of each chapter help the reader easily locate information for later use. But, the most encouraging part of the book is Ms. Hickey's tenacity! Her desire to live a full and meaningful life, and the drive to continue through the obstacles placed before her, only serves to inspire the same from others. The journey she took affected me deeply: as a vestibular patient you usually go through the ups and downs of recovery on your own, but to read of someone who has experienced many of the same things touched me. I hope that others with vestibular conditions, including their family members, friends and physicians, will read and share Ms. Hickey's book.

To be fair there are some general helpful points in this book but way too much of it involves her career and personal drama and unexplainable witholding of key information until very far along in treatment.It's a revelation when she finally tells doctor that she's a longtime vegan and once they address that her treatments are a lot more sucessful and disease is under control remarkably. Also she mentions several times that she has Herpes but doesn't expand on what type and exactly what effects her flareups caused.All things considered this book is old, very much outdated as far as today's treatments, and the author struggles with several underlying mental conditions involving her loss of job/father and acceptance of the basic facts of being chronically ill. One has to wonder how much better, quicker her treatments would have progressed if she had seen a mental therapist or psychiatrist from the beginning....

I learned more about my vestibular symptoms/disorders from this book than I have in 10 years of "treatment." My plan is to take much of what I've learned to the oto neurologist appointment I set up just before opening this book.In addition to the easily-understood medical details, the author tells her complex and emotional story in a way that is eminently human. I wanted nothing more than to see her be cured, but it's more complicated than that. As she puts so eloquently, "It seems to be impossible to try any treatment with detachment—truly not expecting a positive result but being open to it. Being "open to" is clearly the crack that hope sneaks through."This book gives hope to vestibular disorder patients and their families.

The author provides a clear, yet detailed explanation of her treatment program for her illness. It is a process that takes over eight years, and still at the end of the book, she is not well. She has learned to live with a very debilitating disorder. ...This book provides interesting insights about an unusual disease. We appreciate and applaud the author's courage and perseverance.

I really liked this book. The way i was written was very expressive and I could relate to the feelings that she was going through. Even when she wrote with no emotion because that was how she was feeling, I could feel her despair. Read it.....We take lots of things for granted.....this will make you take a second look

This book was so helpful in learning how to cope with a vestibular disorder. Two years ago, I woke up one morning deaf in one ear and experiencing extreme vertigo. The doctors ran of series of tests which, similar to Sue Hickey's experience, did not give me any answers. I was basically "written off" by the doctors and left with many unanswered questions/symptoms. This book answered many of those questions and has given me new ways to manage my day. Thank you Sue!

Not a spiritual book, but a medical anomoly. At the time I had had a terrifying dizzy spell that left me scrambling for help. To this day, not sure what caused it. But nice to have a book to help sort things out.

If you want to read a book about the authors long struggle with her condition ,fine. If you are looking for practical suggestions like exercises, vitamins, massage etc. then find another book. There wrere no practical suggestions for BPPV (which I have) and only a little mention of it. There is nothing at all about Meniere's or MAV-migraine associated vertigo ( which I also have). I was hoping for some suggestions of things which I could do to help myself.

A really helpful book when you have been suffering from a vestibular episode for 6 months and no one seems to understand what is wrong, although this poor lady had a really terrible time it did provide some comfort that there were others out there with the same symptoms and in the US there are clearly people able to help. Not found anyone in the UK from my experience, only doctors wanting you take drugs that make you feel worse.

Am sorry to say that I regret buying this book and thought on the whole I had wasted my money. I thought it rather repetitive and I got very bored by all the details of the authors work/career problems. There were some useful information about vestibular disorders but I wish I had spent my money on something else.

Fantastic book

This is the first account I've read which documents the emotional aspects of this disorder: the feelings of loss, despair and disbelief plus acceptance. I'm sure many conditions mirror this but I'm also convinced that the unique qualities of a vestibular disorder especially the invisible symptoms and the cognitive impairment magnify these feelings.

GOOD READ