Lightheadedness

What’s lightheadedness?

Lightheadedness is the feeling of faint. You will feel the body heavy and the head will give you feeling of lack of blood. You can also call it reeling sensation. Often it accompanies by loss of balance and cloudy vision.

Although it is not a serious concern yet sometimes it indicates any underlying health condition you must take care of by increasing the chance of falling down. Lightheadedness can happen due to sickness and not enough intake of fluid. But it will improve as soon as you lie or sit down.  

Both dizziness and nausea incorporate lightheadedness making you feel unsteady or imbalanced. If you have any issue in heart, brain and ear or take specific medication then you are more likely to experience it. However, dizziness is slightly more dangerous as it brings change to your balancing sense. As a result, you can fall off easily.

Vertigo is another kind of dizziness that gives false sense of spinning and moving of the surrounding while they are static in reality. It can make you like whirling, swaying, tilting and floating. Most vertigo cases take place because of disorder in inner ear that sends signals to the brain irrelevant to the signals received by sensory nerves and eyes.

What are the causes of lightheadedness?

Apart from positional change, other lightheadedness causes are:

• Stress, anxiety and panic attack
• Fast and very deep breathing
• Dehydration due to illnesses, fever, diarrhoea and vomiting
• Use of illegal drugs, alcohol and tobacco
• Lower blood sugar
• Flu
• Cold
• Altitude sickness
• Allergies
• Certain medication side effects
• Anaemia
• Loss of blood

Sometimes, lightheadedness is far more serious issue if you have:

• Any heart conditions like heart palpitation and heart attack
• Internal bleeding
• Any shock resulting in dropping of blood pressure
• Stroke
• Issues in middle ear

How to prevent lightheadedness?

You can easily prevent it by bringing certain lifestyle changes. Have lots of water when you perform strenuous exercise and get ill. Put on sunglasses when set out in light. Avoid the use of tobacco and alcohol completely to prevent lightheadedness. Don’t take any medications without instructions of the doctor.

Here are some additional tips to improve your life quality:

• Aware of your balance at the time of walking as fall can cause serious injury
• Move slowly and carefully
• Eliminate the chance of falling down by removing the things on which you can trip such as electrical cords and rugs. Place slip-resistant mats to bathroom
• Lie or sit immediately when you feel lightheaded and close your eyes if there is experience severe bout of vertigo
• Avoid driving or operating heavy machines
• Have healthy diet rich in essential nutrients
• Take proper sleep (7-8 hours in aged adults, 7-9 hour for adults and young adults and 8-10 hours for teens)
• Practice relaxation technique like meditation, yoga and deep breathing to de-stress yourself
• Take enough liquids especially plain water

How to treat lightheadedness at home?

Lightheadedness is not so serious or a major concern. So, at many times you can treat it from the comfort of your home. Just follow the given instructions:

• Have plenty of water
• Drink or eat sugary items
• Drink electrolyte fluids
• Sit or lie down to lessen the elevation of head in respect to body
• Take low-salt diet
• Perform balance therapy
• Psychotherapy for reducing anxiety

When to see a doctor?

Visit a doctor right way when you feel lightheaded or lost high blood amount. Sometimes it accompanies stroke and heart attack that deem urgent medical attention. Doctor consultation is must when you experience the following symptoms:

• Vomiting
• Unexplained sweating
• Breathing shortness
• Pain or pressure in chest
• Nausea
• One sided facial drooping
• Feeling cold and sick
• Trouble in speaking

Here is the list of doctors you can think of visiting to treat your lightheadedness: