Treatment depends on the causes of dizziness and the person’s health and medical history. Usually, therapy is simple and effective.

Medication-related Dizziness

Many drugs are linked to dizziness, light-headedness, and increased risk of falls. They include drugs used to treat:

• Anxiety, depression, and insomnia
• Epilepsy
• Psychosis
• High blood pressure

Stopping, replacing, or adjusting the doses of these medications may help dizziness.

Benign Positional Paroxysmal Vertigo (BPPV)

This type of vertigo often gets better within a few days or weeks without treatment. However, a health care professional can do the painless and effective “Epley maneuver.” This 15-minute procedure involves slow head and body movements to adjust any loose calcium crystals in your inner ears.

After the Epley maneuver, a person must:

• Keep their treated ear above their shoulder level for the rest of the day
• Avoid lying down
• Keep the head slightly elevated on pillows that night

Symptoms should be gone the next day but repeating the maneuver may be necessary.

Labyrinthitis

Your healthcare professional may prescribe motion-sickness medications to treat vertigo and dizziness. Antibiotics may be necessary. A healthcare professional may recommend rehabilitation exercises if the condition does not end quickly.

This condition can go away without medications.

Meniere’s disease

This disease is not curable, but medication can ease the symptoms. Other treatments include:

• Water pills and a low salt diet to help reduce fluid build-up in the inner ear. A limit of 1,500 mg of salt per day may be necessary.
• Rehabilitation exercises may also help when symptoms continue.
• Distribute meals evenly throughout to regulate the fluids in your body. Five or six small meals may be better than three large ones. 

Sudden Low Blood Pressure

Medications and lifestyle changes can help with orthostatic hypotension.

Medications Reviews

Changing medications you are taking may be needed necessary. Some medications may be helpful in treating orthostatic hypotension, including those that:

• Increase the amount of blood in your body
• Raise blood pressure while you are standing up

Diet and Other Lifestyle Changes

• Increasing the amount of salt in your food
• Reducing or eliminating alcohol
• Increasing fluids
• Avoiding sudden shifts in positions, especially after being in bed or sitting, eating a large meal, or using the toilet
• Getting up slowly and waiting a few minutes until any dizziness has passed before beginning to walk
• Wearing over-the-knee pressure stockings to help prevent blood pooling in your feet and lower legs
• Avoiding walking or exercising in hot weather
• Moving slowly and keeping the head elevated when lying down

Last Updated December 2022