Why Am I Still Dizzy After a Concussion?
Dizziness is one of the most frustrating symptoms you can experience after a concussion.
You may feel dizzy when you:
Turn your head
Get out of bed
Walk
Exercise
Look up or down
Move through a busy environment
Watch something move
Use a computer or phone
You may describe the sensation as spinning, lightheadedness, imbalance, feeling "off," or feeling like your surroundings aren't keeping up with you.
And if it's been weeks or months since your concussion, you may be wondering:
Why am I still dizzy?
The answer isn't always straightforward.
Dizziness after concussion can have several different causes, including vestibular dysfunction, BPPV, visual problems, neck-related issues, and difficulty processing movement and sensory information.
Understanding the type of dizziness you're experiencing is an important first step.
What Causes Dizziness After a Concussion?
Your brain receives information from several systems to help you understand where you are in space.
These include:
Your inner ear and vestibular system
Your eyes
Your muscles and joints
Your neck
Your brain's ability to process all of this information
After a concussion, these systems may not work together as efficiently as they did before.
When the information doesn't match, your brain may interpret it as movement or instability.
The result can be dizziness, vertigo, imbalance, nausea, or visual discomfort.
Related Article: Why Do I Have Brain Fog After a Concussion?
What Is Vestibular Dysfunction?
The vestibular system is located primarily in your inner ear and provides information about movement and head position.
Your brain combines vestibular information with information from your eyes and body to help you maintain balance and understand movement.
If this system isn't functioning normally after a concussion, you may experience:
Dizziness
Imbalance
Motion sensitivity
Nausea
Difficulty walking
Symptoms when turning your head
Difficulty in busy environments
Vestibular rehabilitation is one treatment approach used for persistent vestibular symptoms after concussion.
Could I Have BPPV After a Concussion?
Yes.
BPPV, or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, is a condition involving the inner ear that can cause brief episodes of spinning when you change the position of your head.
It can occur after a head injury.
Typical triggers may include:
Rolling over in bed
Lying down
Sitting up
Looking up
Looking down
Turning your head
BPPV is different from many other causes of post-concussion dizziness.
That's why identifying the specific pattern of your dizziness matters.
If your symptoms sound like BPPV, a healthcare professional can perform appropriate positional testing and determine whether treatment such as a repositioning maneuver is appropriate.
Related Article: Vertigo After Concussion (BPPV)
Why Do I Feel Dizzy When I Walk?
Walking seems simple, but it requires your brain to process a huge amount of information.
Your eyes are constantly taking in movement.
Your inner ear is detecting head motion.
Your joints and muscles are providing information about where your body is.
Your brain has to combine all of these signals while controlling your movement.
After a concussion, this process may become more difficult.
You may feel:
"I'm walking, but I don't feel stable."
or
"Everything around me feels like it's moving."
Busy environments can be particularly challenging because there is so much visual information for your brain to process.
Why Do Stores Make Me Dizzy After a Concussion?
This is surprisingly common among people with persistent concussion symptoms.
Walking through a grocery store, airport, sporting event, or crowded shopping center can be much more difficult than walking around your house.
Why?
Because you're dealing with:
Moving people
Bright lights
Shelves and patterns
Noise
Head movement
Visual motion
Constant changes in your surroundings
Your brain has to process all of this simultaneously.
If your vestibular and visual systems are still sensitive, this amount of sensory input can trigger dizziness or overwhelm.
Why Does Exercise Make My Dizziness Worse?
Exercise adds another layer of demand.
Your heart rate and breathing increase while your brain is also processing movement.
If you have vestibular dysfunction, moving your head while exercising can trigger symptoms.
If autonomic regulation is contributing, exertion itself may provoke symptoms.
If your vision is contributing, exercising in visually stimulating environments may make things worse.
That's why dizziness after concussion isn't always just a balance problem.
Related Article: Why Does Exercise Make My Concussion Symptoms Worse?
Why Does Looking at My Phone Make Me Dizzy?
Your eyes and vestibular system work together to help your brain understand movement.
When you're looking at a screen, your eyes may be focusing on small text while the content moves across the screen.
Scrolling can be particularly challenging because your eyes see movement while your body is relatively still.
After a concussion, that mismatch may trigger dizziness, nausea, headache, or visual discomfort.
Can Neck Problems Cause Dizziness After a Concussion?
The neck contains sensory receptors that provide your brain with information about head and body position.
A concussion can also occur along with a neck injury.
Neck pain, stiffness, restricted movement, or altered sensory information from the neck may contribute to symptoms in some people.
This is one reason a comprehensive concussion evaluation may look beyond the brain and vestibular system alone.
What Is Vestibular Rehabilitation?
Vestibular rehabilitation is a specialized form of physical therapy designed to address problems involving balance, dizziness, gaze stability, motion sensitivity, and other vestibular symptoms.
Depending on the individual's symptoms, rehabilitation may include:
Eye-head coordination exercises
Balance exercises
Habituation exercises
Gaze stabilization
Walking and movement exercises
Positional testing and appropriate treatment for BPPV
Research supports considering vestibular rehabilitation for people with persistent vestibular dysfunction after concussion, although treatment should be individualized.
What If My Dizziness Has Lasted for Months?
Persistent dizziness deserves attention.
You don't necessarily have to simply wait for it to disappear.
A healthcare professional trained in concussion and vestibular rehabilitation can help determine whether the symptoms are related to:
Vestibular dysfunction
BPPV
Visual dysfunction
Neck-related problems
Exercise intolerance
Autonomic regulation
Or a combination of factors
Finding the contributing factors is often more useful than simply treating "dizziness" as one symptom.
Related article: Why Do I Still Have Concussion Symptoms Months Later?
How The Concussion Solution Can Help
Dizziness rarely exists in isolation.
You may also be dealing with headaches, exercise intolerance, brain fog, visual sensitivity, sleep problems, or difficulty returning to normal activities.
That's why The Concussion Solution addresses multiple areas rather than focusing on one symptom alone.
The program includes vestibular strategies along with exercise progression, visual and cognitive exercises, autonomic retraining, neck and headache strategies, sleep, pacing, and relaxation.
Learn More About The Concussion Solution
Don't Just Learn to Live With Dizziness
If you're still dizzy months after a concussion, it's worth asking why.
Your symptoms may be coming from one system—or several systems interacting with each other.
Understanding the possible contributors can give you a much clearer direction for what to work on next.
Learn More About The Concussion Solution
Frequently Asked Questions About Dizziness After Concussion
How long does dizziness last after a concussion?
Dizziness often improves during concussion recovery, but some people experience persistent symptoms for weeks or months. Persistent dizziness should be evaluated to determine potential causes.
Why am I still dizzy months after my concussion?
Possible contributors include vestibular dysfunction, BPPV, visual problems, neck-related symptoms, and difficulty tolerating movement or exercise.
Can a concussion cause vertigo?
Yes. Concussion can be associated with vertigo and other vestibular symptoms. BPPV is also a possible cause of positional vertigo after head injury.
Can vestibular therapy help after a concussion?
Vestibular rehabilitation may be appropriate for people with persistent vestibular symptoms after concussion. Research supports its use in selected patients.
Why do busy places make me dizzy after a concussion?
Busy environments provide large amounts of visual motion and sensory information. Some people with persistent concussion symptoms have difficulty processing this information, which can contribute to dizziness or overwhelm.
If you want a structured, step-by-step approach to recovery, you can learn more below.
