Emily’s dry year for Ménière’s society

My story

In 2020, I began feeling sick this was followed by the feeling of being on a elevator constantly. I’d hear buzzing in my ears and lose my sight momentarily, any type of cold would knock me for weeks and it gradually got worse. After months and months of waiting I saw doctors who determined that I may be hypoglycaemic. I thought, ok that’s an easy fix I’ll be careful and have a solid diet. months down the line I still felt awful, constantly in and out of the doctors to see what I could do, I ended up with a blood sugar plate in my arm to constantly monitor what was going on. I was also taking medication to drop my blood sugar before eating which made me feel worse as apposed to better. This continued for months until I saw no change at all on my monitors and decided to continue eating as normal, still no change. I constantly went to the doctors with my symptoms and was dismissed as having a bug or maybe an ear infection this went on for months, I was losing out on so much work worried about going in as I worked in a high risk environment. Fainting wasn’t uncommon for me and I had, had a few seizures with no apparent cause in the past.

Eventually with no diagnosis I decided to travel to my family to go to a private doctor a month later they gave me the diagnosis of Ménière’s disease and partial deafness in my left ear. I felt relief, I hadn’t made this all up and it wasn’t just down to anxiety or eating disorders as so many doctors had rudely said. This also meant a major change in my life as I was about to join the police force which was my life long dream which I’d been studying to do for years. Now I couldn’t Ménière’s disease is on the list to not be considered with the police, this was a major low for me and I felt like I didn’t know what direction to go in.

Eventually I was given some exercises to do to help my attacks and given some anti dizziness pills which calmed them. Fast forward to present day and I’m still waiting to been seen by the NHS to confirm my diagnosis and start my rehabilitation therapy. I’m optimistic now and I know my limits. I am still frequently sick and many foods are a big no but I’ve definitely managed to get a good routine in place to prepare myself when I have an attack.

Working with Ménière’s is difficult, it is such a misunderstood disease and no one has heard of it. I do have a lot of stigma around my sick days still as sometimes I have bad days to here I simply cannot work my 14 hour shifts, this I feel is a major issue in the work force and needs to be address, I have in past jobs been threatened with being sacked for having one sick day with my symptoms. I’ve since changed career paths due to Ménière’s but I still struggle day to day, especially with long hours, but money is a must.

At times I have really struggled, i was diagnosed with depression earlier this year and have received good help in regards to it, but when I feel ill I struggle I disconnect, I’m really glad for the people around me who have been here throughout and continue to be supportive. Some days I’m constantly at the toilet being sick or unable to get out of bed. I hope in the future Ménière’s will be widely recognised and have more of a plan for treatment, this is why the Ménière’s society is so important to me they raise awareness offer support on a disease that is little know but can be very debilitating.

I’ve chosen to go sober for the year not only for charity but in order to help my condition as any drink knocks me for days.

Thankyou for reading And supporting ❤️

The Meniere's Society is the only UK registered charity dedicated solely to supporting those affected by Meniere's disease and other vestibular (inner ear) disorders causing symptoms of dizziness and balance problems. With one in ten people affected by dizziness at some stage, the Meniere's Society provides information and support to sufferers, their families/carers, health professionals and the general public. The Society also raises awareness and funds vital research into these debilitating conditions.