Description of Exercises for Vertigo

If you suffer from vertigo, you often feel as if you are spinning or whirling. You may also feel dizzy, lightheaded, faint or unsteady. These symptoms are a result of a disturbance in balance, according to the Health Communities website. People sometimes get vertigo from an inner ear disorder. If you have Meniere's disease or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, you may have to deal with vertigo your whole life. Exercises can help your body adjust to the dizziness, according to WebMD.

Beginner Exercises

• When you first begin exercising, you should start with someone near you who can catch you in case you feel as if you are going to fall. With all the exercises, stand up with a chair in front of you and a wall behind you in case you feel dizzy. Stand with your feet together, and put your arms to the side. Hold for 30 seconds. Do this twice a day. When you feel comfortable, do this exercise with your eyes closed.

  Move your feet shoulder-width apart, and stand with your arms at your sides. Slowly shift your weight from your toes to your heels, without raising your feet. Sway back and forth 20 times. Do this exercise twice a day. Try to progress to 30 sways with your eyes closed.

  Keep the same upright position and lean from left to right, shifting your weight from foot to foot. Repeat 20 times. Do this twice a day. Try to progress to 30 leans with your eyes closed.

  Stand normally, arms to your sides, and march in place, lifting your knees high. Repeat 20 times. Progress to 30 times with your eyes closed.

Advanced Exercises

• Stand with a chair in front of you and a wall behind you. Stand in your normal position with your arms at your sides. Turn 180 degrees. Hold the position for 10 seconds or until any dizziness goes away. Turn the other way. Do this five times. If one side makes you dizzier, concentrate on turning more that way. Progress to turning in a complete circle with your eyes closed.

  Stand with your arms at your sides. Look up and down 10 times. Move your head so that your ear touches your shoulder from side to side 10 times. Look left and right 10 times. Progress to 15 to 20 times each with your eyes closed.

Walking Exercises

• Do these exercises in a hallway and have someone with you in case you feel like you are going to fall. Walk five steps and come to an abrupt stop. Wait 10 seconds or until you aren't dizzy anymore. Repeat until you walk 50 feet. Do this twice a day, working up to 100 feet.

  Walk five steps, turn around and come back. Wait 10 seconds or until you aren't dizzy anymore. Do this five times, and progress to 10 times.

  Walk while turning your head to the left and the right with every other step for 50 feet. Walk another 50 feet, moving your head up and down. Walk the final 50 feet touching your ear to your shoulder, side to side. You are probably going to weave quite a bit with this exercise. You measure progression by the less you weave over time. WebMD recommends that you have someone with you while you do this exercise.