Tonight is my last post for several days. I’m preparing for a Videonystagmography (VNG) test that will take place on Monday. This is a test to determine vestibular disorders. Traumatic brain injuries, including stroke, can often result in vestibular disorders with symptoms like mine: chronic headache, vertigo, brain fog, nausea, etc. There is no cure, but there are treatments that include physical therapy, medication, and lifestyle changes—all of which I have tried.
From what I understand of the test, I’ll be wearing goggles that record and analyze my eye movements. I’ll be exposed to the very things that trigger my symptoms, like watching moving lights on a digital screen and moving my head in various positions. Additionally, there will be small bursts of warm and cool air into each ear.
Over the next several days, as I pause my podcast and visual use of all digital devices, I’ll depend on VoiceOver, Apple’s screen reader product available for the blind and low vision community, available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. By restricting my exposure to visual triggers, I aim to position myself for minimal torture, I mean pain and nausea on Monday.
Am I full of fear? Yes, but I’m going to do it anyway. I’m going to dig deep, self-searching to maintain emotional balance. Today’s podcast, the last one for several days, is about the need to interact with our difficult emotions. I always refer to them as an emotional color wheel because of the complexity of emotions I face in recovery.
Listen wherever you get your podcasts and YouTube.
Visit me at recoverydailypodcast.com or email me at rachel@recoverydailypodcast.com.
#SelfReflection #EmotionalHealing #VestibularDisorder #TraumaticBrainInjury #MentalHealthMatters #CourageOverFear #ChronicIllnessJourney #MindBodyConnection #EmotionalBalance #RecoveryJourney
