Vestibular rehabilitation is a personalized, exercise-based therapy designed to help people experiencing dizziness, vertigo, or balance difficulties caused by inner ear or nervous system issues.
A trained therapist performs a thorough assessment and creates a plan tailored to your needs. This may include exercises to improve balance, gaze stability, and head movement, along with guidance on managing symptoms. If you are experiencing “positional vertigo”, your treatment plan may also include repositioning maneuvers.
The goal is to retrain your brain and body to compensate for vestibular challenges, reduce symptoms, and improve your overall function and quality of life.
Vestibular issues can cause a variety of symptoms. Some of the most common include:
- Dizziness or feeling lightheaded
- Vertigo (a sensation of spinning/movement)
- Imbalance or unsteadiness
- Vision changes, such as blurry vision, motion sensitivity, or difficulty reading
- Nausea
- Changes in hearing or ear fullness
If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, a vestibular assessment can help determine the cause and guide treatment.
Vertigo is the sensation that you or your surroundings are spinning or moving, even when you are still. It’s important to know that vertigo is a symptom, not a diagnosis.
Did you know that vertigo is different from general dizziness? Dizziness is more of a lightheaded, woozy or “floaty” feeling.
Vertigo is generally classified into two main types, based on where the problem comes from:
- Peripheral Vertigo: The more common type, caused by issues in the balance organ in your inner ear or the nerve connecting it to your brain. This type affects the body’s balance system directly.
- Central Vertigo: Caused by conditions affecting the brain or brainstem, such as a stroke or traumatic brain injury. This type affects the brain’s balance centers rather than the inner ear.
Vertigo is a symptom, not a disease itself, and understanding its type helps guide the right treatment.
Vestibular therapy helps with dizziness, vertigo, imbalance, and nausea by retraining the brain and body’s balance system to compensate for dysfunction caused by issues like inner ear problems, head trauma, or neurological conditions. Treatment may involve personalized exercises such as gaze stability, balance training, and positional maneuvers. These can be very helpful to improve stability, reduce symptoms, decrease fall risk, and enhance quality of life.
A vestibular assessment begins with a detailed conversation about your symptoms and medical history, followed by a physical exam focused on your balance and inner ear function. Your clinician will assess how your eyes, head, and body respond to movement through simple tasks like following a target with your eyes, turning your head, or standing and walking on different surfaces. Infrared goggles may be used during parts of the assessment to closely observe eye movements, which helps identify specific vestibular disorders.
By the end of your visit, your clinician will review the findings with you and provide an initial diagnosis along with a personalized treatment plan.
An assessment can be scheduled with either our physiotherapists or chiropractors.
Yes. Many people who experience a concussion develop vestibular symptoms such as dizziness, imbalance, nausea, or blurred vision. VRT helps retrain the brain and inner ear to work together again.
At VOR Physiotherapy, VRT for concussion may include:
- Balance and coordination training – to reduce dizziness and improve stability
- Eye and vision exercises
- Neck and posture treatment
Gradual return-to-activity plans – to safely get back to work, school, or sports.
Vestibular disorders happen when the balance system is damaged or not working properly. Common causes include:
- Viral infections
- Head injuries
- Neurological conditions
- Aging
- Inner ear problems (in the vestibular system)
- Medications or other diseases
These issues can affect the inner ear or the brain’s ability to process balance information, leading to symptoms like dizziness, imbalance, and disorientation.
Yes! At-home exercises are an important part of recovery from vestibular disorders. You’ll be taught how to perform these exercises and provided with instruction sheets.
We also offer telehealth appointments for patients who cannot make it to the clinic. This ensures you can receive safe, effective care from home while following your personalized program.
Both our physiotherapists and chiropractors have similar training in treating vestibular disorders. You can book with either of them and get the same quality care that VOR is known for.