Q Every morning when I turn my head, the ceiling spins for tens of seconds. Why does this happen?
A When the otoliths (calcium carbonate crystals) in your inner ear become dislodged and flow into a semicircular canal, the lymph fluid sloshes every time you move your head, causing brief but intense spinning vertigo. This is the classic pattern of BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo), the most common cause of dizziness.
Detailed Answer
The balance organ deep in the ear has attached otoliths (calcium carbonate crystals) that sense position. When these break loose and enter a semicircular canal, which senses rotation, BPPV occurs. When you turn your head or lie down and get up, the otoliths disturb the flow of lymph fluid so the brain receives false rotation signals, producing intense vertigo that usually subsides within a minute but recurs. Hearing loss or a blocked-ear sensation is generally not present.
Korean Medicine Clinic Perspective
At Dongjedang, we do not view BPPV merely as a problem of crystals in the ear. We interpret it as a state in which dampness and phlegm (dameum), sticky metabolic waste formed when the body's fluid metabolism stagnates, disrupt the lymphatic circulation in the ear. There is often an underlying tendency of heat above and cold below (sangyeol-hahan), where stress and digestive burden cause heat and pressure to gather in the head. Our goal is to address not only the otoliths themselves but also the internal environment that keeps causing the crystals to dislodge.
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