When you roll over in bed and the room spins, you’re not imagining it. That sudden dizziness is often caused by tiny calcium crystals—called canaliths, small particles in the inner ear that normally help sense head position. Also known as otoconia, these crystals can break loose and drift into the wrong part of your ear, triggering false signals to your brain. This condition is called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, a common inner ear disorder triggered by head movement, or BPPV. It’s not dangerous, but it can make everyday tasks like bending down or getting out of bed feel impossible.
Canalith repositioning is the go-to fix for BPPV. It’s not surgery. It’s not drugs. It’s a series of controlled head movements—usually done in a clinic, but sometimes taught for home use—that guide those loose crystals back to where they belong. The most common technique, the Epley maneuver, takes under five minutes and works in most cases after just one or two tries. Doctors don’t guess at this—they test your eye movements to confirm the problem is BPPV before starting. If you’ve been told your dizziness is "just stress" or "age-related," ask if canalith repositioning has been tried. It’s the most proven, non-invasive treatment for this issue, backed by decades of clinical use.
Why does this work? Your inner ear has fluid-filled canals lined with hair cells that detect motion. When canaliths float into the semicircular canals, they push on those cells even when you’re still, tricking your brain into thinking you’re spinning. Repositioning moves the crystals out of the canals and into a sac where they can’t cause trouble. It’s like shaking sand out of a toy—you’re not fixing the toy, you’re just clearing the debris. People who’ve had this done say the difference is immediate: one minute they’re nauseous and dizzy, the next they can sit up without fear. It’s not a cure for everything that causes vertigo, but for BPPV, it’s the gold standard.
You’ll find posts here that dig into related topics—like how to spot fake vertigo treatments, what other inner ear disorders look like, and why some people get BPPV again after treatment. There’s also info on how medications can mask symptoms without fixing the root cause, and why skipping professional diagnosis can lead to unnecessary tests or even wrong treatments. This isn’t about pills or procedures. It’s about understanding your body’s balance system and knowing what actually moves the needle when you’re stuck in a spinning world.
BPPV is the most common cause of vertigo, triggered by loose inner ear crystals. Canalith repositioning, like the Epley maneuver, fixes it in minutes - no pills or scans needed. Learn how it works and why it's the only proven cure.