The Spinning Room: Your Inner Ear
If the room appears to rotate when you roll over in bed, turn your head sharply, or tip your head back, the inner ear is the most likely source. The vestibular system, housed in the inner ear, sends constant signals about head position and movement. When tiny calcium crystals called otoliths dislodge from their normal position and drift into the semicircular canals, those signals become inaccurate. The brain receives conflicting information and interprets the mismatch as spinning. This is benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, and it is the most common cause of true rotational vertigo. Episodes last seconds to a minute and are reliably triggered by specific head positions. A trained physiotherapist or ENT specialist can often resolve it in one or two sessions using repositioning manoeuvres. If the spinning comes with hearing loss or a roaring sound in one ear, a different inner ear condition may be at work and warrants prompt evaluation.
