All Quiet on the Eastern Front

It's been some time since I updated this blog, and in large part it's been down to a remarkable turnaround in my health since arriving in Korea. Prior to my move, I'd spent three quite poor months with Meniere's, suffering from a near-constant feeling of imbalance and dizziness, although I managed to avoid outright vertigo attacks on the whole. Even so, faced with a choice of vertigo attacks interspersed with good health, versus no attacks but constantly feeling like I was mildly drunk, I'm not sure which is worse.

Just before coming to Korea, and increasingly worried about the thirty-hour journey I would be making to get here, I went back to my doctor and got a four-month supply of 16mg Betahistine tablets, which I started taking immediately. I didn't notice any immediate difference, but with the considerable stress of emptying my house in the UK followed by my long trip and jet-lag, I probably wasn't going to feel very healthy even if I didn't have Meniere's. But within a few days of landing, I started to feel much better.

I've now been in Korea for three months, and aside from two minor vertigo attacks I've had a lot of 'perfect' days where I didn't feel any effects of Meniere's at all. I went through a couple of similar good patches in the UK which probably lasted two or three months each, but it has been several months since the last one.

But is it the Betahistine? I think I've read that in the US, where it's commonly known as Serc, they believe it ineffective for Meniere's and won't prescribe it. I don't think the doctors in the UK are that convinced either, although they do at least let patients take it. It's possible that the sudden turnaround in my health could be one of a number of other factors including reduced stress, more actvity/exercise, a change of diet, and more sleep, which I seem to have had since arriving here.