Most vertigo you can treat at home, especially if it’s triggered by changes in head position like rolling over in bed or looking up. That type, called BPPV, accounts for the majority of vertigo cases and is caused by tiny calcium crystals dislodging inside your inner ear. Simple head maneuvers can guide those crystals back into place, often resolving symptoms in one or two sessions.
Why Position Changes Cause Vertigo
Your inner ear contains fluid-filled canals that detect rotation. Tiny calcium crystals normally sit in a neighboring chamber, but when they drift into one of those canals, they slosh around with every head movement and send false signals to your brain. The result is a spinning sensation that lasts seconds to about a minute each time you move your head a certain way. This is BPPV, and it’s the most common cause of vertigo by a wide margin.
The good news: because the problem is mechanical, the fix is mechanical too. You reposition the crystals by moving your head through a specific sequence so gravity pulls them out of the canal and back where they belong.
The Epley Maneuver
The Epley maneuver is the most well-studied home treatment for BPPV. It works in about 8 out of 10 people after a single session, and success rates climb to roughly 90 percent with repetition. You’ll need to know which ear is affected. The “bad” ear is typically the one that triggers spinning when you turn toward it while lying down.
Here’s the sequence, holding each position for 20 to 30 seconds before moving to the next:
- Sit on a bed with your legs out in front of you. Turn your head 45 degrees toward the affected ear.
- Lie back quickly so your head hangs slightly off the edge of the bed, still turned 45 degrees. This step often triggers vertigo. Wait for it to pass.
- Slowly turn your head 90 degrees to the opposite side, so it’s now angled 45 degrees toward the unaffected ear.
- Roll your entire body to that same side so your nose points toward the floor.
- Stay on your side for 20 to 30 seconds, then slowly sit up.
You can repeat the maneuver two or three times in a row if the first round doesn’t fully resolve the spinning. Some people feel mildly unsteady for the rest of the day afterward, which is normal.
The Half-Somersault Maneuver
If the Epley is hard to do alone, or if it makes you too dizzy, the Half-Somersault maneuver is a solid alternative. Developed by Dr. Carol Foster at the University of Colorado, it was specifically designed for self-treatment. In a head-to-head comparison, both maneuvers relieved symptoms, but patients reported less dizziness and fewer complications when using the Half-Somersault on their own.
The basic sequence:
- Kneel on the floor and tip your head back to look at the ceiling briefly.
- Place your head on the floor as if you’re about to do a somersault, tucking your chin toward your knees.
- Turn your head 45 degrees toward the affected ear. Wait for any dizziness to stop.
- Raise your head to back level (keeping it turned) so it’s in line with your spine while you’re on all fours. Wait again.
- Raise your head to a fully upright position, keeping the turn, then sit back on your heels.
Because you stay closer to the ground and don’t need to lie on a bed’s edge, this maneuver feels more manageable for most people doing it without help.
What to Do After a Maneuver
For the first two nights after a successful repositioning, sleep with your head elevated at roughly a 45-degree angle, about halfway between flat and fully upright. A wedge pillow or a stack of regular pillows works. Avoid sleeping on the side of the affected ear. These precautions help keep the crystals from drifting back into the canal before they settle into place.
During the day, try to keep your head relatively upright. Avoid looking straight up, bending far forward, or making quick head movements for at least 48 hours. You don’t need to be rigid about it, just mindful.
Vitamin D and Long-Term Prevention
There’s a nutritional angle worth knowing about. A large meta-analysis in BMJ Open found that people with BPPV tend to have lower vitamin D levels than people without it, and supplementing vitamin D in those who are deficient led to fewer repeat episodes and longer stretches without symptoms. The relationship between vitamin D and recurrence isn’t fully settled, but levels below 20 ng/mL are considered deficient by endocrine guidelines, and correcting a deficiency is low-risk.
If your vertigo keeps coming back, a simple blood test can check your vitamin D status. Beyond supplements, regular sun exposure and foods like fatty fish, eggs, and fortified dairy contribute to healthy levels.
Lifestyle Adjustments That Help
Dehydration and poor sleep can both worsen dizziness, even outside of BPPV. Staying well-hydrated and keeping a consistent sleep schedule won’t cure vertigo, but they reduce the background unsteadiness that makes episodes feel worse.
If you know which side is affected, get into the habit of turning toward the opposite side when getting out of bed. Sit at the edge for a few seconds before standing. These small changes reduce the chance of triggering an episode first thing in the morning, which is when BPPV tends to be most noticeable.
When Home Treatment Isn’t Enough
BPPV is by far the most common cause of vertigo, but it’s not the only one. Home maneuvers work specifically because they address loose crystals in the posterior ear canal. If your vertigo doesn’t follow the typical BPPV pattern (brief spinning triggered by specific head positions, lasting under a minute per episode), something else may be going on.
Vertigo that comes with new hearing loss, persistent ringing in one ear, severe headache, difficulty speaking, double vision, or trouble walking in a straight line points to causes that need medical evaluation. The same applies if you’ve done the maneuvers correctly several times over a week without improvement. A vestibular therapist or ENT specialist can identify which canal is involved, confirm the diagnosis, and perform the repositioning with more precision than is possible on your own.