Dizziness for a week: what to know

The word dizziness covers several sensations. Spinning linked to rolling over or looking up can occur with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. Feeling faint may follow dehydration, heat exhaustion, low blood sugar, or a blood-pressure change. Persistent tiredness can occur with anaemia or iron deficiency anaemia, while a fluttering or irregular pulse can occur with atrial fibrillation. Generalised anxiety disorder may contribute to lightheadedness in some people, but duration alone cannot identify the cause. A clinician may ask about hearing, vision, headaches, recent infection, menstrual bleeding, medicines, and fluid intake.

Keep a symptom diary: write down the time, sensation, position, activity, meals, drinks, and associated symptoms. Stand up in stages and hold a stable surface. Avoid driving, ladders, and other situations where a sudden loss of balance could harm you. Maintain regular fluids and meals unless a clinician has given you a different plan. Arrange an appointment soon because a full week of dizziness is long enough to merit examination, even if the symptoms come and go.

Call emergency services for sudden facial drooping, one-sided weakness, difficulty speaking, severe sudden headache, chest pain, fainting, severe breathing difficulty, confusion, or inability to stand or walk. Seek same-day advice for repeated vomiting, a new irregular heartbeat, repeated falls, or worsening symptoms. If you have known heart disease, are pregnant, or take medicines that affect blood pressure or blood sugar, mention this when arranging care.

Ask what examinations or tests may clarify the cause and whether any medicine could be contributing. Explain whether the sensation is spinning or faintness, what positions trigger it, how it affects walking, and whether you have hearing changes, bleeding, palpitations, thirst, or missed meals.