Vertigo Treatment in Fargo, ND

Vertigo and Dizziness Treatment Near You In Fargo, ND

Dizziness is not fun! You stop trusting yourself on stairs. You avoid driving. You turn your whole body instead of your head. And when you describe it to people, the words never quite land, because “dizzy” covers a dozen different sensations.

It’s also frequently dismissed. Bloodwork comes back fine, the scan is clear, and you’re told it’s probably an inner ear thing that will pass. Sometimes it is. But there’s a category of dizziness that originates in the neck which is called cervicogenic dizziness. Because it doesn’t show up on standard vestibular testing, it’s routinely missed.

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Why Your Neck Can Make You Dizzy

Your sense of balance comes from three streams of information: your inner ear, your eyes, and the position sensors in your body, especially in your neck.

The upper cervical spine contains would of the highest densities of mechanoreceptors anywhere in the body. Those receptors are constantly reporting your head’s position and movement to your brainstem and cerebellum, where the information is integrated with vestibular and visual input to produce a stable sense of where you are in space. When cervical joint disfunction, altered alignment, or muscle tension distorts that input, the three systems stop agreeing. Your inner ear says one thing, your neck says another, and the mismatch is experienced as dizziness, unsteadiness, or a floating, disconnected feeling. Often made worse with head movement, worse after sustained postures, and frequently accompanied by neck pain and headaches.

Signs Your Dizziness May Be Cervicogenic

• Dizziness that accompanies or follows neck pain and stiffness
• Symptoms triggered by neck movement or sustained head positions
• A floating, swaying, or unsteady sensation rather than a spinning room
• Episodes lasting minutes to hours, sometimes constant low-grade unsteadiness
• Associated headaches, especially at the base of the skull
• Onset after a whiplash injury or concussion
• Visual strain or difficulty focusing when moving your head

Types of Dizziness – And Which Ones We Treat

Getting this right matters, so here’s the honest breakdown.

BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo) – brief, intense spinning triggered by specific head movements like rolling over in bed or looking up. Caused by displaced crystals in the inner ear. This is diagnosed with positional testing and treated with repositioning maneuvers, which are highly effective. If you have BPPV, that’s what you need, and we’ll make sure you get it.

Vestibular neuritis or labyrinthitis – sudden, severe, sustained vertigo from inner ear inflammation, usually viral. Medical management, then vestibular rehabilitation.

Meniere’s disease – vertigo with hearing loss, ear fullness, and ringing. Requires ENT management.

Cervicogenic dizziness – the category described above. Related to neck function and alignment. This is what we treat.

Post-concussive dizziness – commonly has both vestibular and cervical components. See concussion.

Get emergency care immediately for dizziness accompanied by sudden severe headache, double vision, slurred speech, facial droop, weakness on one side, difficulty swallowing, or loss of consciousness.

Our Approach To Dizziness At Peak Spine + Wellness

A careful differential. We take a detailed history and want to know what the sensation actually feels like, what triggers it, how long episodes last, what else accompanies it. The goal of the first visit is to determine what kind of dizziness you have. If it’s not ours to treat, we refer you to the right provider.

Structural assessment. Where indicated digital X-rays let us measure cervical curve and head position. Loss of the cervical curve and forward head posture alter the mechanical environment of exactly the joints and muscles supplying your balance system.

Restoring cervical function. Specific adjustments to restricted upper cervical segments, soft tissue work for the suboccipital muscles, [cervical remodeling traction] to address curve loss, and sensorimotor retraining.

Frequently Asked Questions About Vertigo

Can a chiropractor help with vertigo?

For dizziness originating from cervical spine dysfunction, yes!

How do I know if my dizziness is coming from my neck?

Some useful clues: dizziness that accompanies neck pain, symptoms triggered by head or neck movement, a swaying or unsteady quality rather than true spinning, onset after a neck injury, and normal results from inner ear testing. None of these is definitive alone as the exam is what sorts it out.

I was told my dizziness is anxiety. Could it still be my neck?

It could be either, and it’s frequently both. Chronic dizziness is genuinely anxiety-provoking, and anxiety amplifies dizziness, which makes the loop hard to untangle. That said, “anxiety” is sometimes the label applied when testing comes back normal. If nobody has examined your neck, that’s a gap worth closing.

How long until I feel better?

Cervicogenic dizziness related primarily to joint dysfunction often improves within a few weeks. Cases involving significant structural change take longer, because the structural work takes longer. The randomized research in this area used care plans spanning several months, with benefits maintained at one year.

Are neck adjustments safe if I’m dizzy?

Safety screening is part of every evaluation, and dizziness specifically prompts a careful history and exam to rule out vascular and central causes before any care is provided. Technique is then selected accordingly, often gentle, low-force approaches. If your presentation raises any concerns, we refer rather than treat.

Get A Real Answer About Your Dizziness

Call (701) 532-0823 or schedule online.

References – Moustafa IM, Diab AA, Harrison DE. The effect of normalizing sagittal cervical configuration on dizziness, neck pain, and cervicocephalic kinesthetic sensibility: a 1-year randomized controlled study. Eur J Phys Rehabil Med. 2017;53(1):57-71. – Moustafa IM, et al. Demonstration of autonomic nervous function and cervical sensorimotor control after cervical lordosis rehabilitation: a randomized controlled trial. J Athl Train. 2021. – Schneider KJ, Meeuwisse WH, Nettel-Aguirre A, et al. Cervicovestibular rehabilitation in sport-related concussion: a randomized controlled trial. Br J Sports Med. 2014;48(17):1294-1298.