Understanding the Brain, Inner Ear, and Neck
The headache is getting better, but the dizziness isn’t. If you’ve had a concussion and still feel off balance, lightheaded, or like the room moves when you turn your head, you’re not alone. Dizziness is one of the most common symptoms after a concussion, yet many people are never told why it’s happening.
The truth is that dizziness after a concussion can come from several different parts of the body, including the brain, the inner ear, the neck, or even the way these systems work together. Understanding where the dizziness is coming from is the first step toward recovery.
At BeWell Chiropractic in Tigard, we take a neurology-based, functional approach to evaluating dizziness after concussion. Rather than simply treating the symptom, we work to identify the underlying cause so your care can be tailored to your specific needs.
What Happens During a Concussion?
A concussion is a mild traumatic brain injury caused by a sudden blow or jolt to the head or body. The impact causes the brain to move rapidly inside the skull, temporarily disrupting normal brain function. Although most concussions do not cause visible damage on a CT scan or MRI, they can still affect how different areas of the brain communicate with one another.
These temporary changes may interfere with the brain’s ability to process sensory information, maintain balance, coordinate movement, and control eye movements. Because these systems normally work together automatically, even a mild disruption can leave you feeling dizzy, unsteady, or disoriented.
Studies have found that dizziness affects a large percentage of people following a concussion, making it one of the most common symptoms of mild traumatic brain injury. While many people recover within several weeks, others continue to experience dizziness, balance problems, or motion sensitivity for months if the underlying cause is not identified.
Why Does a Concussion Cause Dizziness?
Your brain depends on three major systems to keep you balanced.
Your eyes provide visual information about your surroundings.
Your vestibular system, located in the inner ear, detects head movement and acceleration.
Your proprioceptive system, made up of muscles and joints throughout the body—especially the neck—tells the brain where your body is positioned in space.
Normally, the brain combines information from all three systems without you even thinking about it. After a concussion, however, these systems may no longer agree. The brain begins receiving conflicting information, resulting in dizziness, imbalance, motion sensitivity, and sometimes nausea.
Four Common Causes of Dizziness After a Concussion
Although many people simply say they have “concussion dizziness,” there are several possible causes. Identifying which one is responsible is one of the most important steps in recovery.
Vestibular Dysfunction
The vestibular organs within the inner ear detect movement and help maintain balance. A concussion can temporarily disrupt how these structures communicate with the brain.
People with vestibular dysfunction often notice dizziness when turning their head, bending over, riding in a vehicle, or walking through visually busy environments. Motion sensitivity, nausea, and poor balance are also common.
Vestibular rehabilitation exercises are frequently used to help retrain the brain and improve balance over time.
Cervicogenic Dizziness
Many concussions occur together with a whiplash injury. While most people think of the brain after a concussion, the neck can also become an important source of dizziness.
The muscles, joints, and ligaments of the upper cervical spine contain thousands of specialized sensory receptors that constantly tell the brain where the head is positioned. When these tissues become injured or irritated, the information reaching the brain may become inaccurate.
If the brain receives one message from the neck, another from the eyes, and a third from the inner ear, dizziness can occur. This condition, known as cervicogenic dizziness, is commonly overlooked after motor vehicle accidents, falls, and sports injuries.
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)
A concussion can also dislodge tiny calcium carbonate crystals within the inner ear, leading to benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, or BPPV.
People with BPPV typically experience short episodes of spinning dizziness when rolling over in bed, lying down, looking upward, or bending forward. Although the symptoms can be alarming, BPPV often responds well to a repositioning maneuver once the affected inner ear canal has been accurately identified.
Changes in Brain Processing
Sometimes the dizziness does not originate in the neck or inner ear at all. Instead, the concussion temporarily affects how the brain processes sensory information.
People often report feeling overwhelmed in grocery stores, shopping malls, airports, or other visually busy environments. Scrolling on a phone, working at a computer, or driving in heavy traffic may also increase symptoms because these activities place greater demands on the brain’s processing systems.
The Eyes Play an Important Role
Vision problems are another common contributor to dizziness after a concussion. The eyes and brain must work together to keep your vision stable while your head is moving.
After a concussion, eye movements may become less accurate or coordinated. Reading, computer work, following moving objects, or quickly shifting your focus from one object to another can become more difficult. These visual challenges often contribute to dizziness, headaches, eye strain, and fatigue.
Why Rest Isn’t Always Enough
For the first day or two after a concussion, rest is important. However, prolonged inactivity is not always the best solution.
If dizziness is being caused by the inner ear, neck, eye movement problems, or changes in balance processing, these issues often require targeted rehabilitation rather than simply waiting for them to improve. Identifying the source of your symptoms helps guide the most appropriate treatment plan and can often shorten recovery.
Other Symptoms That May Occur
People experiencing dizziness after a concussion frequently report other symptoms as well, including:
- Headaches
- Neck pain
- Brain fog
- Blurred vision
- Difficulty concentrating
- Nausea
- Fatigue
- Sensitivity to light
- Sensitivity to sound
- Poor balance
These symptoms often improve together as the brain and nervous system recover.
Why Finding the Right Cause Matters
Not every person with dizziness after a concussion needs the same treatment.
Someone with BPPV may improve quickly after a canalith repositioning maneuver. Someone whose symptoms originate from the neck may benefit from restoring normal cervical movement and improving proprioceptive input. Others may require vestibular rehabilitation, eye movement exercises, or progressive balance training.
Rather than assuming every patient experiences the same type of concussion dizziness, our examination is designed to determine which systems are contributing to your symptoms. This allows care to focus on the underlying cause instead of treating dizziness as though it were a single diagnosis.
How BeWell Chiropractic Evaluates Dizziness After Concussion
At BeWell Chiropractic in Tigard, we perform a comprehensive functional examination to identify the systems contributing to your dizziness.
Depending on your symptoms, this evaluation may include assessments of balance, coordination, eye movements, head and neck mobility, vestibular function, posture, gait, and cervical joint mechanics.
Treatment recommendations are individualized and may include precision chiropractic adjustments when appropriate, vestibular rehabilitation exercises, balance training, movement-based rehabilitation, and home exercises designed to support your recovery.
When Should You Seek an Evaluation?
Although many people recover from a concussion within a few weeks, persistent dizziness should not be ignored.
Consider seeking an evaluation if your dizziness lasts more than several days, becomes worse instead of better, interferes with work or daily activities, causes repeated loss of balance, or prevents you from returning to sports or exercise.
Early identification of the underlying cause can often make recovery more efficient.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a concussion cause vertigo?
Yes. A concussion can lead to vertigo by affecting the inner ear, disrupting brain processing, or triggering BPPV after the injury.
How long does dizziness last after a concussion?
Many people improve within a few weeks, while others experience symptoms for months. Recovery depends on the specific cause of the dizziness and how quickly it is identified and addressed.
Can whiplash cause dizziness after a concussion?
Yes. Concussions and whiplash commonly occur together. Injuries to the muscles and joints of the neck can alter the information being sent to the brain, contributing to dizziness and imbalance.
Should I exercise if I’m dizzy after a concussion?
That depends on the underlying cause of your dizziness. Early, guided activity is often appropriate, but exercises should be individualized based on your symptoms and examination findings.
Final Thoughts…
Don’t Ignore Persistent Dizziness
Whether the problem begins in the inner ear, the neck, the eyes, the brain’s ability to process information, or a combination of these systems, identifying the underlying cause is the first step toward recovery.
At BeWell Chiropractic in Tigard, our goal is to identify the source of your dizziness, restore normal function, improve your balance, and help you return to work, recreation, and everyday life with greater confidence. If you’re experiencing dizziness after a concussion, we’re here to help you get back to feeling like yourself again.
