Question: I'm a 56 year old female who has been suffering left ear hearing loss along with chronic dizziness for the last 3 years. I had an abdominal surgery to repair several hernia's, the surgery lasted about 7 hours. Afterwards, I was on Morphine for pain, so I did not realize anything else had happened to me. About day 3 in the hospital, my cell phone rang and when I tried to use my left ear, there was nothing to hear. I could hear fine on my right ear. I was very unstable, which I attributed to the pain medication. I told the nurses and my surgeon about my hearing loss and was not a big deal to anyone there. Finally on day 10, I was being released by my surgeon to go home, and again, I told him I still could not hear a thing out of my left ear and he said, "well it's probably just earwax", and left it at that. So went home laid down and the room starting spinning when I looked at the ceiling fan!!! About 5 days later I went to my MD about the hearing and he confirmed that I needed to see a ENT specialist right away. When I finally got into to see an ENT specialist and did all their testing, I was told I had what is called a dead ear and there was nothing that could be done because it had been too long since the incident occurred. They said they would've tried mega doses of steroids to try and bring it back, but it was just too late. Fast forward to now, and not only is my hearing still gone, but I also have Chronic dizziness! It has gotten worse even! It use to only bother me when I bent down, but now it's all the time! I am a Medical Assistant and was looking forward to getting my life back together, but now that dream is shattered. If I get upset at all, the attack, (as I call them), are very bad including speech stuttering, bobbing of head, shaky walk, extreme dizziness, & I have to sit down and take a Zanax to try and calm done. I could never work like that!!! I've been to 3 other doctor's, (1 ENT, 1 ENT/Octologist, and 1 Neuro DR.), and still no one can say what has happened and what I can do but live with it. I've read the Vestibular website and I've heard how hard this is to get diagnosed. I am very worried about not being able to work, my husband has a new transplanted Kidney that is almost 3 years old, and if something happens to him, how will I make a living? HELP ME PLEASE WITH ANY SUGGESTION'S! Thank you, XXXXX

Only medication's I have for this is Meclizine, (which is a joke, it doesn't do anything), I was given a few days of Diazepam 2mg, (didn't help either), and finally Zanax 1mg (which I'm really only suppose to take at night) but I half it and it seems to work pretty good to calm my symptoms. If it's a really bad attack, I will take the whole 1mg, which I hate having to do! I have been on Zoloft for depression for several years and I'm doing well for depression on it. There has got to be something else that can be done or given for this Chronic dizziness!!!! Oh and that Eply Manuver (sp?) did nothing but make me a worse dizzy person out of me!