Back In The Swirl: Coping With Meniere's Disease, Migraine, Chronic Depression, and Baffled Doctors.

On November 4th, 2007, I visited with my best friend to celebrate my birthday. It was a typical warm afternoon in Florida. I was surprisingly complimented with a delectable meal accompanied by Miami staple drink, Mojitos. I sat in the backyard terrace oblivion to all cares of this world, amid good company and laughter when suddenly I felt a lurch in my stomach followed by a piercing sound and the most uncomfortable fullness sensation in my ears. The nausea wave followed suit and in seconds my celebratory meal and drinks were inevitably expelled in a projectile vomiting episode. The deja – vu feeling was overwhelming. My relatives and friend’s faces danced in a sort of a burlesque fashion around me. I was spinning violently yet my body rested motionless in my chair
. The terrace did not stop gyrating and neither did the faces who danced in an uncontrollable kaleidoscope fashion. As I lay powerless and terrified I realized that I was Back in the Swirl… of Meniere!
Meniere, also known as the Glaucoma of the Ears is a pervasive, long term disease which damages both the balance and hearing parts of the inner ear. It has no cure, and its vomiting and vertigo episodes render a victim completely incapacitated. Loss of balance, progressive hearing loss, fullness and/ or piercing sound in the ears known as tinnitus are also major symptoms of this cruel disease. When having an acute attack, the quality of life of a Meniere patient is comparable to that of a Cancer or AIDS patient… in the last six days of their life!
In 1987, Kim had her first bout of Meniere. After three years of facing a complex mystery, she was finally correctly diagnosed. Her ordeal was relentless, but eventually, her symptoms subsided. She entered unto blissful remission. Sixteen years later, her archenemy returned in full vengeance, ready to destroy her life. This time around, Kim had become a Bilateral Meniere’s patient, meaning both her ears were affected by the disease. She also possessed a slew of medical issues including Chronic Migraines and Depression which very frequently, co-occur in Meniere’s patients. She faced an uphill battle and she prevailed.
Back in the Swirl is Kim’s personal account of twenty-plus years dealing with the most severe illness ever studied in a non-hospitalized patient. Cleverly presenting both medical and effective, reliable, practical advice this is a unique, indispensable book to accompany Meniere’s and all patients who have been ripped from their lives by chronic, disabling medical conditions. Kim’s story is undoubtedly a powerful testimony of resilience, determination and hope anchored by her solid faith in God’s faithfulness and love.