Lightheadedness in Teens

Description

• Although sometimes used interchangeably, the terms lightheadedness, dizziness, feeling faint and vertigo don̵7;t necessarily refer to the same thing, although in some cases, they can. The Cleveland Clinic defines both lightheadedness and dizziness as a feeling of being disoriented or unsteady that decreases a sense of balance and increases the chance of falling. Feelings of giddiness or a swimming sensation may be present. Feeling faint involves a sense of losing strength or consciousness. In comparison, vertigo refers to the feeling that the room is spinning and disequilibrium involves a sense of falling toward one side. These distinctions are important, because the interior nature of lightheadedness means that it̵7;s more likely that a teen will, at least at first, be self-diagnosing. Parents may initially have trouble discerning physical characteristics of these conditions, which can have different underlying causes.

External Factors

• Numerous external factors may be causing lightheadedness in your teen. Inhaling fumes during an elective art class or auto mechanics class could be a possibility. Teens may have recently received booster vaccination shots and experience lightheadedness as a side effect. It could be time for an eye checkup; the wrong glasses or contact lenses, or the need of corrective lenses, may cause a sense of disorientation for teens. Teens may also experience lightheadedness because of exhaustion; hectic school schedules combined with work, social or family obligations can be overwhelming. Your teen could be experiencing the side effects of substance experimentation.

Internal Factors

• It̵7;s possible that your teen has become sexually active and is either pregnant or experiencing side effects from oral or injected contraceptives. Your teen may be intentionally or unintentionally skipping meals, resulting in lightheadedness. If it is accidental, discussing the importance of regular meals and packing snacks into school bags can help address the issue. Body issues sometimes surface during the teen years, though, so if your teen is dieting or eliminating meals this could indicate more serious problems. If the lightheadedness relates to vertigo, have a doctor check your teen̵7;s ear canal for indicative calcium crystals.

  There̵7;s a chance that lightheadedness could relate to a number of more serious conditions that should be checked out by a doctor. Cardiovascular issues, neurological complications or anxiety disorders could be present.

Feigned Lightheadedness

• Because lightheadedness can be hard to evaluate externally, it̵7;s possible that your teen is faking it. Feigning illness is an age-old child̵7;s trick to avoid attending school, but prolonged or regular school avoidance could indicate more serious problems such as being bullied at school, anxiety, stress or depression. It could also be an attempt by your teen to get your attention. Make time to talk openly with your teen, explicitly stating that she is a priority, and indicate that you̵7;re willing to listen if she wants to talk about her life. A person who has exhibited sustained attempts to feign illness might benefit from counseling or talking with a family doctor.