Why Does My Elderly Parent Keep Falling and Feeling Dizzy?
Why Does My Elderly Parent Keep Falling & Feeling Dizzy?
If your elderly parent is feeling dizzy and falling, the two problems may be connected. Dizziness can directly affect balance and walking, while conditions that cause dizziness – including changes in blood pressure, medication side effects and problems affecting the inner ear – can also increase the risk of falls.
Dizziness and repeated falls shouldn’t simply be dismissed as a normal part of getting older. Understanding what the dizziness feels like, when it happens and what seems to trigger it can provide useful clues about the possible cause.
There are many reasons an older person may become unsteady or fall. If dizziness isn’t a prominent feature, you may find our broader guide Why Does My Elderly Parent Keep Falling? helpful.
Why Can Dizziness Cause Falls in Older People?
Maintaining our balance is surprisingly complicated.
The brain continuously combines information from several systems, including our vision, inner-ear vestibular system and sensation from our muscles and joints, to understand where our body is and keep us upright.
Problems affecting any of these systems can make someone feel dizzy or unsteady. The effect can become more noticeable during challenging activities such as getting out of bed, standing from a chair, turning quickly or walking in a poorly lit environment.
Ageing doesn’t automatically cause dizziness, but older adults may have several factors affecting their balance at the same time. For example, someone might have reduced leg strength alongside poorer vision and medication that lowers their blood pressure.
This is one reason falls in older people are often multifactorial rather than having one single cause.
→ Concerned about your parent’s overall falls risk? Take our free STEADI Falls Risk Self-Assessment.
What does your parent mean when they say they feel dizzy?
“Dizziness” can mean very different things to different people.
If possible, ask your parent to describe the sensation rather than simply asking whether they feel dizzy.
They might describe:
Light-headedness or feeling faint
They may feel as though they’re going to pass out, particularly after standing. Blood-pressure changes are one possible cause.
Vertigo or spinning
They may describe themselves or the room as spinning or moving. This can suggest a problem involving the vestibular system.
Feeling unsteady or off balance
Rather than experiencing spinning or faintness, they may simply feel unstable when standing or walking.
A vague feeling of wooziness
Sometimes people struggle to describe their symptoms precisely and simply say that they don’t feel right.
Knowing what the dizziness feels like and when it occurs can help a healthcare professional investigate the possible cause.
Common Causes of Dizziness and Falls in Older Adults
There isn’t one single explanation for dizziness in older people. Possible causes range from relatively common and treatable problems to conditions requiring medical investigation.
1. Low Blood Pressure When Standing
If your parent becomes dizzy shortly after getting out of bed or standing from a chair, one possibility is postural hypotension, also known as orthostatic hypotension.
This is a fall in blood pressure that occurs after moving into an upright position.
Someone experiencing postural hypotension might report:
- light-headedness after standing
- blurred or altered vision
- weakness
- feeling faint
- unsteadiness
- occasionally fainting completely
This can understandably increase the risk of falling.
Several factors can contribute, including dehydration, some medical conditions and certain medications.
If there’s a consistent pattern of standing up → becoming dizzy or faint → losing balance, this is worth discussing with your parent’s GP or another appropriate healthcare professional.
2. Medication Side Effects
Medication can sometimes contribute to both dizziness and falls in older adults.
Some medicines may cause drowsiness, affect alertness or contribute to changes in blood pressure. The situation can become more complicated when someone takes several different medications.
That doesn’t mean medication should simply be stopped.
Instead, if your parent has developed new dizziness, unsteadiness or repeated falls, a medication review with their GP or pharmacist may help determine whether their medicines could be contributing.
Prescribed medication should not be stopped or changed without appropriate medical advice.
Medication is only one part of falls prevention. Read How Can I Stop My Elderly Parent From Falling? for practical steps that can help address other risk factors.
3. Vertigo and Inner-Ear Problems
Some people use dizziness and vertigo interchangeably, but they aren’t quite the same thing.
Vertigo describes a false sensation of movement. Your parent might say that the room is spinning, that they are moving when they aren’t, or that everything seems to shift when they move their head.
One possible source of vertigo is the vestibular system within the inner ear, which plays an important role in balance and our perception of movement.
Problems affecting this system can make someone feel disorientated or unstable and may make activities such as turning, bending, getting out of bed or walking more difficult.
There are several different causes of vertigo, so recurrent symptoms warrant appropriate assessment rather than assuming that all vertigo has the same cause.
Could my parent have BPPV?
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is a common cause of positional vertigo.
The pattern can be quite distinctive. BPPV typically causes brief episodes of spinning triggered by particular changes in head position.
Your parent might experience vertigo when:
- rolling over in bed
- getting into or out of bed
- looking upwards
- bending down
- turning their head in particular directions
This can understandably affect confidence and balance. An episode occurring while getting out of bed or moving around the home could also contribute to a fall.
BPPV can be assessed using specific positional tests. Where BPPV is confirmed and treatment is appropriate, trained healthcare professionals can use repositioning manoeuvres to treat the condition.
However, not every episode of dizziness or vertigo is BPPV. If your parent has developed new or unexplained symptoms, an appropriate assessment is important.
Could Dehydration Be Making Them Dizzy?
Inadequate fluid intake can contribute to dehydration, weakness and low blood pressure, which may in turn make someone feel light-headed or unsteady.
There are many reasons an older person may drink less. They may experience reduced thirst, worry about getting to the toilet frequently, forget to drink regularly or simply find preparing drinks more difficult than before.
If your parent appears to be drinking very little, it is worth considering whether hydration could be contributing to their symptoms.
However, some people are advised to restrict their fluid intake because of particular medical conditions. If your parent has been given specific advice about how much they should drink, follow their healthcare professional’s recommendations rather than simply encouraging substantially more fluid.
What else can cause Dizziness & Falls?
Dizziness is a symptom rather than a diagnosis, and there are many other potential causes.
These can include problems involving the heart or circulation, neurological conditions, anaemia, blood glucose, infection or acute illness, visual problems and other disorders affecting the vestibular system.
Reduced physical condition can also make matters worse. If someone has become weaker following illness, inactivity or a hospital admission, they may have less ability to compensate when something temporarily disrupts their balance.
Reduced leg strength may also make everyday movements more difficult. If you’ve noticed this, read why your elderly parent may be struggling to get out of a chair.
This is why persistent or recurrent dizziness should be considered in the context of the person’s overall health, medication, mobility and falls history rather than treated as an isolated symptom.
When should I be concerned about dizziness & Falls?
New, persistent or worsening dizziness – particularly when accompanied by repeated falls – should be appropriately assessed.
Seek urgent medical help if sudden dizziness occurs alongside concerning symptoms such as:
- new weakness or numbness
- facial drooping
- difficulty speaking
- sudden severe headache
- chest pain
- loss of consciousness
- a sudden severe deterioration in walking or balance
A fall itself may also require urgent assessment if your parent has sustained a significant injury, hit their head or is unable to get back up.
For symptoms that aren’t an emergency but are new, recurrent or increasingly affecting mobility, contact an appropriate healthcare professional such as their GP.
What should I do if my parent keeps feeling dizzy & falling?
Rather than simply encouraging your parent to “be more careful”, try to establish whether there is a pattern to what’s happening.
Ask what the dizziness feels like
Is the room spinning? Do they feel faint? Or do they actually mean that they feel unsteady when walking?
Look at when it happens
Does it occur immediately after standing? When rolling over in bed? When turning their head? During walking? At a particular time of day?
These details may be useful when discussing their symptoms with a healthcare professional.
Arrange appropriate medical assessment
Repeated dizziness and falls may warrant investigation of factors such as blood pressure, medication and underlying medical conditions.
Consider their wider falls risk
Dizziness may be only one part of the problem.
Strength, balance, walking, medication, vision, footwear and the home environment can all contribute to falls.
Can Physiotherapy Help with Dizziness and Falls?
Physiotherapy may form part of the management of dizziness, balance problems and falls, depending on what is causing the symptoms.
For someone experiencing falls, a physiotherapist can assess areas including strength, balance, walking, transfers and functional mobility. This can help identify physical factors contributing to their falls and allow an individual rehabilitation programme to be developed.
There can be particular advantages to assessing mobility at home. Instead of trying to recreate the problem in a clinic, a physiotherapist can observe how someone manages their actual stairs, chairs and usual walking routes.
Physiotherapists with appropriate vestibular training may also assess and treat certain vestibular conditions. However, dizziness can have many causes, and physiotherapy is not the appropriate treatment for all of them. Where symptoms suggest that further medical investigation is required, this should take priority.
→ Learn more about our Falls Prevention Physiotherapy Service.
How can I reduce my parent's risk of falling?
Addressing dizziness is important when it is contributing to falls, but effective falls prevention usually involves looking at the whole person.
Depending on your parent’s individual circumstances, this might involve improving strength and balance, reviewing walking and mobility, checking medication and blood pressure, addressing vision or footwear problems and making their home environment safer.
We’ve put these steps together in a separate practical guide:
How Can I Stop My Elderly Parent From Falling?
If you’re not sure how significant your parent’s falls risk may be, you can also complete our:
If dizziness has been appropriately investigated but your parent remains unsteady, has experienced repeated falls or has lost confidence in their mobility, physiotherapy may help address some of the physical factors contributing to their falls risk.
Bee Mobile Physiotherapy provides falls prevention physiotherapy at home across our service areas in South West London and Surrey, allowing strength, balance and mobility to be assessed in the person’s everyday environment.