What is Visual Motion Sensitivity?
Does watching this make you feel dizzy or nauseous?
Or do you feel this way while sitting as a passenger in a car?
This is called visual vertigo or visual motion sensitivity, which is defined as dizziness provoked by visual stimulation, including:
Optic flow
The flow of visual motion occurs as it "streams" past you, similar to when you walk through the aisles of a grocery store. This flow creates a divergence: objects on the left side appear to move leftward along the edge of your vision, while objects on the right move rightward. Typically, the motion from both sides cancels each other out, resulting in no sensation of rotation. However, if the flow processing is asymmetrical or tilted—such as in cases of unilateral vestibular dysfunction—navigating through these environments can induce vertigo.
General visual motion
Typically, our brains can differentiate between visual motion caused by our own movements and that occurring in the environment. This ability allows us to remain properly oriented and navigate space accurately and efficiently. When vestibular inputs are impaired, reliance on visual inputs may increase, making it challenging to distinguish between self-motion and environmental motion. As a result, visual motion can lead to postural sway, resulting in longer adaptation times for individuals with visual motion sensitivity to visual input and to cease swaying (for example, when a train passes by, and it feels like you’re moving along with it).
Computer screens
The reason computer screens can cause symptoms related to visual motion sensitivity is flicker (also known as refresh rate). Although it is not noticeable to the naked eye, the flicker can be enough to create a sense of visual motion that can provoke those with vestibular disorders. Additionally, the act of scrolling on a screen, whether it’s a cellphone, laptop, or computer, can also induce visual motion sensitivity.
Visual motion sensitivity is a common symptom experienced in vestibular disorders and concussions. It can arise from sensory conflict or a mismatch between the visual, vestibular, and somatosensory systems. Additionally, injuries to the cervical spine (e.g., whiplash) or the vestibular system (e.g., brain injury) can lead to an increased reliance on vision during daily activities.
As we navigate our environment, our internal mechanisms continuously process sensory inputs and assess their relevance to the task at hand. For example, when walking on sand, the proprioceptive feedback from our feet may be less reliable, so we tend to rely more on our visual and vestibular systems. Conversely, in a dark environment, we may depend more on proprioceptive and vestibular inputs since our vision is not as dependable.
Following a vestibular disorder or concussion, visual dependence is quite common because our vestibular and proprioceptive inputs may be compromised. Consequently, we tend to reweight our sensory reliance, placing greater emphasis on our vision. While this compensatory mechanism is beneficial in preventing immediate loss of balance and facilitating movement, over-relying on visual inputs can make it challenging to process repetitive or visually busy patterns. This can lead to symptoms such as dizziness and vertigo.
There are various ways to manage visual motion sensitivity, and it should be approached from multiple angles to effectively treat it:
Coping Strategies
Decrease visual exposure to environments that trigger symptoms (e.g., patterned walls or floors, rooms with curved walls that may distort vision).
Limit situations that create sensory conflict (e.g., using an escalator where you can see your surroundings move while remaining still).
Take breaks from constant motion exposure (e.g., make frequent stops on a long car ride to help your body adjust from processing a moving visual environment to a stationary one).
Utilize an assistive device if necessary in visually stimulating environments (e.g., use a cane at the mall, even if it’s not needed at home).
Visual and Vestibular Rehabilitation
The purpose of vestibular rehabilitation is to perform exercises that reduce symptoms of motion- and visually-provoked dizziness.
Types of exercises include habituation exercises and visual motion sensitivity training, such as optokinetic stimulation.
Improve the reliability of the vestibular and proprioceptive systems to reduce mismatches in sensory inputs.
Practice sensory switching to enhance adaptability in a range of visually stimulating environments.
It is crucial that these exercises specifically target the motions and stimuli that trigger symptoms, as treatment requires repeated exposure to these stimuli until the symptoms diminish. By reducing reliance on vision and enhancing the use of vestibular and proprioceptive cues for balance, dizziness symptoms will decrease.
For instance, to improve tolerance to the motion sensitivity felt when sitting in a car, treatment may include watching videos of a moving car from the passenger’s viewpoint. The exercise could be simplified by watching it on a smaller screen while seated in a chair with back support and advanced by viewing it on a larger screen while standing. Eventually, treatment would involve sitting in an actual car and gradually tolerating longer distances and higher speeds. The more specifically the exposure is to the provoking stimuli, the more effective the treatment will be.
If you want to learn more about visual motion sensitivity exercises, check out my educational series, "The Dizzy Brain: Demystifying Vestibular Exercises." Whether you've already been prescribed visual motion sensitivity exercises and want to understand their purpose better or you're unsure if you need them and want to find out more, check out my presentation about "Visual Motion Sensitivity Exercises."
Become an expert in your vestibular exercises!
Knowledge is power. The key to being dizzy-free is becoming an expert in your exercises.
You will learn about visual motion sensitivity exercises, which are used to improve dizziness triggered by visual motion. Treatment involves systematically exposing yourself to the triggering visual stimuli until the symptoms improve. This type of exercise works for dizziness and imbalance related to visually stimulating environments, such as shopping malls and grocery stores, watching action movies or TV, or walking through environments with patterned walls or floors.
You’ll get:
Lifetime access to the Visual Motion Sensitivity exercises mini-course
Comprehensive summary sheet
Exercise Tracking Chart (Printable or Fillable PDF)
The link to the video recording and password will be provided in the PDF digital download
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