It may sound too good to be true, but mindset shifts can dramatically improve your experience of managing chronic migraine.

How? Dr. Emily Kostelnik is back on the podcast to share that with us! We’re talking about mindset and migraine and a brand new, well-balanced (pun intended) course she’s rolling out soon.

Dr. Kostelnik shares the piece that’s been missing from the mindset conversation, clears up a huge misunderstanding about somatics, and shares two things you can do today to regulate your nervous system simply by addressing your mindset.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Tune in to discover practical tools and techniques to help you navigate your VM symptoms with so much kindness and ease!

???? Be sure to check out Dr. Kostelnik’s Back to Balance Course!

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Dr. Madison Oak, PT is a dedicated vestibular physical therapist committed to enhancing the quality of life for individuals grappling with chronic vestibular conditions. She is the proprietor of Oak Physical Therapy & Wellness, a reputable telehealth vestibular rehabilitation therapy practice catering to clients across six states. Additionally, Dr. Oak is the visionary behind Vestibular Group Fit, an esteemed international group program. With over 500 members, her program has successfully empowered individuals with vestibular disorders to reclaim control over their lives.

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Chronic migraine, VM, mindset shift, mindset and migraine, biopsychosocial, living with VM, living with vertigo, chronic dizziness, holistic approach, nervous system regulation, Superior Canal Dehiscence syndrome, somatics, thought loop, trauma-informed, triggers, alternative therapies

“I was making myself nauseous, not knowing it was something else. And that was insanely frustrating.”

As a mom of two, dancer, choreographer, and overall fit and healthy person, Elizabeth was taken aback when she was told she had BPPV.

After years of treating the wrong diagnosis, she finally got the help she really needed. This included joining Vestibular Group Fit. And now? She’s thriving!

Elizabeth volunteered to share her story and today, she joins us on the podcast!

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Elizabeth being here today and sharing her story is proof that it does get better! As you heard, she has so many wins from being able to communicate her needs to her family and healthcare providers, to having a reliable toolkit that works for her. 

Side note: not everything works for everyone—it takes trial and error and time to piece together your most effective toolkit.

People with migraine never fit in a box. You already know this. 

And in Vestibular Group Fit, we’re uniquely tuned into this. Which is why we encourage you to make this experience yours. We’d love to be able to support you as you discover what you need to manage your vestibular disorder.
???? Join Vestibular Group Fit (use code GROUNDED)

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Vestibular group fit, BPPV, PPPD, Vestibular migraine, mom with VM, living with vestibular disorder, vestibular disorder support, VM support group, dancer, VM diagnosis, living with vertigo, vestibular PT, diagnostic criteria, blood sugar regulation, vestibular disorder toolkit, nervous system regulation, management of vestibular migraine

Most people get something very wrong about the doctor—they’re not meant for a lot of the things we try to use them for. With that in mind, let’s talk about how to get the most out of your doctor visit. 

We’re going to take a look at what you can reasonably expect from a physician during a quick, infrequent visit with them. And then I’m wrapping up with some thoughts on health insurance—what you need to know and what you can expect when searching for a provider who can help you with your vestibular disorder.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Since I don’t have the power to change the healthcare system, I want to help you navigate it more easily. 
For even more tips, join us in Vestibular Group Fit (use code GROUNDED for a 15% discount)!

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Tracking your symptoms can be incredibly helpful in revealing patterns. When we talk about vestibular migraine, we ultimately want to figure out the patterning behind it for you.

Even if it feels like it’s completely random and there’s absolutely no pattern, there’s almost always some sort of pattern.

I help a lot of my patients figure out what their pattern is by them tracking their symptoms and sharing their log with me. In today’s episode, I’m sharing what that looks like so you have a roadmap to follow.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Part of living with and managing a vestibular disorder is about understanding your unique situation. Which, yes, includes symptom tracking for the short and long term.

It’s not possible to ignore your way or think your way out of a vestibular disorder. It’s about awareness, intentional actions, and curating the most supportive tools and providers for you.

I hope this episode was helpful and timely because… you can take your first step toward feeling strong, steady, and supported with the VGF Labor Day Sale! (Details below)

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Being in vestibular disorder support groups can be really helpful—at first. But many of them share posts that are anxiety-provoking and over time, these spaces can leave you feeling drained vs empowered.

This isn’t the case for every single support group out there. But if this is your experience, I want you to know you’re not alone in that.

This episode is all about vestibular disorder support groups and chronic illness support groups in general.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

I share so much information for free (here on the podcast, on the blog, etc.) because I want you to be aware. Aware of what can help with your vestibular disorder, what has been scientifically proven, and what your options truly are.

We do lots of good things in VGF to set you up for healing and success—wins of the week, challenges, questions with engagement and context. And everything is grounded in nervous system safety with evidence-based, science-backed tools that help you with your vestibular disorder.

We do not do toxic positivity in VGF, but we do do regulated realism. Because your nervous system is always listening. The stories you consume become your inner narrative. So be careful about the content you consume and choose spaces that speak to your healing. They’re out there—I promise!

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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vestibular support group, pros and cons of support groups, VM support group, VGF, vestibular group fit, support groups, chronic illness support groups, reflection moment, vestibular migraine, VM attack, support group experience, online community, negativity bias, autonomy, confirmation bias, identity entanglement, trauma-informed, peer-support, invisible illness

I’m constantly responding to questions in my Ask Me Anything (AMA) box on Instagram about this one topic—from 2 very different perspectives.

Helping someone with a vestibular disorder.

There’s the person experiencing the symptoms of the vestibular disorder. And then there’s the person who cares about the person with the vestibular disorder.

This podcast is dedicated to both of you.

This isn’t about getting someone to understand how frustrated and dizzy you feel. Or about making anyone feel bad for the way their brain and body just are.

It’s about getting people to understand how they can help when you are feeling symptomatic.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

A big takeaway here is the unpredictability of a vestibular disorder. And the fact that every day is going to look very different.

I promise you this does get better—with the right tools. It’s not overnight, but with the right tools, consistency, trial and error, and some frustration it does get better.
And there are so many things you can do to help someone who’s struggling with a vestibular disorder—no matter if it’s BPPV, PPPD, vestibular migraine, or Ménière’s disease.

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Doing more things with a vestibular disorder is possible—but you absolutely need to rest. This means giving your body time to rest and different types of rest in order to achieve that.

Rest is an essential part of being a human being. Yet we live in a society where people don’t rest until they feel like they’ve “done enough.”

When we should be resting before we feel the fatigue set in, we’re busy pushing through, ignoring how we truly feel, and worrying about a plan for a future crisis.

(I have the best analogy for you in this episode, too!)

It’s more helpful to actually take time to rest rather than continue trying to figure out what to do next because that is part of what will keep you stuck. And we do NOT want that!

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Taking time to rest and recharge throughout the day will make it so your body doesn’t require you to rest later. Take breaks before you need them.

If you enjoy episodes like this, these are the types of conversations we’re having all the time in Vestibular Group Fit. We’d love to have you join us! (Use the code below.)

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Types of rest, rest cycles, adequate rest, improve sleep hygiene, how much sleep, sleep quality, lifestyle changes, vestibular group fit, threshold theory, nervous system regulation, mental load, benefits of rest, vestibular disorders, stress relief, passive rest, active rest, VM, rest for introverts, rest for extroverts, sensory reset, brain fog

Reminder: I’m not a medical doctor. I do not interpret bloodwork. 

But I do get a lot of questions about bloodwork. 

“What’s the difference between normal & optimal bloodwork?” “What do I do if my labs are abnormal?” “What can I do with the information from my bloodwork?”

Whether you’ve been getting bloodwork for years or you’re just about to get your first full bloodwork panel of your life—this episode is sure to help you!

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Lab ranges are based on large populations—they’re not based on you.

I can’t stress the importance of making sure you have bloodwork done and that you work with a provider who can help you make sense of your unique situation.

Be sure to download the Optimal Bloodwork PDF below and I’ll see you on Instagram!

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Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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One of the most stressful things to go through—is a move. Or building a brand new home and then moving into it. But that’s just one example of stress.

And stress? That can wreak havoc on a vestibular disorder.

This deep dive into stress, vestibular disorders, and migraine was inspired by this 2016 study I reference all the time. It reveals so much, which is great because this topic doesn’t yield a simple “yes” or “no” answer.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

Stress is not just mental—it’s physical, emotional, relational, environmental, sensory. And it matters a lot to vestibular disorders, migraine, and PPPD.

So, is stress a migraine trigger? Tune in to find out.

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Nervous System Regulation for VM

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Why The Oak Method? Learn about it here!

Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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Stress as a vestibular trigger, vestibular disorders, stress response, stress relief, overstimulated nervous system, vestibular system, flexibility of nervous system, pliable nervous system, moving with vestibular disorder, migraine attacks, VM, migraine triggers, threshold theory, bucket theory, types of stressors, let-down migraine, stress feedback loop, PPPD

Most people think regulating their nervous system means being calm all the time or doing breathing exercises. It does not.

Having a regulated nervous system is not about feeling calm all the time. It’s about how you are able to respond to difficult and new stimuli. Because that is a fact of life that’s not going anywhere!

Nervous system regulation looks like a lot of different things depending on the person. We’re going to explore all the things you can do to have a more resilient and regulated nervous system.

Your brain is overstimulated and overreacting to a lot of things. It is not your fault. But you can rewire your way out of VM.

In this episode, we’ll dig into:

It’s not just the symptom—it’s your nervous system’s response to that symptom that makes it feel like X, Y, Z is causing your life to fall apart.

Emotions are not in our control. But we do have control over our thoughts much of the time. Remind yourself this can get better, that you do have a toolkit. Because being in the throes of a migraine attack is scary and unsettling. 

The ability—over time and with practice—to identify what you can do to regulate yourself and start to feel better allows your nervous system to become more flexible.

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Why The Oak Method? Learn about it here!

Love what you heard? Reviews really help us out! Please consider leaving one for us. 

This podcast is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.

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