Nausea From Working Under Cars

General Discussion
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Joined this forum because I saw this thread. I’m 43 and I’ve had this problem for as long as I can remember…all the way back to highschool. If I lay on my back and look up especially when working on cars I get the motion sickness feeling. Just had it happen because I had to get on the ground and look up under my tractor and now I feel horrible. I will throw up if I don’t stop doing it. The nauseous car sickness feeling will last a few hours and either ice packs, ac, or a hot shower and nap seem to help.

A few years ago I tried to find out what was causing it. I went to a specialist and they didn’t think it was vertigo. They gave me exercises to do to try and teach my inner ear how to overcome it. Unfortunately all those exercises did was make me feel sick for hours at a time every day for several weeks and I had no improvement.

Then I went to an ear nose and throat doctor and aside from $600 lighter pocket I had no luck there. They suggested an MRI but I wasn’t keen on $3000 for that.

So now I try to avoid those situations. But I know that laying on my back and using my neck muscles to hold my head up makes it worse. I also find that As I’m getting older the symptoms occur faster and in more positions. I did some brake work on a car and was doing some slow down testing and that actually made me sick.

63

On occasion I have had dizziness problems that seem to be unrelated to the laying down problem. Basically might wake up one day and the world just spins. This issue though maybe a form of a migraine.

Lastly I’ve read about pinches blood vessels or nerve in neck that can cause these issues. Which makes me wonder if the laying on back causes pressure in the neck which cuts off a blood vessel or nerve and results in the motion sickness issue.

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I’m glad to hear this is not a rare condition…

I occasionally experience temporary vertigo (~15min?) after working under my car.
My driveway is sloped (1:20) some, so my head is typically lower than my feet.
(always have wheel chocks and jack stands, bla bla )

This weekend is the first time I got nauseated + vertigo and still have remnants of vertigo a day later.
its a very defeating feeling. (age 57)
I think it is a ear problem (vs blood flow) as I can turn my head quickly and the vertigo will come back for a second.

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Anyone willing to try dramamine or other sea sickness remedies and report back?

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I’ve had the vertigo while working on my back under cars or sinks doing plumbing for years. It takes me hours to reset myself from the nausea, sweats, vision blurs etc. I do wear glasses but doc noticed inner ear scar tissue from childhood. I’ve tried all his remedies but decided I’m getting a lift put in! Don’t know if it will help vertigo but sure will look cool🥴

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lift?
like a shoe insert?

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yeah, I’m over 60 and when on my back doing trans work like a pan change or taking off a lot of bolts on a skirt for a kia, I get sick. Last april of 2019, I was sick for like 3 days. I heard plumbers get that way too being under sinks on their backs. I found that if I do this in cooler weather, I’m not as sick.

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I am the same. been working on cars for over 40 years and it just started a couple of years ago. Dizzy, sick, nausea, like you said. lasted 3 days once. It was april and a little warm. I try to do the trans stuff when cooler. Oil changes aren’t that bad.

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BPPV…had it, ent docs couldn’t find it, took me 5yrs of doc visits and tests after tests, eye glasses ct scans and on and on…was doing physical therapy based on a med doctor saying my brain needed retraining from some head trauma…was talking to PT about it and she did bppv eye test…basically calcium blocks in your inner ear break loose and tickle hairs that tell you your up down side ways…usually one ear, brain says one ear moving other ear says still, brain doesnt know what to do…PT can do head range of movement and “reset” calcium blocks

71

I thought there was something wrong with me and now I see it’s not just me. 63 years old now and yesterday started installing airbags on my truck to get my cabover on. Laying on my back and nausea hit me bad. Got out from under the truck and had some dry heaves and had to sit down for a while. Got back under and between bouts of nauseousness and sitting for a spell I got one bag installed. Tried to get the other today and it was even worse. I had to give up. In all my life of turning wrenches this is a first. I swapped between just the ground and using a creeper, no change.
One thing that might have played a part, my truck was on a slight incline and I had to work with my head on the downward slope. I haven’t felt good enough to want to try the other way yet. Just glad (unfortunately) to know I’m not alone.

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Same thing happened to me today for the first time ever. Granted, I haven’t been under my cars for a long time, but have spent countless hours rolling around on the garage floor over my 63 years (maybe that’s just a personal problem…). Anyway, the way it came on definitely felt like motion sickness, and gotta admit I feel better after reading this blog, thanks to all!

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I started to experience nausea when working under my son’s car a couple of years ago, even though I did it for years without problems. I’m 71 now and it’s getting worse. My doctor thinks it’s vertigo but it was never investigated further and I don’t think he’s right. The other day I was installing insulation underfloor in the house which meant lying on my back looking up but here’s what I’m convinced is the trigger: using neck muscles to keep the head in the right position to see properly. If I was able to rest my head on the ground I would have little problem. It now takes several days for the symptoms to fade so I intend to avoid these situations. My suggestion to anyone with this problem is, when possible, to support the head when under the car. It might not be intuitive to do that but it might make the difference between doing the job or having to pay someone else - a good incentive I reckon!

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I just remembered that I spoke to my doctor about this a couple of years ago and for vertigo he recommended the Brandt-Daroff exercises. You’ll find them online. By the time I started them the symptoms had faded of their own accord so after a week or two I stopped doing them. I’m going to start them again to see if they help as this episode is dragging on. Old age sucks!

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I signed up just to give you guys some info on all this. I was searching for a new creeper and saw this discussion because of my search parameters. Anyway, here’s some stuff…

Some years ago I was in Vegas and got sick (virus) on way home to Pittsburgh. Shortly after I was under a car on a Kwik Lift, lying on my back on my creeper, and rolled over to grab a tool while stretching above my head to reach it. Immediately had a sensation of “room spinning”. It was terrible. I didn’t get terribly nauseated from it but some people do, while others don’t. Nausea can indicate other issues though, so keep that in mind.

It wouldn’t settle down and for literally months I was dealing with the issue. Was off work, was basically sheltered in my house trying to deal with it. I saw multiple neurologists in Pittsburgh to find help, all the local major hospitals, etc. Some were no help while others helped me tremendously.

Along with the dizziness came the most intense headaches I’d ever had, and I’ve had migraines since childhood (I’m 43). These were ER visit level migraines though, and I don’t hesitate to say I was having bad thoughts over this major health shift I was in.

I finally found one neurologist who helped me with the headaches. She doesn’t focus as much on the dizziness but rather to see if helping the headaches helps with the dizziness (it’s a real chicken and the egg thing… which causes the other, ya know). I now get Botox to help on the headaches and it does, but it sucks. But the help is worth the shots pain and stuff.

On the dizziness I had a much longer road, and honestly it’s never gone away. It has subsided and I’ve trained myself, or rather my body is adapting to it, however I did find a neurologist at UPMC who I was really fortunate to find. He’s an expert in this, which all inner-ear stuff is often not completely understood. But my neurologist was able to help me. He prescribed an as-needed drug often used to help with seizures called Clonazepam… I take half of the smallest dosage of the dizziness is bad, and it does help. It’s an unorthodox use of the medicine I guess.

I also have some other prescriptions but it’s the Clonazepam that really helped me.

I wanted to just say all this cuz I see you guys having problems and I don’t wish this issue on my worst enemies. Sadly there’s not much of a cure for these vertigo bouts. Mine seems like BPPV, Meneire’s, etc. Just like a lot of you guys. They’ve narrowed my diagnosis down to some BPPV but with migraine-related vertigo… possibly migraine induced (a migraine manifesting itself as vertigo before the pain perhaps). Basically I’m relegated to handling symptoms.

I’m not a full time mech like most of you all are I suppose, but I am on the creeper a lot since I down own a full lift. So I understand how debilitating this is for you guys who have it. Don’t despair if it’s bad, your body can adapt. Physical therapy helped me some too, but never cured anything and my neuros both basically said don’t expect it to ever stop, just learn to adapt and live with it.

I wish any of you luck who’ve got this issue though, and to talk about it with a professional if you need to, to help cope with the health change.

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76

All, I know this is an old thread however it is a on going problem as I also came across this while searching why I get nauseated while laying flat on my back. My situation is ONLY when I am laying on a hard surface. I feel this squishy feeling in my back and instantly get nauseated. It lasts for several hours. I do in fact have a heart defect and blood pressure problems. I had to reply to add the “squishy” feeling that happens. It’s like getting compressed and the fluids in my body getting squeezed out. I do not have this problem when I lay on my back in bed on a soft surface. I don’t think it is vertigo or claustrophobia. Just my 2 cents.

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77

When I was 16 I was changing fuses underneath my dash board in the car and with the car door open feet on the ground laying on my back looking under the dash, I got so nauseous. I’m retired now and for just about 50 years I had this problem working on cars, changing oil or doing anything in this position only while I’m working on something. I have no problem sleeping, I’m not claustrophobic and no health issues. Today I was installing under cabinet lighting and was leaning backwards on the counter top screwing in lights underneath upper cabinets and nausea hit me hard. My whole life this would happen.I only worked on cars as a hobby on and off my so it wasn’t something that happened even once a month. I even bought ramps to drive on many years ago so if I worked under the car I would try to lay on my side as much as possible. I never talked about it and decided today to look it up if anyone else has this issue. I managed my life just trying to avoid this position while I work. It never happens at any other time. I originally thought it had something to do with arching my back working upside down and even though that’s when it happens the worst, It still happens working on something laying flat on my back tilting my head back using my hands. I could lay down anywhere on my back and tilt my head and it doesn’t happen it’s just when I’m using my hands in that position. No problems at gym ,dentist or carnival rides and no motion sickness. I did get sea sick once many years ago and that’s the same feeling. Anyway I know this is an old thread and I read some of the people giving their opinion but now that I see it is an issue with others I guess it is what it is and hopefully people can figure out as many ways to avoid that position while working like I did.

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78

Ask your physician if it might be due to an inner ear abnormality.

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79

Were other cars running and therefore creating exhaust fumes?
Were solvents or other chemicals being used in the vicinity?

Same if lying down not beneath a vehicle?

Could it be inter-cranial blood pressure increased by lying down with arms raised or legs bent athe knees?

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I joined because I saw this topic and was interested. I’m 75 years old and have been working on cars as a business in my younger years and a hobby in my later years my whole life has been about cars and about 4 years ago this problem developed. nauseous while laying on a creeper under a car but not a problem when going to bed. No cars running so no fumes sometimes worse than others but there doesn’t seem to be an answer. I’m bothered by it because like I say I’ve been doing this for over 50 years an this is new to me. I see so many of you have this problem and I hope someone finds relief to this problem I don’t want to quit and become a couch potato. I will look into Clonazepam

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I would notake Clonazepam or anything else.

If you get on the creeper in fresh air outside, will there stilbe any nausea?
Operating water heater or furnace not venting properly and causing some CO in the garage?
(Everyone today should have a working CO alarm.)

Could the nausea be caused by increased inter-cranial blood pressure due to arms being raised reaching up and legs bent athe knees?

Your head on a bed pillow likely is higher than when on a creeper.

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