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"We spend our whole lives in the unconscious exercise of the art of expressing our thoughts with the help of words." Vincent van Gogh

     Liz Eisen is the author of Perception of Movement, her memoir about living with Meniere's Syndrome, an inner ear disease that causes vertigo, tinnitus and hearing loss.

     Liz is currently shopping Perception of Movement for an agent and publisher. A short excerpt of the book is below. A longer excerpt of her memoir can be found on the Current Projects page.

Introduction

Spinning Out of Control

The bedroom was spinning out of control. The four denim blue walls had become detached from the ceiling and the floor and were whirling as if on their own axis. I watched as they all spun by, not stopping for a second.  First came the wall with the white shuttered windows.  The fireplace flew by on the next.  Then the wall with the old black television on top of the antique armoire, turning together as if they were one unit. The last wall, the one with the oak headboard leaning against it was moving like it had become separated from the very bed I was lying on and it was spinning in sync with the other three visions.

Four hours ago, I’d been in the kitchen putting away groceries, when I turned too quickly to put the milk into the refrigerator. Without any warning, the spinning was immediately so intense that I could barely move.  The force of it almost knocked me down. I slowly crumpled to the ground and only made it to the safety of my bedroom by crawling up the stairs. This time was the most intense attack I had ever experienced and the first time I was alone with vertigo. It would be hours before my husband Michael returned from work and our three children came home from school.

I tried to lie on my bed as still as possible with my eyes wide open. It was the only way I thought I could get through this. I was watching the bizarre spinning, but not fully comprehending it. Every time I tried to close my eyes, the throbbing in my head and the nausea were unbearable.

©2010 Liz Eisen/lizeisen.com