Question: Why do I feel dizzy when I spin?

Angela Stokes answered on 16 Nov 2014:

Hi Ian 21
In addition to hearing, the ears do another important job. The inner parts of the ears give a sense of balance.

The inner parts are open spaces filled with fluid. The inside walls of the spaces are covered with tiny hairs. Each hair is connected to a nerve cell that carries signals to the brain. When the head moves, the fluid sloshes around and bends the hairs. As each hair bends, it makes its nerve cell send a signal, telling the brain about that movement.

When we spin around, the fluid starts spinning, too. That gives us the sensation of spinning. When we stop, the fluid keeps moving (and bending tiny hairs and signaling the brain). That may make us feel that we are spinning backward. We call that “feeling dizzy.”