Visual Disturbances

[hpay]

I can relate to having visual disturbances it started with tingling on top of my head and face then I started to get floaters which freaked me out so bad then I started to see little bright lights I got so scared I went to emergency where he told me I had a inner ear infection I took antibiotics and it never helped it got worse the tingling started ion my arms then hands and feet I started getting sharp pains in head and headaches I feared I had a brain tumor! It was so scary it plagued every thought I was sure I wass going to die! I went to emerg and he told me flat out anxiety cause I also had chest pains! So it all was a nightmare untill I found this site!

[Hjaltland]

I'm so glad I found this site as I've been having visual disturbances for the last 3 years and was convinced that I was coming down with a brain tumour.

I am over 60 now and in good shape. I've worked in a very active job all my life but have eased off the physical side lately (but more stress!)

The first time I experienced a VD I was aware of an out of focus small area in the middle of my vision - right eye - which went when a semicircular shimmering jagged line appeared to one side and gradually spread out to the periphery of my sight until it disappeared. All this took a period of 15 mins or so and then all was back to normal. I have no headaches but sometimes have a little numbness to the side of my right eye.

Lately the attacks have increased in number and severity - the shimmering semicircle now forms to the left of the unfocused portion and passes into the left eye over a period of 20 minutes.

I have had extensive eye examinations which have found nothing wrong. I have had medical exams, blood tests, blood flow measurements etc and nothing has been found out of order, thankfully. The doc came to the conclusion that I am having migraines, I have no headache with these.

When this first happened I was very concerned but now I find it mildly interesting. The doc thinks some medication for migraine may help... I'll let you know if it does.. finding this site certainly is a relief.

Oh, I forgot to say that this is particularly annoying when I'm driving .. I have to pull off the road and wait through the attack

[Kipepeo Girl]

I can relate to having visual disturbances it started with tingling on top of my head and face then I started to get floaters which freaked me out so bad then I started to see little bright lights I got so scared I went to emergency where he told me I had a inner ear infection I took antibiotics and it never helped it got worse the tingling started ion my arms then hands and feet I started getting sharp pains in head and headaches I feared I had a brain tumor! It was so scary it plagued every thought I was sure I wass going to die! I went to emerg and he told me flat out anxiety cause I also had chest pains! So it all was a nightmare untill I found this site!

I always suffer with tingling/numbness in my hands and face when I have a migraine.

I get a few visual disturbances, which sometimes make me anxious, but mostly I ignore them. I get coloured 'blobs' which appear in my vision. They look a bit like the afterimage when you look at a light. I usually get them when I'm anxious or have done a lot of exercise.
Sometimes I get silvery lines in front of my eyes (which I think look a bit like faded stretch marks). They either flash in time with my pulse or appear when I cough.
The last one is when I look at something bright or white and see floaters. The floaters themselves are white/clear but I have three or four black dots which kind of 'sparkle' in one spot in my vision.

[catherine goss]

I just want to say that I'm very pleased to read about people who are experiencing the same thing as I am. I have had these 'visual disturbances' on and of for a long time now but they have recently become more frequent and I would like to know why, and what I can do about it. They are generally milder now than they used to be but still quite disturbing and leaving me feeling with that 'washed out' feeling. Like a lot of people I usually don't have a head ache, just a bit of a 'heady' feeling. Anyway it's nice to know im not alone!

[eloise14]

i have had these visual disturbances for 3 months now how long do they last? x

[Snap]

Visual disturbances are probably the worst syptom I have. At least, it's the one that I obsess the most about. I find too much light 'flashy' and distracting. I see after-images of things that are moving. Of course, we always see these, but they become distracting also. I see shimmering, particulalry when reading and looking at screens. I perceive strobe-like effects on written pages also. If it's cloudy, I struggle with gloomy light outside: it seems to make some of the disturbances more pronounced.

I've come to think that most of these are just normal parts of vision that I tune in to too much. Sometimes when I'm calm, I notice them and they don't worry me. Other times, I feel overwhelmed by them.

S

[Snap]

i have had these visual disturbances for 3 months now how long do they last? x

Eloise, I doubt anyone can answer that. For me, what happened is that the disturbances never really went away. At first I first found them distracting, and at times disturbing. For long periods since then, I've noticed them but they have not worried me. During those periods, I became convinced they're just a normal part of vision that I notice more in a bad frame of mind.

They've been bothering me a lot lately, but they haven't for a long time before recently. I expect they'll fade away again, in terms of how much they consume me. It might take a while for that to happen though.

[eloise14]

thankyou snap for your reply, this is one of my worst symptoms i guess cos they are 24/7 like my tinitus, i had scans etc all clear but just wish i could be normal again x

[karenza]

my son has like a snowy sight and cant sleep for flashes in his eyes when shut, its hard to help, drs found nothing waiting for eye test at home as he cant leave home far, any ideas

[BasilCat]

Hi, I get these visual too, have had them on and off for 30 years now. They started when I was 20 and I am now 53 and even after 30 years of them, they scare me to death. I always hope that if I go into town or get a train somewhere, say into Liverpool 20 miles away, that I dont get one, because I always like to be on my own when they come, and preferably in bed. I was once on a coach to Stratford on Avon a couple of year ago and I got one on the coach! No place to hide there. The disturbances are like lots of flashing lights and zig zags that get bigger and bigger. The only "Good" thing about them is that they only last half an hour. Why that should be, I dont know but I can usually bet that once one has started it will be gone 30 minutes later. I get these disturbances usually two or three times a year but have had about 5 this year, two of them only being weeks apart.

BasilCat