Blurred Vision

[carefree68]

Grrrr, had friends over for dinner have not seen them in ages, Christmas celebrations have begun. Talked about christmas lots, felt edgy, like i was talking but not talking, fumbled my words forgot what I was saying. constant blurred vision and spacey. I know these friends and am completely relaxed with them but they must have thought I am a complete nutter. Wish these feelings would just go away!

Has anyone else had this blurred vision almost like there is a film over my eyes for 2-3 weeks??? its so scary. Have had my eyes checked but apparently very healthy.

Just fed up pretending everything is ok?

Does anyone else feel this way?:wacko:

[Helen1985]

Yes hun i had the blurred vision at the start for 3 weeks, this was at the start of my anxiety when i knew something was wrong. Then it went and i randomly had it again for a week and havnt had it since this was around 10 months ago, xxxxx

[rapidhopeloss]

Yup hun! I had it today when I was with my brother and nephew...It's horrible :(

[Mindful]

Yep, this is a classic anxiety symptom, when we are super anxious our pupils let in much more light, which can make us have blurred vision, its helpful if we are in an open space hunting and need to be able to see far, to avoid those lions and other tribe members who want to eat us! Not so good for when you are going about daily life. Add in the fact we most certainly concentrate on this blurred vision and it can stay with us for weeks and weeks. Its there because you want it gone. Course you want it gone its horrible, but harmless and an annoyance. x

[carefree68]

Hi Mindful, Thank you AGAIN, seriously you seem to make so much sense. It is driving me crazy 50% of me knows its anxiety but the other 50% believes its something else, and should I get it checked out, yet again. I think the problem is its because its your eyes and its in front of you all the time, your'e aware of it all the time and Im constantly checking it, from the minute I wake up

This is so not me I never used be such a worrier I hate this. Just want me back, just don't feel like I can cope. But here I am putting on a smiley face for my girls all the excitement of christmas, good distraction I suppose.

Thank you for responding everyone.

Mindful would love to catch up with you soon, how are you feeling?

[Mindful]

It is driving me crazy 50% of me knows its anxiety but the other 50% believes its something else, Half of you knows what it is and why its there, the other half is whats keeping it there, fear! So the good news is you are half way there. :)


and should I get it checked out, yet again. Go to the opticians, if you havent been already, i bet you they tell you your eyes are just fine.

I
think the problem is its because its your eyes and its in front of you all the time, your'e aware of it all the time and Im constantly checking it, from the minute I wake up You self diagnosed there .. the very reason its there is exactly what you say, constantly checking in on it. How could it not be there with so much concentrating inward?


This is so not me I never used be such a worrier I hate this. Just want me back, just don't feel like I can cope. But here I am putting on a smiley face for my girls all the excitement of christmas, good distraction I suppose. Aw yeh i hear you, i was the same, not overly confident but quietly confident doing my thing, then like a bat out of hell panic and anxiety hit, knocked me completely off my feet and i became housebound. Fast forward 7 years, lots of research, lots of soul searching and lots of guts and i get back on my feet, but this anxiety has a habit of creeping back up on you, which is where i find myself now, only this time i am not fighting it anymore, i havent the energy, when i say i am not fighting it, i dont mean i have given up, quite the opposite, i am not fighting the feelings and thoughts. I'm going along with it. ( its great fun -NOT lol) Its not easy when every fibre of your being is telling you to FREAK out! .. and theres my little voice in the background saying '' Hey this is BS, go with it, ride with it..let it be " You have to change your reaction to that fear of whatever you are fearing, blurred eyes in this case. To do that firstly you have to understand why its happening, which you do, now you need to prove its what you think it is. You wake up in the morning and the first thing you think is Can i see clearly? Wham! Hello blurred eyes..you feel on edge, constantly check inward on yourself, yep blurred eyes are still there, probably a few other anxious feelings too.. the anxious feelings make you more anxious, the blurred eyes make you more anxious still and the cycle continues. I know i am rambling now lol but honestly, to break the cycle you need to accept that you do have blurred eyes because you are anxiously looking for it constantly and checking your eye sight all the time, you have anxiety and are caught in a horrible but harmless cycle , you may well have it for some time cause even once you accept this and allow it to be there in the background without the adding of fear, it takes a while for your mind to move on. Be prepared to have it for as long as you have it, really tell yourself every day that it is anxiety, it is a cycle and there is nothing to fear. You know that song Dorey sings in Finding Nemo? ''Just keep swimming..just keep swimming.." Well, thats my little mantra hehe only i sing..' Just keep going..just keep going..'


Thank you for responding everyone.

Mindful would love to catch up with you soon, how are you feeling? Aw thanks for asking, i am doing ok here x :hugs:

[carefree68]

Aw Thanks mindful. lol Love Nemo watched it yesterday - funny!

Its all true. I know I have to be patient. Im sorry you have had this for so long, but so pleased you found a way to cope with it - ride the storm. I know Ill get there - God I want to.... I just want it NOW. Im sure I have had anxiety in the past, 'Fight flight', but this has really knocked me its exhausting isen't it?

Im sure kids have a lot to do with how I feel cause your are so frightened if anything should happen to you.


You keep rambling away, your rambles make so much sense to me and you have no idea how much you have helped me and others Im sure. I hope I can do the same one day.

Thank you for your support.
:bighug1:

[Mindful]

It is tiring and i totally get the just wanting it gone NOW thing lol.. but thats exactly what keeps it there. The fact you want it to go away so badly ( understandably) means you have not accepted it for what it is, just anxiety, just a constant checking inward on your self. Wanting it gone NOW says you fear it,which means your anxiety is still connected to it. Which is why it remains. Thats what keeps us all locked into the fun cycle of panic-anxiety. Mind you, its easy said, let it be there,not so easy done. But when you have two choices, 1- freak out..2- let it be... the second one just seems so much inviting and less exhausting dont you think? x

[carefree68]

Yep Totally agree. Im done with the freaking out gets me no where lol. Im going to give the ride it out ago and try and be patient. I have started the free CBT thing going to give it a go. Im sure it will help a lot more when I stop trying to fight it and as you say 'let it be' Ill just keep swimming, just keep swimming :winks:

Thanks, hope we can keep in touch?

[Mindful]

Of course, we can swim together hehe

I will look for my bible later ( Its the book that got me through the first time i got hit with this rubbish, called Over coming panic and understanding fear by Roger Baker) there is a section in there about blurred eyes, when i have a little more time i will type it out for you. x

[carefree68]

Thanks you are very kind. Is the book any good? derr lol you said it got you through the fist time, ha ha sorry! Open to all help and ideas? Thanks for everything, I honestly feel a little better. x

[Mindful]

Head and Eyes

Often in panic (48% of sufferers) people feel giddy or dizzy with loss of balance or unsteadiness, feeling they may fall over. They quite often hold on to something to steady themselves. One man i was treating clung to a bollard to stop himself (as he thought) falling over.

Sometimes in panic people experience blurred vision or distorted vision, some complain its impossible to read close up.

Have you ever been to a eye specialist who puts a few drops of liquid into your eye so that your pupil stays wide open and he can examine your eyes more easily?
Afterward your pupils are still wide open and the world seems a bit strange, you are very sensitive to light, it hurts your eyes, you can't read and you feel unsteady when you walk. You want to hide in a dark corner until your pupils start to work properly again.

In the fear reaction the pupils open wide- the reaction comes from adrenaline inside the body rather than from someone putting drops into your eyes.This causes more light to flood in to the eyes, which is useful to take in as much of the surroundings as possible in order to spot danger.

The muscle at the side of the eyes which makes the eyes focus (ciliary muscle )also tenses up, making us focus best on things between three and ten meters away. This is very helpful in battle or if you are attacked by animals but not very useful if you are an office worker trying to read close up. The body seems to have reckoned that, where danger is concerned, its most important to focus on the middle distance.


Myth! Something is wrong with my eyes!

Feelings such as blurred vision, not being able to focus properly or a general feeling that things are swimming around can lead people to think they have some serious problem with their eyes or are going blind. I have never treated a person made blind by panic. I have never read of a person made blind by panic. I have never met a blind person who's blindness was caused by panic. It would be extremely difficult to understans how the optic nerve, a very tough, thick fibre, could be harmed in the slightest way by a fear reaction. I have seen plenty of people with fear of blurred vision and what it signifies, but no permanent harm can be done to the eye by panic attacks.


DR Roger Baker.


Hope this helps Carefree x

[carefree68]

I had my eyes checked over a year ago and they found some swelling behind my eyes optician told me could be MS or Tuma need urgent MRI . This I believe was my anxiety trigger, I was a carefree spirit before all of this. after MRI they discovered head healthy no ms no Tuma but the sockets behind my eyes were blocked ....sinus which also explained my ongoing vertigo and dizziness and tinnitus for a year. It's something I kinda have to put up with. Things improved slightly then the onset of anxiety in June pains in chest huge adrenaline rushes palpitations, nausea, reflux, headaches, sweats numbness etc felt kinda rubbish since June, exhausted actually. Went on holiday for a few weeks in the summer and I thought things had started to improve. Then September blurred vision so got my eyes checked again to my relief no more swelling, pressure test reduced. but a slight prescription for reading/ computer and I also have a stigmatism (sorry not sure about the spelling) can accept that at my age. The eyes improved slightly no more blurring over the next 2 months and then 3 weeks ago bam extreme blurred vision constant really frightening sore eyes feel like they are being pushed out (that sounds a bit freaky) but difficult to explain. There does not appear to be any let up. And left eye keeps twitching. Really find this difficult to accept and just go on with my daily family life. I am really putting a brave face on it all. I have no idea why this symptom has led me to tell a little of my story, this is the first time I have really spoken about it....not sure why. Im sorry if this post is too long and rambles.

---------- Post added at 20:56 ---------- Previous post was at 20:47 ----------

Hi mindful thanks for your post. You must have posted that whilt I was typing mine.

Thank you for taking the time to type that up that is so kind:hugs:

bit of a bad day just exhausted I think.

You are a star, it explains a lot. Especially reading up close and the muscles tensing and sensitivity to light. Riding this wave is just easier said than done right?

[Mindful]

I had my eyes checked over a year ago and they found some swelling behind my eyes optician told me could be MS or Tuma need urgent MRI . This I believe was my anxiety trigger, I was a carefree spirit before all of this. after MRI they discovered head healthy no ms no Tuma but the sockets behind my eyes were blocked ....sinus which also explained my ongoing vertigo and dizziness and tinnitus for a year. It's something I kinda have to put up with. Things improved slightly then the onset of anxiety in June pains in chest huge adrenaline rushes palpitations, nausea, reflux, headaches, sweats numbness etc felt kinda rubbish since June, exhausted actually. Went on holiday for a few weeks in the summer and I thought things had started to improve. Then September blurred vision so got my eyes checked again to my relief no more swelling, pressure test reduced. but a slight prescription for reading/ computer and I also have a stigmatism (sorry not sure about the spelling) can accept that at my age. The eyes improved slightly no more blurring over the next 2 months and then 3 weeks ago bam extreme blurred vision constant really frightening sore eyes feel like they are being pushed out (that sounds a bit freaky) but difficult to explain. There does not appear to be any let up. And left eye keeps twitching. Really find this difficult to accept and just go on with my daily family life. I am really putting a brave face on it all. I have no idea why this symptom has led me to tell a little of my story, this is the first time I have really spoken about it....not sure why. Im sorry if this post is too long and rambles.

---------- Post added at 20:56 ---------- Previous post was at 20:47 ----------

Hi mindful thanks for your post. You must have posted that whilt I was typing mine.

Thank you for taking the time to type that up that is so kind:hugs:

bit of a bad day just exhausted I think.

You are a star, it explains a lot. Especially reading up close and the muscles tensing and sensitivity to light. Riding this wave is just easier said than done right?

I'm glad you posted your story, i can so see why you have the fear of blurred eyes after going through all that! ....And now ended up with anxiety.

I get migraine with aura, have done for 15 years but just this past few months i have had 7! The aura makes me panic and because i have had so many recently i am constantly watching out for it, i am feeling a lot of blurred vision at the mo too, but mine stems from the aura migraine and yours from swelling in the eyes and all the ms scares.

I went to the opticians today, he did all the tests and says my eyes are fine, i do have reading glasses and have had for years.

Like you i now need to accept this is down to anxiety and constant inward checking. It isnt easy but once you have been checked out you have to start to accept it for what it is. I pretty much knew my recent blurred eyes was down to me checking in all the time, understandable after 7 auras i think, same as you checking in all the time cause of your past history.

It isnt easy but we can do it x

[carefree68]

Aw.... You have been so great, and you have had a lot going on yourself. If you need to chat at all even if it is just to ramble :winks: lol please pm me.

It's great to finally find someone to chat too who just gets it.

I'm sure I've never had a migraine but never really suffered headaches up until a year ago, so can't imagine how , painful frightening and generally exhausting that must be.

Hey mindful 'just keep swimming, just keep swimming'. I'm chuffed the opticians are all good, just gotta kick that anxiety.

Keep me posted, thanks once again, speak soon. X:hugs:

[Mindful]

Hiya Carefree, just checking in to see how you are doing today?


I get my blood results tomorrow, they tested me for all the usual things to see if there is any reason behind my recent migraine attacks- i think its stress related but seeing as i hadnt had bloods done in 12 years i thought i may as well have them done. Never know they might just find something to pin the migraines on lol..

Hope you are ok there x:bighug1:

[carefree68]

Hey Mindful, a better day today, vision still off but trying to ignore it. Deff think your post helped.

Please let me know how you get on with results, wow 12 years. Only had mine done 9 months ago and considering having them done again, not sure they will, not sure how that works.

Has your vision improved?

I hope your migraine free for christmas, hun.

Good luck tomorrow. xx PLEASE let me know will be thinking of you. :bighug1:

[Mindful]

Evening CF x

Well, blood tests are normal, which is a good thing, i really think my migraine attacks are stress related. I am working on my stress levels, but this time of year is probably the worst time to try to reduce stress haha

My eyes feel tired, i am in a constant blurr, sometimes not so bad, others quite bad, when i get distracted it isnt so bad.... hmm wonder why? lol Its all very obvious really when you think about these things rationally. When i am distracted its almost gone..when i think of it again..well what do you know? Its back...

I am just riding the tide here, the tide is throwing me all over the place, its a rocky ride :ohmy: But i know that trying to swim against it is pointless.. might get me surf board out hehe :shades:

How are you doing?Hows the xmas preparations coming along? :bighug1:

[carefree68]

Hey there, relieved the blood test are normal phew!

lol, you couldn't pick a worse time to reduce stress, I think you get stressed without even knowing it this time of year its a given. :winks:

Do you know Im the same when Im distracted, im almost unaware of the blur, then I symptom check, or even think "Oh its gone" and then...."Oh its back". for me its worse in dimmed light and when I look down....I do wonder if its sinus?

Christmas preps almost complete My girls are beyond excitement (12 and a 9 year old). Just food shop to do!:wacko:

Really love this time of year, just hope I don't ruin it.

How bout you and yours all set? x:hugs:



Im going to try and relax and ride it, pretending is difficult.

[Mindful]

I was checking sinus symptoms earlier ..doctor google strikes again lol

Go ask your doc if you think that might be why your eyes are blurry, i personally know mine blurr because i think about it. I think you are the same but a docs appointment to rule that out certainly wont hurt.


Last day of work tomorrow, i do need to get last minute food shopping either tomorrow or Saturday morning, other than that i am ready!

I have girls too, 3 of them :ohmy: Mine are 20,14 and 12, only have the two younger ones living with me now, eldest flew the nest but will be home for xmas. :D You wont ruin it, you will have some blurred eyes, so will i, probably a few wobbly moments too, but keep smiling, keep reminding yourself that its anxiety and just let it be there. :hugs:

[carefree68]

Oh cool you will l have all your girls with you.
Well will both have a bit of a blurry christmas (and not alcohol related) lol.:yesyes:

Have a FAb time Mindful, Try and relax, enjoy and smile.:) Catch up soon

Happy Christmas Hun. xx

Lisa

[Mindful]

Thanks lovey x

Happy Christmas to you too, hope you have a great one.

Catch you after the madness of the next few days has passed haha

:hugs:

[carefree68]

Ok so still have the blurred vision constant, over a month now. sore eyes, twitching eyes, went to docs today for suggestions. He checked my BP which is fine as always, and looked into my eyes with a light, which he said was fine checked my reading vision which is ok. But still this odd vision thing feels like a veil over my eyes. He is sending me to a eye specialist, but then he said "do you have any other symptoms like pins and needles down your arms" which I do and that was it...but now that has sent me into panic mode....why did he ask that?? Why is it you always immediately think something awful why why why.... arrrrrgghhhh! :weep: