double vision and fatigue

19 years ago I had an orbiltal blowout with complications due to a bleeding disorder. I was left with non-comitant double vision due to muscle damage. In primary gaze, I can see single but there is a price to pay. I can feel my brain working to correct the problem. This results in the brain feeling like it has a clamp on it (best way I can describe it). If I cover one eye, usually the right eye the feeling goes away and I feel "normal." The normal feeling lets me know how messed up it is most of the time. I'd love to talk to others with this problem if there is anybody else. It's impossible to describe accurately to someone who doesn't have it. I'm tired all the time, can't read more than a few pages of a book without falling asleep. I've tried patching the eye but that has its own problems.
Anybody out there who can understand this?

Thank

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Your problem is common and easy to explain. The muscle is weaker than normal and with both eyes together you have to work harder than normal to keep from seeing double (think about walking with one partially paralized leg. When you cover one eye (probably either one) the eye/brain does not have to do extra work to keep eyes aligned (the eye behind the cover will drift in or out or up or down depending on which muscle was damaged). If you take the cover down suddenly you likely see double and feel a increase strain to get them lined up.

What can be done? See a strabismus/pediatric Eye Muscle Eye MD. You might benefit from prism glasses or even eye muscle surgery if this is a big problem.

JCH MD