eyesight problems

[hawiiansurfer]

Hello there, I ten to worry too much, but right now I need some help.  I am 20 years old and I have lots of floaters' also if I look at a blank canvas like the sky or a white wall I see lots of transparent dots moving around. Next, every so often I'll see a flicker of color somewhere in my field of vision, like a tiny quick red flash, and lastly, when I close my eyes I sometimes see a quick flash of light, my doctor thinks I'm fine, but I'm go a see an actual optomtrist in a few days, my question is, what's wrong with me? Could it be a rental tear or brain problem?

[kevieb]

Most likely there is nothing wrong with you, although a whole lot of new floaters can possibly indicate a retinal tear.  I have had the same issues you describe for about 24 years.  It really concerned me when it started, of course, I was in the midst of a nervous breakdown and also had developed ringing in my ears.   Between the ringing in my ears and the floaters in my eyes, I felt trapped inside my own body.

Over time, I noticed the floaters and ear ringing less and less.  When we bought a new house, I painted all the walls navajo white, which is sort of a creamy vanilla color---I knew there was no way I could have white walls with all the floaters I had.   I hardly notice them now.  They are always there, and will sometimes create a blur spot when I read, but i just blink my eyes or shake my head slightly---and they move out of my field of vision,.  If the lights are slightly dimmed, I hardly see them at all.

I don't even notice the ringing in my ears anymore---If I listened for it, I suppose I would.

I still get the occasional flash of light, sometimes I even see shooting stars if I bend over and come up too quickly.  I also get ocular migraines---they scared me to death until I knew what they were.  Now they are just a pain cause they cause a space in my vision where I can't see anything, it isn;t black, there just isn't anything there.  I rarely get a headache with them.   Four of my children also get ocular migraines, but only one seems to get headaches with them.

Hope I helped you feel a little better in some small way---sometimes just knowing someone else has dealt with the same thing seems to help me sometimes.

It's good to see the eye doctor--but I'd be willing to bet he tells you you are fine.  

Good luck, and let me know what you find out!

[lovelifetruly]

I too have floaters and light flashes and my
eye doctor said this was normal BUT not as
frequent or intense as you are describing.  Be
sure to find a very competent eye specialist.

[jemma116]

It is normal to have floaters.  Everyone has them, but some people are more sensitive and see them more than others.

I would suggest though that you do get your eyes examined by the optomotrist.  He does a thorough investigation into the eye and they have tests for field of vision and check for pressure in the eye.  They can also take a computerised photograph of the inside of the eye ball and check for any damage.  People who have diabetes quite commonly suffer from peripheral retinopathy.

I have floaters that I can see, but not the clear see through ones, I have three spots of black that move about.  I have been told by the optomotrist that it is OK, but if it starts to enlarge I will need to go back to them.  I do not know what they would do though.

Don't worry too much and my advise is to get checked out by the optomotrist.

Best wishes