Quick, bright flashes of light

[JeanD]

ALmost like a camera went off but its just a tiny, quick flash that looks almost bluish. Hard to describe, but its so quick.

What could be causing this? Along wit hthe nerve pain in my left foot I am beginning to really be worried that I have MS.

Jean

[Capital H]

My theory is random activity in the optical nerve, interpreted as a source of light by the visual cortex.

However there are things you  have to watch out for, the shower of sparks, or seeing stars phenomenon can be a sign of a retina about to detach or it can be a sign that the brain is not getting enough oxygen, for instance when you rise suddenly, or interupt the blood supply to the brain.

Some people however just see lights and other visual phenomena, sometimes as a result of migraine, other times without any explanation whatever.

[JeanD]

Thank you. Its not really like seeing starts or a shower or lights, so I think I am Ok in that sense. I do get migrains, so maybe its from that.

[sosoftail]

I had a bright flash of light a few months ago. I was overheated & sweating. It all went black & I hit the floor hard butt 1st. Since then I have had all sorts of back trouble. The meds prescribed ( also have fibromyalgia) all have bad side effects, Lyrica, Cymbalta & the last one Savella. I went to the hospital. They thought I was having a heart attack. Profuse sweating, nausea, tremors, blood pressure high, dry mouth, heart rate 110. They finally decided the Savella caused it but I was told I needed to have my heart checked.

I saw a physical therapist recently. He asked when my back pain started & I told him about the bright white light & fainting. He said that sounded like a cardiac episode. I have an appointment  Oct 28th. New patient takes awhile. He also said my nerves were firing off very rapidly. ANY stress & I start shaking, nausea, (Savella stopped) chest pain, hard to breathe, racing heart, dizziness & a loss of reality (dreamlike). Very weak. I am concerned & scared I may die before I see a doctor. Any ideas. ER no help. I did that & they said they do no diagnostics at all. I have only a neurologist ( she ordered a cervical MRI but insurance denied it. I have since dropped the insurance & went back to regular medicare though it won't take effect until Nov 1st) and a back doctor. He had trouble with the premium Medicare as well. The doctors all tell me it will make life easier for them & me being back on regular Medicare. No hoops to jump through. Thanks Cheryl

[baruch]

Your symptoms seem to match a panic attack. Anxiety disorders are closely related to fibromyalgia. Try to see if your symptoms improve when you are feeling relaxed. Also, consider that when doing aerobic exercises, your heart beats much faster than 110. Also, a healthy heart can tolerate a really fast pulse (>170) for hours. So try to keep calm when these symptoms appear and hopefully they will go away on their own.