Issues with working at the computer

[kel6687]

About 3 and a half weeks ago I got a pair of glasses that the doctor told me were for a VERY mild nearsightedness with a slightly worse RX in my right eye. I work in an office & take the glasses off and on while working up close, but I have been noticing that viewing the computer screen without the glasses on causes me to have some spots in my right side vision (almost like I've just looked at a camera flash). They're not blind spots, but they're somewhat distracting, especially since I never had this problem before. The lighting in the office is somewhat poor (and flourescent). I was wearing the glasses while at the computer (hated taking them off & on), but when I talked to the doc she told me to stop doing that. I just had a healthy eye exam 2 weeks ago. Any suggestions on how to get this problem to KNOCK IT OFF?

[Sandra M Brown, MD]

Glasses just bend light rays.  They don't cause 'spots'.  The kind of camera flash issue you are describing is known as a phosphene.  The most common cause of phosphenes is migraine.  It is difficult to make a connection between the glasses and the phosphenes, except that they both started at the same time.  It is possible that you have anti-glare coating on the lenses.  If so, this could actually improve your overall vision quality when working at the computer especially with poor lighting.  Therefore, you may always have had some phosphene like stuff off to the right side but "never noticed it until it was gone".  I know this isn't a very satisfactory explanation but it's all I can come up with right now.

[kel6687]

Thanks doctor.. it's a good possibility that I have just started noticing it since I was kind of freaking out about my health when I noticed this. I've been under a lot of stress lately & a migraine does seem like a possibility (especially since I notice it more at work). But could it last for up to 3 weeks? It's not totally constant, it's much more pronounced when I'm concentrating on it (obviously) - and my birth control pills do make my anxiety heightened.