micro-focusing of the eyes/staring episodes

[Lilybelle103]

I have a very unusual condition at least no one I've talked to yet can tell me what it is or why.  Anyway, what happens is that I get a funny feeling like a warning that the staring episode is coming on then sure enough it is there and I am micro-focusing on a tiny dot on the wall and no matter if I avert my eyes, my eyes will return to looking at tiny details whether it be on the floor, wall, ceiling wherever I look I am micro-focusing.  Now while I have these episodes my brain functioning is slowed down to a crawl because I will have trouble holding a conversation or speaking at all not to mention, I will forget what I am doing or forget the name of a simple object right in front of me.  It is like I am in some kind of funk. My eyes stare without reprieve for hours on end and sometimes when I close my eyes, I stare at dots inside my eyelids it's like there is no escape from it but to shade all light from my eyes and close them and go to sleep.  Sleep as of now is the only cure for it.  I have these episodes 3-4 times a week usually at night but occassionally in the daytime if I am under stress. Oh yeah, and most of the time my eyes want to look upwards at the ceiling for some odd reason so I end up craning my head back to stare up at the ceiling. Sometimes when I close my eyes, my eyelids flutter really fast and I will get a tick in my right hand really bad. Can someone tell me if this condition has been discovered in others or am I alone on this one.  If it is still something no one has heard of is there hope for a cure for this and who might I see, like maybe a neuro-opthamologist??

[suzanne1982]

A related discussion, staring spells...what is this?!? was started.

[cat32]

Hey girl, I so know what you are going through right now. People have told me that I start staring and they can't get my attention for almost a minute, and i usually chew the inside of my mouth or bite the hell out of my lip. I get really confused. I also see floaters, which sound like what you are discribing. It can be monocular( in one eye) most of the time. There are these dark dots that my eyes can't stop following. It has been hard for me to swallow, stay alert, I have daily headaches too. I just started having these sharp , shooting, electric like pains in my frontal lobe. They are the worst pain I have ever felt in my head. I was diagnosed with MRSA years ago, and I have NEVER  felt the same. I suffer from sinus infections all the time. I am often have vertigo. I am going to my doctor tomorrow to see if he can refer me to a specialist. I have had an eeg, but that didn't show anything. I also had an MRI and a CAT scan of the head without contrast due to my pregnancy at the time. That was all done three years ago, and I am worse off now. My upper body gets stiff and rigid and I clench my teeth and fists. I usually swear at that point. I was wondering if the doctor had any ideas what exactly is going on with me. please help!

[Lilybelle103]

I do not have headaches with these staring episodes though but if I have the staring episode for over 5 or 6 hours I will feel a little eye strain. Does this help rule out the migraine part of it?

[Joanna Fong, MD]

Hi Lilybelle103,

Your eye symptom can be due to something as simple as floaters.  However, it can be a positive visual symptoms, related to a visual aura that we see in patients with migraine headache or seizure.  A visual aura is created due to activation of some nerves in your brain that are responsible for vision (occipital region).  Patient with migraine can have visual aura (=classic migraine).  The typical visual aura started with a flickering uncolored zig-zag line in the center of the visual field and gradually progressed toward the periphery of one hemifield, often leaving a scotoma. Patient with seizure also can have visual symptoms.  It seems that those visual symptoms occur only with your staring episodes.  Although your description of your staring episodes are not classic for seizure, it is probably best to have formal evaluation by a neurologist.  You can have a EEG study (brain wave study) to see if we can find EEG abnormalities associated with your staring spells. It is also best to see a ophthalmologist to formally evaluate your eyes to rule out any eye diseases can be explain your symptoms.  

Good luck.

THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED FOR GENERAL MEDICAL EDUCATION PURPOSE ONLY.  PLEASE CONTACT YOUR PHYSICIAN FOR DIAGNOSTIC AND TREATMENT OPTIONS OF YOUR SPECIFIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS.

[jteagle69]

floaters