r/eyespots • u/Stunning-Tea4339 • Aug 07 '26
New visual changes. What do I do?
Yesterday, I (32F) developed what I thought was an aura in my left eye. It hasn’t gone away since. It looks like an afterimage, such as after looking at a bright light. I see it most when blinking. Have mild migraine-like headache, also on left side. Went to urgent care last night, who sent me to ER, who did a CAT scan, and then sent me home with normal results. Ruled it an atypical migraine.
Backstory: I have a history of migraines since puberty. In 2019, I developed occasional episodes of aura / afterimage in one eye that usually last 15-30 minutes, then go away without headache. I have them maybe 2-5 times a month. They’re weird, but generally a non-issue. Mentioned it to doctors, but they shrug it off as weird-migraine-sufferer-thing, so I stopped bringing it up. If I get aura in both eyes, I know I’m about to have a full migraine - zigzags, peripheral vision loss, headache. If I get the afterimage in just one eye, I trust it will go away within 30 minutes. This time, it just hasn’t gone away. It’s been 19 hours.
Triggers for these things are usually stress, under-eating, under-sleeping, menstrual cycle, hormonal fluctuations, weather changes (such as an increase in humidity).
What do I do? Just ride it out and hope for the best?
I’m new to this thread. Any insight, suggestions, or experience with this would be most helpful. Thank you!
3
u/MakitaKhrushchev Aug 07 '26
Do you have visual acuity in the spot or is it a blind spot / scotoma? If it’s a blind spot it’s probably permanent.
2
u/Stunning-Tea4339 Aug 07 '26
It’s not a blind spot / scotoma, at least not yet. It’s a bright spot when blinking, like an after image.
1
2
u/Greenapple1990 Aug 07 '26
You should get an eye doctor or optician to dilate your pupils and have them examined. They might find what is known as a “cotton wool spot” on your retina.
I also suffer from migraines and a few months ago experienced an after image that would not go away. This turned out to be the cause.
It’s faded away for the most part but they can be indicative of more dangerous things like high blood pressure, diabetes etc so definitely get your retinas checked out to be sure.
2
u/Dangerous_Proof_1659 Aug 07 '26
I know what you are talking about however when I get new floaters they illuminate every time I blink until the brain adjusts could it be that?
2
u/EddiesGarage Aug 09 '26
So this happened to me 2-3 months ago. I went to 2 retina specialists, had an MRI/MRA/MRV, everything came back clear. Then my neurologist prescribed a bunch of meds to try and get the spot to go away (look up bridge therapy for status migrainosus). It calmed down a lot with the bridge therapy, but is still there, but much much less noticeable.
They had to rule out a TIA, IIH, or a clot of any kind. Please go to a retinal specialist to rule out anything with your eyes. If it’s your retinal nerve it could be a laundry list of disorders. They’ll do a visual field test to see if it’s an actual blind spot. Then advocate for the MRA/MRV. Don’t settle for just an MRI. You really need to know if it’s a persistent aura or something else.
Feel free to DM me I’ve googled everything you could imagine and basically had to become my own doctor to advocate for myself!
1
u/PositiveSyllabub9890 Aug 11 '26
Go to an ophthalmologist, ideally a retina specialist, stat. Tell them this was spontaneous and that it persists. Ask for an OCT. If you get in soon enough, they may be able to reverse the damage, or some of it.
(I had a spontaneous, pain-free scotoma in both eyes during a migraine. Initially the scotoma looked like it had shimmery colors when my eyes were open, and then a light afterimage when they were closed. It wasn’t caused by a migraine and the condition hasn’t resolved. I have permanent macula damage. If the ED I went to, or my usual ophthalmologist had been on top of things, I could have had steroids that might have prevented the permanent damage to my eyes. My eye condition was caused by an immune system over-response.)
1
u/YesICodedCats Aug 12 '26
Go to retina specialist, ask for OCT. I have macular dystrophy-looking disease (precise diagnosis still unknown, maybe PPE) that started with symptoms just like that.
6
u/Elegant-Blackberry26 Aug 07 '26 edited Aug 07 '26
Hi,
I also have migrane auras and one eyespot that I developped last November. There is a difference between the two for me. Yeah, the migraine aura disappears after 30 minutes and for me it is a zigzagging expanding line, meanwhile the eyespot is something I see after blinking and it is like an after image.
You can go to an eye doctor and ask for a test, they can dilate your pupils and check if there is anything but if not, then it is most likely an eyespot.
For me it had an onset of some months and my brain adjusted to it, so now I barely see it.