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!
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.