My visual snow started about 12 years ago. Like a old Tv. I have RP. The crazy part is, I have visual snow every other day, like Monday, Wednesday, Friday , Sunday, Tuesday, etc. My eye doctor and my regular doctor have no answer. Thank you for this video.
I've always had visual snow. Even as a child I always saw random patterns and colors across my entire visual field. More intense on a blank surface like a clear blue sky, but it is always there, like looking through a transparent kaleidoscope of color at the world. I've also have migraine with aura which started around when I was 10 years old. I just accepted it as "normal" since it was always there, and stopped talking about it at all once it was clear that other people didn't see it.
Not sure when my visual snow started or if didn't really register until I realized other people don't see the world the same since it is almost constant. Sometimes more noticeable then others but everything seems to be made of vibrating dots like an impressionist painting. When I finally mentioned it to someone they looked at me like I was crazy.
No one seems to understand unless they experience it. Everyone thinks I'm weird or lying, so thank you for educating us all. I've been making migraine art for years, and have sketches that show where my blind spot was, because I accidentally draw the same area twice, and mess it up because I can't find what I'm looking for. I've learned to embrace my surreal psychedelic chaos, but I will absolutely be trying some of these solutions as I'm easily overwhelmed by what I call, "too much input."
I'm sorry people treat you as though you are lying. This is definitely a real thing. I am glad you have learned to embrace it as much as possible. Thank you for sharing and for watching!
-and on the other side, as a person with visual snow who's had it for as long as they remember, it's hard to believe other people DON'T experience this.
@@niicespiiceI studied psychology and they told me, 'vision is a brain phenomena, that's why it's imperfect,' so I thought snow was just 'normal imperfection' 😆 Hard to believe I was just moving about in the world with this condition no one knew about. I did have trouble having glasses fitted sometimes as a kid--I would say, 'It's still not clear!'
same thing for me with when i was younger. i thought that my eyes weren't good enough because i thought "bad vision" was seeing "more static." only a few years ago i figured it out that it should normally be blurry, not staticcy. @@AJ-fh8ng
I've experienced visual snow for as long as I can remember so it's nice to see it being acknowledged by doctors now! When I was little I used to stay up and look at my room in the dark just to watch the static in my vision. As I've gotten older, light sensitivity and poor night vision have become much bigger problems for me. I avoid driving at night and during super sunny days as much as I can because I feel like my own vision is a driving hazard.
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol). I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever. Will I be able to return to living normally?
@@samuelfajreldines674 im feeling the same rn lmao i always do. its a side effect and it comes with a lot of paranoia , dw about it man. it sucks but its one of those things you gotta live with.
I have experienced the exact same thing since I was a child. But a lot doctors have never heard about this or don't know anything about it! It is very frustrating indeed.
@angelosaracco7442 it's so good to know I'm not alone. Man, I tried explaining it and mo one understood it. Well, at least we're not completely blind. I wanna know if it worsens? 😢
Back in 2008 a neurologist told me my symptoms were all psychological. Nice to finally see it being properly diagnosed. Now to get over the medical trauma caused by that neurologist and see a new one.
Migraine with aura, check. Dry eyes, check. Tinnitus, check. Floaters, check. Image retention.... check. Jeeze, Louise! Who knew they were all related? Thank you, TH-cam gods, for dropping this in my 'recommended' list.
I’ve got all of those too. This actually had a big, negative effect on my life. They all started together when I was around 23, and I spent years thinking I had a brain tumor and was doomed. I was afraid to see a doctor, even an eye doctor, because I was afraid and I didn’t want to know. It actually caused me to make many poor decisions, because I was convinced I was dying. I had a great job opportunity once, and I bailed on it because I knew it required a medical examination. That’s just one example.
It's been a year now since I am suffering from VSS. To all the VSS warriors, I understand at times it feels devastating but we are together in this ❤️ Hope we will get a treatment soon 🤞 Also, Thank you Dr. Rupa for making this video and spreading awareness. ❤️
Hey riddhi, I am from India too, and looking for someone with similar condition. I am suffering from this for a long time and yesterday got to know what I exactly have, and it's devastating.
@@ajasshaikmohammed84 I don't know, I started using screen for longer times and then I started facing disturbances in vision, my doctor says everything is normal, but I am not satisfied.
Hi riddhi, even my VSS began last year too! Why is everyone suddenly getting this? Is because of the psychological stress at one point of time, or is it because of excess usage of smartphones?
When I was a child, each time I closed may eyes, I saw crazy lightnings and colourful moving patterns. I tried to tell my parents but nobody understood what I meant.
@@DrRupaWong hey thanks for covering this but I don’t know what to do. Lost my D3 scholarship, dropped out of school and over the course of 7 months I’ve gotten real sick. No exercise in the past 3 months has caused me to develop high blood pressure, excessive vomiting if I run up the stairs, body chills/ aches, and really pale.
I had this for years. Accompanied with floaters , specks and spots. Went to a few eye doctors over the years with no answers....very frustrating. Glad your able to delve deeper with information into this condition.
Thank you so much. I have had visual snow since I was a child. I remember clearly telling my mom I could see snow like on a tv all the time but worse at night. I have also told a couple of eye doctors but after their reaction which made me think they thought I was crazy I stopped telling people. Last year I noticed tinnitus and when I googled it this visual snow topic came up. Your description was so clear and helpful. I recently got a new family physician so I am going to ask her if I could see a neurologist. (I live in Canada). I also will see if I can get some new glasses with F41 tint as I use blue light blocking glasses at night when I use my computer and I do find they help with eye strain. Thank you!
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol). I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever. Will I be able to return to living normally?
I remember noticing it when I was small.. like 4 years old I would really notice it when look at walls in my house. I remember telling my mom about it.. just pointing it out and she didnt think anything of it. Neither did I until 5 years ago when I happened to mention the fuzz to a coworker in conversation and she was like "what are you talking about?" and i described it and she was just looking at me confused.. I said "you dont see that?" then BAM it occurred to me it wasnt normal and it might be just me.. i went to my computer and started googling and in 30 seconds I discovered it was called visual snow and it wasnt actually normal. I had always assumed it was a part of vision and everyone saw it. I was 49 years old when I finally figured this out. it doesnt really bother me, tho, unless i start thinking about it.. then its all i can see lol
I have been suffering with color spots for almost a year now. I have been to the eye doctor, neurologist, even had heart/cardiac scans and nothing. My neuro said it was migraines and put me on topomax. I think I actually have VSS since I have the tracing and poor night driving as well. I will be bringing that up with my neuro when I see him this week. Thank you! No one had ever mentioned that color spots could indicate VSS. But now I can bring that up with my doctor.
Honestly I have visual snow (minor but still very noticeable) and had no idea why ibuprofen/migrane meds never worked on me...well, now it all makes sense- thank you for the informative vid!
Developed this 10 years during a time of intense stress and anxiety about health issues. Ironically those health issues have been addressed but the VS never went away. I have pretty much all the symptoms listed but the main drag for me is the impact it's had on reading. Text appears to shift/move every so slightly and is underscored with shadows so it's a struggle to find the right monitor brightness, lighting, even viewing angle to make reading comfortable. The most difficult but helpful behavior I've found is developing acceptance.
Wow, similar experience. I developed VSS 18 years ago due to a traumatic experience. Took a while to accept this was my life now, but like with most things, the mind is a wonderfully adaptable structure. And also reading sucks for me too lol, especially when I look away and the dang words are still visible. Use to freak me out, now it’s just annoying haha
Me pasa igual, lo sufro desde hace años, aunque yo no era consciente, solo notaba que me molestaba la luz y me costaba mucho fijarme en las palabras. Yo siempre he sido un ávido lector de libros y desde hace unos años ya no apetece tanto leer por el este síndrome. Pero bueno, hay que vivir con ello
I had both of my retinas detach and a couple of years after that I started having the snow. Glad to see that I’m not alone and now I can explain it to my doctor better.
You are definitely not alone. I'm so sorry you suffer from this. Yes, please share this with your doctor if they are not sure what you are trying to explain to them.
VSS is the closest to what I've been experiencing basically all my life. The earliest memory for me was 5 years old while in my dark bedroom. At first it was like everything was moving in the dark which eventually left me scared of the dark so I needed a night light. As I got older I started noticing it 100% of the time. It's like translucent TV static. The best way I could describe it as a child was tiny colorful dots everywhere filling up all space but moving all around. I assumed I was seeing "air" when I look up at blue sky's there are these whitish sparkles flowing around which are bigger than the "static vision" or "air" as I call it. They are definitely different from eye floaters as I see them as well. I just booked an appt to see an Opt. So I can get my eyes check and discuss the possibility that what I'm experiencing is indeed VSS. I don't see any connection with migrains in my case. As it's all I've known to me my regular vision.
I'm so sorry you have struggled with this condition for so long. I hope your appointment goes well! If you can remember, let me know what they say. Thank you for being here.
@@DrRupaWong update! I just left the office and honestly I feel kinda upset. The Optometrist did look at my eyes and confirmed there isn't anything in them and that VS is neurological to speak , but he was basically like since I dealt with it all my life, I can continue to just deal and live with it. That part kind of left a sour taste in my mouth. I do understand it isn't in his field but It would've been nice to be pointed towards the right direction to get a possible diagnosis. My next step is to speak to my PCP and get a referral to see neurology.
I've got the same thing, and it's been happening as long as I can remember. I see static or snow, very much like what you would see in a low-resolution video or not-quite-tuned TV station on an old tube TV. It's barely noticeable during the daytime or at least when there is ample light around. In the dark, it's really bad. If I'm stressed out, tired, dehydrated, etc, it's quite noticeable. It can get bad enough to where the "dots" or static cover parts of an object that I'm looking at, obscuring it. But the good news is that I can control it. When it get's bad to the point that I'm concerned, I just start to mentally tune it out, usually just by the simple effort of thinking about other things. If that doesn't work, I just get busy working on something and it goes away almost immediately. The best way to describe it is it's like looking into the abyss. The more I stare (focus on it), the more abyss stares back. My uncle is schizophrenic, quite severely. Sometimes it makes me wonder if our brains are wired wrong and that this is a mild version of what can be a larger problem.
@@erickeith1466 Spoke with 3 eye doctors including a Navy doctor and they all thought I was making it up. Finally spoke to one who knew about it and he prescribed me lamotrigine. Didn't help, but that's just me. Seeing a neurologist soon for something else and am asking about it.
Thank You! As a artist I have suffered for over 20 yrs with these eye conditions and after all the tests and traveling all over the country seeing specialists , no one was ever able to tell me what was going on. They always told me I described the symptoms perfectly as an artist but never could tell me why. I gave up years ago and learned to deal with them. I will tell you this I noticed when I wore my sunglasses Oakleys the glasses seem to filter out a lot of the issues or made them less noticeable , in fact i got to be known for always having my glasses on...most people thought I was just trying to be cool or was an eccentric artist type, lol. The docs could only tell me it was something in how my brain works and that they could not find any issues. Thank You for the videos and information and more importantly ....listening to patiences!!
Of course! Thank you so much for sharing. I'm so sorry you suffer with this. If you ever want to learn about anything else I haven't already posted, let me know!
I was born with this, never had a word for it until I saw another one of your videos re migraines. Was shocked to learn VSS is not everyone's experience. It is my constant companion, sometimes it feels worse at night, with bright lights and some eye strain or stress at the end of the day. Sometimes the severity feels like an early warning of an incoming migraine. But overall I have never thought of it as debilitating. So maybe I got lucky, or we can learn to cope with better as infants / young kids. Perhaps everyone experience a different severity. Thank you for the info.
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol). I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever. Will I be able to return to living normally?
Thank you for this video. I've had VS since around 8 or 9 years of age (now 38), and have seen many doctors, optometrists etc. I had given up on discussing the condition for years as there just wasn't enough information out there and doctors didn't take it seriously. It's fantastic to see a medical professional discussing this, and the more the better. Hopefully as more research is conducted in the coming years we'll get more answers and in time a cure.
I am experiencing visual snow since last 5 months along with floaters every time I move my eyeball nobody understands me telling that I have static vision good to hear that what I am experiencing is under existence and I just hope they don’t increase with my age I feel like a dependent person and loosing my confidence without perfect vision because I am also experiencing floaters and double vision along with visual snow
This sounds like things I experience! Honestly, I thought this was how everyone seen the world, because it's been my reality as long as I can remember. I remember seeing a LOT of static when I was younger and into my 20s. In my 20s, however, I started lamictal as part of another medical treatment. I didn't think much of it, but when you mentioned that medication and it helping with visual snow, I realized THAT might be why I don't see that static anymore, though I still get a couple of the other issues. It all doesn't bother me much, since it's been going on for apparently my entire life? Neat! You learn something new every day!
It is so common to think this is normal when you are experiencing it. I am glad this video has found you so you can be more informed on your health. That is great it doesn't bother you much. Thank you so much for watching!
I’ve had this my entire life and never questioned it. I didn’t get it at nine or ten i was born with it but I don’t think I had the language or self awareness to describe it to an adult until that age so not surprised that’s when your patients start showing up. I am happy to say I don’t get migraines often and when i do they are usually allergy related. However when I turn the lights off at night my brain seems to remember an image for eternity and it’s very distracting. My night vision is not that great but generally I have no complaints because it does not hugely impact my life. I can read very well and pass vision tests with flying colours. It is good information to keep in my back pocket though because I see a lot of comments saying they were like me and fine and it started to escalate as they grew older though. So I will keep this information close.
I was born with visual snow. I had a stroke in utero. I found out a few years ago I had it. My friends were talking about vision one day and I was like yeah and we see moving dots. I had some weird looks. Yes strange topic but that’s how I found out I was different.
I remember noticing it when I was small.. like 4 years old I would really notice it when look at walls in my house. I remember telling my mom about it.. just pointing it out and she didnt think anything of it. Neither did I until 5 years ago when I happened to mention the fuzz to a coworker in conversation and she was like "what are you talking about?" and i described it and she was just looking at me confused.. I said "you dont see that?" then BAM it occurred to me it wasnt normal and it might be just me.. i went to my computer and started googling and in 30 seconds I discovered it was called visual snow and it wasnt actually normal. I had always assumed it was a part of vision and everyone saw it. I was 49 years old when I finally figured this out. it doesnt really bother me, tho, unless i start thinking about it.. then its all i can see lol
This is extremely interesting for me. I have had visual snow for as long as I can remember and I’m 72 now. I have had migraines with aura since I was 10 years old which are far more scary to me. They have lessened since I retired but last year I had seven (yes seven) aura episodes of migraine one after another over four hours. I ended up in A & E and had a brain scan as a stroke was suspected but it was not that. They called it a crescendo migraine episode and was hellish. Anyhow its interesting to see migraine may be connected with visual snow. I have floaters but they don’t worry me. As a child I used to see white moving clouds for ages when I closed my eyes to go to sleep. I also see lines of sparkles in my vision every day which I don’t like but no one seems to understand what I am talking about. Nice to know somebody recognises these things actually exist for some of us. Thank you from Lyn .
Thank you so much for sharing that, Lyn. I'm glad you enjoyed this! I appreciate you being here. Let me know if there are any other eye related topics you would like me to talk about!
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol). I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever. Will I be able to return to living normally?
Just found this, and wow I actually have a name for it! Tinnitus? Check. Migraines? Check. Static, image retention, photosensitivity? Check check and check! I have distinct memories of noticing the static when I was 6 or 7. It's nice to know I haven't gone crazy.
OMG! I'm so glad I've stumbled upon your channel. I have had visual snow, but only in certain lowlight, forever. Every doctor, including neurologist, has looked at me like I'm crazy. More seriously, I've just watched your migraine aura video and it looks like I might have retinal migraine. I'm also am getting checked for early onset macular degeneration which my grandmother had. I suffer from chronic dry eye as well, sometimes so badly that I have to pull over when I'm driving, my eyelids get stuck open. All this missed by both neurologists and eye docs.
I'm also so glad you stumbled upon my channel. Thanks so much for being here. If you have any suggestions for videos let me know. So sorry your drs haven't been helpful. Take care & best wishes
I'm now 27, and I have just found out that this wasn't normal. As far as I know, I've had this from birth. I have recently been introduced to the term Visual Snow after finding out that it isn't normal to constantly see static. I see color dots and was born in 95. I've recently discussed this with my mother, and she also has it and thought it was normal. My grandfather believes he has it, but I haven't really discussed it with him much. I believe my type of Visual Snow is genetically passed and I experience every single symptom described in this video and have yet to see a doctor or become diagnosed with Visual Snow but I'm 100% sure that i have it.
@Dr. Rupa Wong thats just the thing, though. It's the only thing I know that helps with the sun. I know that when I'm in a dim light area and my 22 ultra and I try to get a close-up and adjust the focus on something small like a coin, with my camera out of it looks more exact to the snow than the old tv static that I remember as a kid. Almost down the exact size of the static, but not quite the same. But the color scattered throughout the screen of my phone looks pretty close to the exact pattern of my V.S
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol). I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever. Will I be able to return to living normally?
@Samuel Fajreldines no I can't ignore the floaters. I've come to ignore the static during the day, but at night, it's impossible. I rain-x my windshield on my vehicle because it helps keep the rain spots out of my view. I can actually drive at night without having to slow down in a lighted area or when someone's headlights are bright. It isn't the answer you were looking for, but I'm still new to realizing I have V.S. I research as much as I can, but everything that is known is in the video above, and every video that I watch or the website that I read has the same information.
I honestly and truly believe the only way to help would be some sort of electronic study because the only thing that I've ever seen that come close to V.S. are the pixels on a camera or television. I believe the static is like having a literal camera lens as an eye. It's all about your body's electrical current and nervous system and most likely the shape of the eye and how it reflects light or something like that. I'm not a doctor or anything. I actually wrap vehicles with graphic vynil, so don't take what I said as the solution. I'm no professional. Only curious.
OMG! I thought it was just me! I just saw a headline with the phrase "visual snow" and that exactly describes what I've been trying to tell my friends and family for years! So glad I'm not alone!! It usually happens a couple of times per year and lasts for several minutes. It usually gets triggered by light hitting my eyes from a low angle, or many directions at once. The lights in the supermarket or drug store have triggered it in the past, all the reflections from low angles. I sometimes wear my sunglasses in the store to avoid it being triggered. The last time it happened I was walking in the woods with brown leaves all over the ground. The way the light hit them and the repeated pattern of them seemed to trigger it. It was like a video processor with a slight delay. I have described it as snow from an old TV channel being superimposed over everything I see. I also describe it as what you see when someone takes a flash picture of you, that lingering light effect, only it came from nowhere and lasts several minutes. So glad I saw the article and then searched youtube for it. I hope I can reduce it happening in the future!
Just commenting to say ive had this since i was 13, now 35. I have all symptoms except for trailing and after images. So glad there is more recognition. I have an adhd referral to neurodevelopment services in the UK, i hope they can help me with proper diagnosis. This got me so depressed as a teenager
I'm so sorry you have struggled with this. It can be so hard. I am also glad there is more recognition. Thank you so much for sharing and for watching. If you have any other content you would like to see feel free to let me know :)
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol). I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever. Will I be able to return to living normally?
I’m 34 and have experienced visual floaters since I was 15. It’s never gone away. I have also always been a headache sufferer and notice the floaters are worse when my head hurts.
I am honestly going to send this video to like 200 people who told me to go to therapy cause I am crazy for saying I see colourful dots everywhere, specially when I look at white colour! Prolonged after looking at imagines is another, colour swirls - literally every single example you've mentioned I have had it since I was little. Doctors back in the 90s were telling my parents I am IMAGINING things ;/
@@DrRupaWong Thank you for making it all clear for me after so many years ;) Even a couple of eye doctors in London in Vision Express or Spec Savers didn't comment nor help when I asked them about it, just said " you are probably stressed" pfff the world is full of doctor wannabes ;)
@@saranocun2959 Glad to answer your questions. If you have any other topics you would like me to make videos on feel free to share your ideas anytime. 💖💖💖
I was born with retino blastoma in my eyes. I lost my left eye to it. My right eye had a lot of radiation and frozen treatments to kill the cancer. I had vision for 40 years though, but 3 years ago my optic nerve started to atrophe, and now for the past 3 years I am assaulted by bright light, all day, that looks like a literal broken tv channel that changes colors from white to pink to bright yellow. It is as bright as a neon bar sign. It never stops. There is a 'flower' thing in the center of my vision that is one central dot surrounded by six other dots. They're usually red on the outside and the middle dot is yellow, I can see the middle dot venting 'gas' in to the rest of my vision that becomes bright when it starts to get really really bad. The flashing around the flower thing increases and that's when it gets super bright, and lasts until I got to bed. I do have some dark days, but even in the dark days Ican still see the flower, it's always there, I have no idea what it is, but I'm guessing it is my optic nerve being squeezed by a deflated lack of blood flow. My doctors have not helped, they have either ignored me or just said they cannot do anything for broken optic nerves. I am living in Hell, and this is only a brief description of it all.
I have the exact same issues, recently found them. it's really annoying I struggle to sleep at night. visited many doctors they just ignore these conditions since it has no cure and talk to me as it's normal and many people have it. so I guess we just have to do the same ignore these conditions, be strong, and get back to our normal life again.
Thank you so much for your video! I've had visual snow since I was a child (it went away for about 10 years then came back in my mid twenties). I've always thought I was crazy, since no one I know knew what I was talking about!I also get ocular migraines. You are the first medical professional I found on the internet who touches on this subject so thoroughly. I have never realized until now that most people don't get the after image😮 Thankfully I don't find those symptoms debilitating and my brain seems to be good at tuning the snow out... like when we used to watch TV in the past, after a while you just forget about it😅
I've minimized as much as I could and had a neurologist work on my migraines for a year now and I have a great retina specialist. Gotta send all my love to zoloft for triggering this shit.
THERES A NAME FOR THIS?? Omg 😱 my whole life I’ve described my vision as grainy like what you see when your face is inches away from the tv screen! I’ve always wished I could create an image to show people what the world looks like to me. I’ve always had other things to focus on when it comes to my vision, and I guess maybe the Visual snow isn’t very severe but it’s never bothered me as much as the other things have. A lot of care and attention has been put into my eyes since I was a baby due to a birth defect affecting my right eye. It’s an extremely rare condition called Marcus Gunn jaw-winking Ptosis, I have never met another, online or in person who shares my condition, which is quite lonely 😓. I’m even rarer because I needed corrective surgery, which normally isn’t require but my case was severe enough that i would’ve developed complications because of it. I needed a total of 3 surgeries to get it right but as a result I can no longer close my eye completely. Ironically the affected eye actually has the superior vision, contrary to what the doctors where afraid of lol. I have severe Photophobia(name for Light Sensitivity, not a Phobia despite the name), might be worsened because I have chronic Dry Eye due to not being able to close the right eye fully. The left eye says “Okay, bet” and decides to stay open like the right eye while I’m sleeping for no reason other than it’s a butthole, resulting in severe dry eye in both eyes. I have never been able cloudgaze , It hurts me to look at the sky even when the sun is in the opposite direction. When there’s snow on the ground, the the intense bright white and reflection of light off the snow is painful to my eyes. I also have trailing, I’ve noticed lately that I get dizzy sometimes if I turn my head to quickly while walking around places like Sams Club or Home Depot. I have this strange phenomenon that I experienced everytime after coming inside from Recess as a child. As soon as I entered the building my vision was off-color. Take a photo and put a sepia filter on it. That’s exactly like what I experienced. This lasted for several minutes. The visual snow does reduce a bit when I’m wearing my glasses but it’s still there, still kinda fuzzy even though they say I should have 20/20 with my glasses. I have pretty poor vision in both eyes although I don’t know my exact prescription, I have Antimetropia which means one eye is nearsighted and the other is farsighted. Antimetropia Is apparently very rare and I didn’t know this until very recently. Nobody ever expressed to me just how rare this is, I found out when I tried to order glasses online and there was no option for one farsighted lense and one nearsighted lense. But come to think of it, I’d never met another person with Antimetropia so I guess I at least understood it wasn’t a normal prescription?
I'm so glad you are able to put a name to what you are experiencing. I'm so sorry you have suffered with this. Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I appreciate you being here!
I have MS, and visual snow is a major part of my current flare-up to the point that it is impacting my vision quite severely. I've always had visual snow, but it has become much worse with my most recent MS flare-up. Thank you for your glasses tint suggestion - I will be looking into it!
YES! i finally figured out what this fuzzy white dot-like things are!!! it's visual snow! thanks for this, i was like hey, i just realized, i see kinda static stuff, huh, im pretty sure it's rather swirling dots or the fuzzy tv screen thingy
I worked for a state agency that provided services for individuals who are visually impaired/blind and I had a high school senior on my caseload who developed this. He wanted to be a pediatric nurse and had to change his career path. I had never heard of this before him.
I get that sometimes. Mine usually mix a bit of the 'tv' plus the colored swirls, some anecdotal correlations I feel it has a link to hydration (and more specifically a lack thereof), I find I can mitigated the effects and reverses them rather quickly by drinking a good amount of cold water, I have a 1,5 liter plastic bottle I keep in the fridge, and as soon as i feel it coming on, I reach for the bottle and star drinking and as the water gets into my system slowly but surely the symptoms begin to abate and disappear.
Hello doctor I am Afreen I have vss since two years But I am depressed I can't survive My symptoms are 1) tinnitus 2)24*7 small dots in vision eye open or closed 3)after image 4)floaters 5) flashes like white dots
Hello Afreen. I am so sorry you are struggling with this. I will link a couple videos I have posted that relate to your symptoms. If you haven't gone to see you local eye doctor, please do! What Causes Eye Floaters? Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/JKvBw4jtlsA/w-d-xo.html Natural Cure For Eye Floaters? Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/u2l7kN5_HD4/w-d-xo.html Foods to Protect Your Vision | Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/zShTaM9JMLc/w-d-xo.html What Is An Ocular Migraine? Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/SwZio4X9Z5A/w-d-xo.html
Ya learn something new every day...had never heard of visual snow til recently, but it's description is something I've experienced as far back as I can remember. I've had enough experience in sharing symptoms with physicians just to be told, it's all in your head to discover decades later it simply was not recognized by the medical profession, fibromyalgia being one, which was not recognized as a neurological syndrome til the late 80s and even now, not much is known. To have a name to describe something you are experiencing is helpful...it beats the explanation of "I can see the humidity in the air," tended to result in skepticism from my elders and peers. While there may be limited options in treatment...knowing something is a reality, rather than hallucinatory/imagined makes a world of difference in ones ability to cope with it.
I'm so glad you have a name for what you are experiencing now. It can be so frustrating to not know how to explain what is happening well. You definitely aren't hallucinating. Thank you for sharing and being here!
@@DrRupaWong Thank you for sharing your knowledge, while specific, of a mind you take account to other fields of study which indeed is relevant, was particularly taken by your attention to children, of taking their experiences seriously. At 65, many of the experiences I dealt with growing up, loving parents/ familial, concern by professionals ,society et al...Know enough to to be curious, to learn, to understand my own, to function within "the norms"...Kudo's for actually payin' heed to what a child shares, giving credence...it matters!
I'm diagnosed with visual snow syndrome (according to a screening of VSS study participants), and have always had it. I have almost all of the symptoms in the current diagnostic criteria. I do think it may have worsened with age, but so have my slowly-progressing cataracts. Also have ADHD and dry eye syndrome. A lot of other factors may have worsened my sensory processing problems and ability to tune out the VSS symptoms that appear in my visual field. I've had eriods of prolonged, externe stress, and a medication that had neurological side effects. I also have chronic pain and fatigue that has worsened over time. VSS makes visual processing a lot of work, and flare-ups of pain and fatigue make *all* sensory and executive functions a lot of work. When I read on my phone or laptop, I always use large, sans serif fonts and light text on dark, so the snow, floaters, etc. are less intrusive. I also have to keep changing the font size and colors when one of them stops working as well. Sometimes I switch to black on gray. Sometimes I have to stop reading altogether because it's an uphill battle. --- Can you tell me about what the current data shows about yellow-tinted lenses? The clearest, most high contrast, high definition vision I ever experienced was when I tried out a pair of yellow goggles (more like plano glasses that can fit over normal glasses) that are marketed for helping hunters see better at night. This was in the daytime in my house. But it really made reading printed paper in my laptop easier. The problem is I know you're not supposed to wear them full time. I read that blocking too much blue light prevents your retinas from getting the wavelengths it needs to keep a circadian rhythm. Which can destabilize some mood disorders, and I definitely don't want to invite that scenario. I've also read that you're not supposed to wear that type of yellow-tinted glasses when driving at night.
I’m now 45, had visual snow since the ages of 7/8? Started off with a single floater, then my whole vision flooded with static, and has remained all these years. I have all the other symptoms, light sensitivity, hallows around lights, after images, increased floaters, visual trails (which can get a bit disturbing) Definitely neurological, although not diagnosed, as symptoms change dependant on mood, tiredness, wellbeing etc. I filter most out as I’ve had it so many years, but more apparent in the dark, or bright backgrounds such as the sky, plain white walls etc.
Had the same experience at onset. I had a worm like floater in my upper right corner of my right eye. One week later I had all the symptoms full blast. Going on 24 years now.
I've only as recently as a few months ago realized my experience is not what everyone else sees. While im lucky enough not to experience migraines too frequently, but i do think the visual snow is at least a contributing factor to my lifelong sleep issues (I always take very long to fall asleep, usually laying awake for more than an hour, and sometimes spend entire nights awake when i need to be ready for work the next morning). I just completed an eye examination and the optometrist and they seemed to not know what i was talking about at all, but they could at least confirm that nothing is wrong with my eyes physically.
Thank you this video. In high school, I smoked Marijuana and had a pretty severe head rush. From that moment on I've had it. I saw a Dr way back when and I was informally diagnosed with "probably HPPD" or Hallucinogen Perceptipn Persisting Disorder. This was about 13 years ago. Have you seen that diagnosed before for Visual Snow? My symptoms are the staticy tv that's about 95% transparent, night vision issue and light sensitivity. This video gives me hope, thank you for making it.
I have visual snow. I close my eyes and I see black-and-white pixelated static. When my eyes are open, I see the static still there and it's a constant thing. I also have aphantasia so makes for an interesting time.
Can this go away as you get older? This is something I experienced a lot as a child, particularly when my mom would send me off for a daytime nap. I hated it. It was just like you showed, static. But it also gave me a horrible feeling. And that buzzing in the ear. I never told anyone because I never could find the words to describe it and I thought I was crazy. Eventually...as I reached adulthood, it went away. But I do experience floaters to this day.
Thank you for posting this! I experience something like this constantly yet lightly and it's more visible over dark colours - I haven't heard a lot about it or why it happens. Would like to hear a video on coloured lenses for astigmatism if there hasn't been! Not sure if there are any coloured lenses for it but I've heard of trioculr or something like that but not sure if they are recommended.
Hello Doctor, Can you please make a video on the following topics: 1. Duane Retraction Syndrome 2. Iris Coloboma 3. Icl Surgery Detailed Video on these topics would be really appreciated
I’m glad I found this before I thought I was too crazy🙃 I have realized it as a child I also liked the effect sun gazing had on my sight and I would think it was fun to look at the ticking shapes that would float around, but in high school I found myself distracted by it. I could see a glow around ppl and with they would talk to me I’d realize I didn’t hear a thing they said because I was looking around them and the sea of colors, i was to scared to mention it if it wasn’t normal so I trained myself to ignore it kinda of like how you don’t see your own nose. But now at 32 I can’t make it go away, my vision has only got worse over the years and I can’t drive at night. I don’t sleep well and I was freaking out until I can across your video and comment section. ❤
Thank you very much for the explanation 🙏🥰 It really helped me understand a lot of things Although I think I was born with it and I'm already used to it and I've learned to ignore it and it doesn't bother me I tried to describe to others what it was and ask but they just didn't understand and I just thought I was just imagining things and stopped asking But thanks to you, I understand a lot more and also identify with it, so thank you very much you really helped me 🙏😄
Wow, after years getting a pat on the head by doctors, watching this video took a weight off my shoulders! If I can recommend one thing to anyone experiencing the “snow,” watch your caffeine intake. My snow goes on hyper speed even with one cup of coffee. Try limiting it to see if it helps. It’s still there with me, just not as weird.
Doctor, I have Visual Snow Syndrome (with all the symptoms described in the video). I also had migraines with aura when I was a teenager. Years ago I had a severe pain in my head while I was sleeping. I had an MRI which showed a "pseudo brain tumor". But the doctors said I didn't need to worry. I don't know which way to go, as doctors don't know about this visual condition. I would like to try some medicine mentioned in the video. Thank you very much for the enlightening video!
Thanks for this Video 🔥💜️ I was born in 2002 & I can barely remember seeing some sort of TV Static 📺 appearing for 4-5 seconds, Then it dissapears during my Childhood & I had Tinnitus since Childhood. 🚼 In 2017 I had very small floaters & it didn't bother me very much. In 2020 I started using my Phone & PC more frequently because of COVID & it caused me to feel Pain in the Eyes. 👁️ Also since 2019 I started studying a Subject Stream which I which I don't like very much for my Advanced Level Exam as the Subject Stream I wanted to study wasn't available in my school. I faced the Exam in February of 2022, This was the Main Reason which brought me a Huge Stress. 🤯 As a hobby I did Digital Drawing, Video Editing & Animation, In August of 2022 I did my first professional animation to check for a foreign client. Unfortunately I got all Symptoms of VSS & Vitreous Detachments in both eyes after working on this project as I worked about 10-12 hours per day infront of the Computer Screen during a Whole Month, Even my Country Sri Lanka is on an Economical Crisis & that's why I wanted money to help my family, Now I can't even do a Single Artwork using Phone or PC, I never thought my passion for Drawing & Animation would become a Huge Problem in my Life. 😔 In September of 2022 I got lower results from the Advanced Level Exam which aren't enough to get a job. This made my VSS worse. 💔 Everyone thinks I only have Eye problems & I am tired of explaining my Symptoms to my Family, my friends & Doctors. There isn't anyone who knows about VSS in my country 😑 • How I manage my Symptoms ° During the First 3 Months of VSS Insomnia bothered me a lot. I couldn't sleep because of Tinnitus, Self Lightning of the Eyes & The Sensitivity for Sounds & Lights. But by the Time I got adapted a little to Tinnitus & Self Lightning of the Eyes. I covered the Light bulb in the room but didn't make the room completely dark. And I removed the Clock from my Room as I used to count hours while not sleeping. 😴 It would be awesome if we can build an App which would work on a VR Box to represent the Symptoms in a Virtual World. Then it would be helpful to Doctors & People to understand this Syndrome much more accurately. 📑 I think in the Future someone will find a cure for VSS or At least a Brain Scan for to prove VSS. I am not giving up hope on that. 💜️
Hello, Eye 2 Eye am an artist… I have had a lot of these problems most of my life but it is worse because of migraines and problems I have with my retina that causes blindness as I get older.… I find the use of natural light/halogen light to do my artwork in traditional format, helps strengthen my ability to discern color and shadow looking at screens and artificial light makes my symptoms worse. I do have to look at these things sometimes so I use orange/yellow lenses to help protect my eyes. The thought of not being able to draw or paint as a hobby or profession is very sad to me. So even though I’m not as good as I used to be I can still do what I can. My passion is illustration, similar to animation but not digital. Doing things in traditional format can still translate into digital and the combination can relieve the use of too much computer. Most traditional work can be scanned and altered I’m sure you know this. I don’t know when I will completely lose my eyesight due to my genetic condition, but the added visual snow mix things harder and more exhausting so I can relate. And yes when I become upset or stressed it gets extremely bad. Honestly I can’t see it from one day to the next why some days are good and some days are very bad. The neurological system is the hardest thing for doctors to treat. you are very young, and I wish you a relief and a success with your art :-)❤️
I have this. I remember noticing it when I was small.. like 4 years old I would really notice it when look at walls in my house. I remember telling my mom about it.. just pointing it out and she didnt think anything of it. Neither did I until 5 years ago when I happened to mention the snow to a coworker in conversation and she was like "what are you talking about?" and i described it and she was just looking at me confused.. I said "you dont see that?" then BAM it occurred to me it wasnt normal and it might be just me.. i went to my computer and started googling and in 30 seconds I discovered it was called visual snow and it wasnt actually normal. I had always assumed it was a part of vision and everyone saw it.
I've always had visual snow so it is not debilitating as I'm mostly used to it. For me it is progressive in that the after image part has worsened as I age. It often looks like a translucent book page is in my field of vision, sometimes more like over exposed light and dark lines (think sun exposed window blinds). My night vision has worsened as well. I hadn't realized my ocular migrains could be related. Good to know there are treatments if it continues to worsen. Thanks for the info! Definitely getting the glasses.
I didn't see you had a video about this, so I'll ask it here. In your clinical experience, how many of your patients get negative dysphotopsia post-cataract surgery, how many of them ultimately tell you it went away, and how long did it take on average? Thanks.
Great question! I'll work on a video about post-cataract surgery. Make sure you subscribe and click the bell to see when I post it. Thank you for watching!
I really enjoyed this video, It's crazy how many people do have it lately, I've also had VSS since I was very young and could not identify any potential causes but honestly the most debilitating issue for me is tinnitus, I tried lots of different medications including lamotrigine but nothing seems to be working tho. Hopefully they'll find a good treatment for this soon and somewhere a cure, cannot imagine living with this for all my life since I'm still a young dude and it impairs my function to concentrate, work and study and overall doing important things to get going in life unfortunately :(
That sounds really difficult, John. I'm sorry you struggle with this. It can be really debilitating. I also hope there will be more treatment options in the future. I really appreciate your comment.
Why has everyone started getting this all of a sudden? My VS began last year with strain on the right eye to point where it had tuned smaller. Now the problem only started after that. Occasional problems in assessing depth, had an episode of night blindness twice, and you know, the noice in the dark! I hope treatments are found for this
Had it all my life. I only notice the snow on artificial matt surfaces but, the coloured lights are perpetual. They move in trains from left to right across my field of vision.
I have RP and visual snow syndrome. I see static on my peripheral all the time but only in the center when my eyes are closed. I have dry eye, and get get migraines. No doctor has even suggested to see a neurologist to see what's going on with it. My pcp has told me that she doesn't know a lot about the eyes and to talk to my eye doctor. I'm going to be seeing him within the next few months. Stress does make it worse for me too. I see so many different types of flashing lights and even had my vision go completely black once, when I was a preschool teacher. That was one of the scariest moments because there was a child right in front of me when this happened. I was walking around the room as well, when it had happened. If I didn't stop walking when I first noticed it, I could have hurt the child. Luckily, the kids knew that I had bad eyes. I've been seeing static as far back as I can remember. I honestly don't know if I never seen it because I've had this happening for so long! I would tell EVERYONE I would see that I see static all the time and no one even said a thing about it.
I want to share my experience of how I mistakenly believed that I had Visual Snow. My vision decreased after stress and I began to see poorly in the dark, especially there were ripples (pixels like 240p video quality). I always had ripples in the dark, like all people. I thought I was suffering from VSS and started seeing flickering dots on the wall and other similar objects in the dark because I was fixated on them, they are identical to when you see red blood cells when looking at the daytime sky. They are not visible throughout the entire field of view, but only on certain objects. I asked my friends, relatives and other acquaintances. It turned out that they all saw it that way, some even explained it in detail. I calmed down and my symptoms decreased. And one day I met a girl who really suffered from VSS and shared her experience. It turns out that the difference between a healthy person is that he sees small dots and ripples, but only under certain conditions, on certain objects and with weak intensity, while a person suffering from VSS sees constantly and throughout the entire field of view
I've been recently diagnosed with visual snow by my optician after having an eye test. I see white dots continuesly and have light sensitivity issues. I live in the UK and was told by my optician if I got referred to a hospital they wouldn't see me as there are no treatments available to help
I have had such a hard time describing what I'm experiencing and this is it!! In November 2022 I cracked my neck and it was the loudest crack I've ever heard (bad habit I know)-but ever since I've had persistent visual snow, brain fog, and it feels like inner ear or sinus pressure (ears will "un pop" just sitting at home). I've also just have had tinnitus for years. Went to 8 doctors with no luck (Ophthalmologist, ENT, Allergist, Primary care...) so I've been trying NUCCA chiropractic since this seemed to have been caused by my cracking of my neck. I'm at the very beginning of treatment so I feel worse than when I started, but hoping to get relief within the month. If that doesn't work, next step seems like a Neurologist...
But also want to add, I've had visual snow since I was a child - I used to consider them "all the atoms that made up everything" :) However, the cracking of my neck in Nov '22 has made it unbearable!
I'm so sorry they weren't helpful for you. I am glad you can now put a name to what you are experiencing. Thank you so much for sharing and good luck with your next steps.
"It's NOT eye...it's Brain!!!" Visual Snow IS A SYMPTOM of a complicated neuro-disorder associated with several more symptoms with thought processing being the worst. But VS is the best identifier for this syndrome. In certain conditions VS is a smorgasbord of a living nightmare. My VS began 48 years ago while I was in the Navy and stationed at Pearl Harbor Hawaii. I was a welder and had a concussion several weeks before the onset of VS. So, toxic fumes? A bump to the head? I don't know. Tripler hospital couldn't figure it out. Symptoms: Static-like vision, blindness at night, tinnitus, confusion, brain-fog, depersonalization, depression, and a cognitive reading/writing imbalance (understanding what you're trying to read and incoherent writing.) Klonopin seemed to help, probably the anxiety and insomnia associated with VS. But now after 48 years, almost all medications and even those over the counter have harsh side effects on the brain. Those with VS know at bedtime, it's turn out the lights and let the VS light-show begin. Thanks for publishing this video......Aloha
I had a similar experience when mine started. I was stuttering for a while. I would totally shut down. Couldn't make decisions (more than normal, I'm ADHD) I couldn't do anything for a while. Now, a year later, I often I can't focus or retain reading. Sometimes I'll try and focus real hard and read an academic article and then my speech after will be all weird/garbled for a bit and I'll be real clumsy. I can't drive at night, headlights hurt.
I am 41 years old, and I have had Visual Snow Syndrome all my life... the only trouble it it wasn't a recognized condition until around 2015, I didn't even know other people had it at all until I was in my late 20's.... The WORST thing about it is that back in my early 20's I was saddled with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia because all the Visual Snow symptoms got labelled as "Persistent Visual Hallucinations". No amount of medication prescribed for it ever did anything except ruin my life. I am ecstatic that I finally have real answers as to what I see... and also absolutely gutted over the realization of just how much the misunderstanding of my condition has actually damaged my life.
I do have visual snow, and my symptoms are both static, colorful circles, I feel/see that bright lights are so bright, I also picture images when I close my eyes, I have migrans, black and black spirals when I stare/look a light bulbs/producers of light, and have dry eyes
@Dr Rupa Wong. You might wish to re-edit this video. Everytime you said F 14 and it flashed up on the screen it was changed to F 41. I am numbers dyslexic at times so I really pay attention to them. If you are aware of this problem, I sorry to have disturbed you. Thanks for the great videos. I always learn a lot. I will see about getting the tinted glasses for myself and my daughter
I was born early in the 90’s, as I remember my first years of life, when I started to be curious about life and learned to speak, I asked my parents if they see like watching the TV with that noise image, I was also seeing my eyes and light when I close my eyes. they never understood what I meant, but deep down I knew that not everybody sees the same.
Aha ! Now I have the second piece of information to the migraine video… This is what I’m seeing all the time in addition to migraine aura… I commented on the migraine video saying that I see these types of things every day all the time… So now I know what it is :-) thank you! I now have the vocabulary to talk to my ophthalmologist and neurologist, and hopefully someday I will actually get to see a Nuro ophthalmologist…
@@bevinboulder5039 My ophthalmologists were not very helpful… I have been telling them this for at least four years. But after seeing this video I now know what to say it is called. Maybe they will refer me to a Neuro ophthalmologist. At least I know it is not just bad eyesight although it still affects my vision … Good luck to you :-)
@@creativesolutionstoart Thank you! It really doesn't affect me that much because my spots are light and I usually only notice them when looking at a dark background.
Very Cool Thankyou. Awesome Interesting Explanation. I have Visual Snow Symptoms for a few years After Images Tinnitus Snow etc was checked by Neurologist and said to be Migraine Aura although Visual Snow Symptoms seem more likely. Can Be Very Debilitating and Frightening. Thankyou for your explanation.
I thought i was crazy for the longest time. Seen doctor after doctor. Went to the eye doctor several times. Finally the eye doctor told me I had visual snow. I seriously thought I was have serious symptoms and could be dieing. Now I am looking for a cure. I have been reseaching everyday to find something to help. Some research I found was something to do with cereberal fluid drainage issue. Idk im just going down a rabbit hole because i would to anything to fix this. im tired of getting headaches, the dots, light sensitivity, and bad night vision
I’m noticing a little bit of flashing of light and a little bit of black dots when I look at the sun and look away after. Are these symptoms or visual snow?
This was a great video!❤ This is the way it's always been for me. I am an artist so I use some of my visual snow inspiration in my work. It's wild art for sure! Light sensitivity has become worse with LEDS seems like..
Anxiety and lack of sleep cause my vss to worsen. Even do I feel food ans some supplement like gaba might help to be mindfull, get enough sleep and non anxious has the best effect.
I have Visual Snow and eye floaters with tinnitus in my ear, recently found them. it's really annoying I struggle to sleep at night. visited many doctors they just ignore these conditions since it has no cure and talk to me as it's normal and many people have it. so I guess we just have to do the same ignore these conditions, be strong, and get back to our normal life again. that's what I do I hope all people here do the same, good luck to everyone.
me too, Covid caused my visual snow.. along with blurred vision, brain fog, headache, tinnitus, dry eyes, crackly sore neck, weak wrists, buzz / fizz sensation through-out body. It's been 1.5 years so far, no change. Keto diet, antioxidants and DHA omega supplement has helped with some symptoms. -Henry
I was diagnosed with covid and Lyme disease at the same time when I lost vision in my right eye...I have tinnitus in my right ear and pulsatile tinnitus in my right ear...I sure wish you were my doctor...Even if you couldn't help me, your lovely spirit would help me to get through the day...end/
Thanks, sometimes I feel like a mistake...I forgot to mention that I am paralyzed from the breastbone down due to a drunk driver...I also have double vision even after looking at my Iphone for a few seconds...As long as I don't look at my phone for long time, the double vision is not so bad...I tried switching between 1.75 reading glasses to 2 but to no avail...Oh, I also have PVD in my left eye...53 years old also plays a part in eye disorders too I believe...@@DrRupaWong
I found out about visual snow very recently and I think I have it. I always see coloured dots everywhere and thought everybody did too, I have floaters, post image, and migraine auras I think. But it's really quickly sometimes idk, I have the dots all the time
Hi, I experience symptoms such as rainbow around lights, halo around lights, floaters, photosensitivity, after images (because the lights that I see are very bright) and also I see black and white lines when I read white text in black background and vice-versa.
I think i got slight VS after a concussion after a car accident. I started seeing a ton of floaters too a few weeks after the tinnitus. When I wake up I get bad after images but it usually gets better in the day a bit.
A gas station clerk thought it would be funny to shot a bar code scanner gun right in my eye on Tuesday. Now I have really bad visual snow and right eye pain. I'm hoping its temp.
I had no idea this was a recognized phenomenon. I told my teacher about it when I in like 3rd grade and she told me that it wasn't normal so I just never mentioned it to anyone again. I have the colored static, the light bugs (I called the photon gnats) that I recently learned are capillary vacuums trailing white blood cells, shadow movements in the peripheral vision that I always think is a person or animal coming up behind me, light sensitivity, terrible migraines that have me curled up shaking in ball in the darkest room I can find (usually with extreme nausea and sweating) floaters and tracers and tinnitus to the point I have to have some background noise at all times cause the ringing is deafening in silence. But until five minutes ago I didn't know anyone else delt with this. I just....deal with it
So there’s no such thing as true darkness. It’s normal to see colorful patterns when you close your eyes at night. There’s terminology for the expressed colors and patterns and it’s caused by the small amounts of electricity in our bodies. Your vision will become very dark but not absolutely dark. Dim colors and patterns are natural to see. Visual Snow on the other hand appears whether your eyes are open or closed and will be very apparent when looking at the sky or looking at any solid colors.
@@DrRupaWong you’re welcome. also the name for the phenomenon that causes this is called “Eigengrau” and it is only present when there is no perceptible light.
For the past 10 years, I have experienced floaters and sometimes see tiny bright lights floating around. The lights decreased after contracting Ramsay Hunt Syndrome, but my floaters increased with tired eyes. I do not experience headaches, but I have a slight buzzing in my ears. Sunlight irritates my eyes; I see dots depending on where I look. Unfortunately, my doctor does not believe me when I explain what I see. They only say that the floaters are part of getting old.
Mine started when I first got a smartphone and looked at it in the dark. It was sort of bad at first and then reduced down over time. Some of the other things like light-sensitive , image retention, and floaters I did have most of my life but also seemed to get worse after looking at a smart phone in the dark. Idk if the two are related, but if more and more of these younger generations have similar complaints, it could be a possible correlation.
wow, I think 90% of the people who have visual snow is because of excessive use of screens and visual snow can also be caused by looking at screens in the dark... someone in my area went blind because of looking at a smartphone in the dark!
Nice explained. I've been watching your videos for long. Thanks for the education. I'm diagnosed as CSCR in both eyes. And my doctor's are not understanding what I'm feeling or seeing. Is it this possible if i send you my scans, can i discuss it with you? I'll be thankful.
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Have you experienced visual snow? What are your symptoms?
My visual snow started about 12 years ago. Like a old Tv. I have RP. The crazy part is, I have visual snow every other day, like Monday, Wednesday, Friday , Sunday, Tuesday, etc. My eye doctor and my regular doctor have no answer. Thank you for this video.
@@johnadair6669 How interesting! I'm sorry you struggle with this. Thank you for sharing!
i had that television type-a small area type-i was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation some years later-coincidence? has it once but none for years
I've always had visual snow. Even as a child I always saw random patterns and colors across my entire visual field. More intense on a blank surface like a clear blue sky, but it is always there, like looking through a transparent kaleidoscope of color at the world. I've also have migraine with aura which started around when I was 10 years old. I just accepted it as "normal" since it was always there, and stopped talking about it at all once it was clear that other people didn't see it.
Not sure when my visual snow started or if didn't really register until I realized other people don't see the world the same since it is almost constant. Sometimes more noticeable then others but everything seems to be made of vibrating dots like an impressionist painting. When I finally mentioned it to someone they looked at me like I was crazy.
No one seems to understand unless they experience it. Everyone thinks I'm weird or lying, so thank you for educating us all. I've been making migraine art for years, and have sketches that show where my blind spot was, because I accidentally draw the same area twice, and mess it up because I can't find what I'm looking for. I've learned to embrace my surreal psychedelic chaos, but I will absolutely be trying some of these solutions as I'm easily overwhelmed by what I call, "too much input."
I'm sorry people treat you as though you are lying. This is definitely a real thing. I am glad you have learned to embrace it as much as possible. Thank you for sharing and for watching!
-and on the other side, as a person with visual snow who's had it for as long as they remember, it's hard to believe other people DON'T experience this.
@@niicespiiceI studied psychology and they told me, 'vision is a brain phenomena, that's why it's imperfect,' so I thought snow was just 'normal imperfection' 😆
Hard to believe I was just moving about in the world with this condition no one knew about. I did have trouble having glasses fitted sometimes as a kid--I would say, 'It's still not clear!'
same thing for me with when i was younger. i thought that my eyes weren't good enough because i thought "bad vision" was seeing "more static." only a few years ago i figured it out that it should normally be blurry, not staticcy. @@AJ-fh8ng
I've experienced visual snow for as long as I can remember so it's nice to see it being acknowledged by doctors now! When I was little I used to stay up and look at my room in the dark just to watch the static in my vision. As I've gotten older, light sensitivity and poor night vision have become much bigger problems for me. I avoid driving at night and during super sunny days as much as I can because I feel like my own vision is a driving hazard.
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol).
I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever.
Will I be able to return to living normally?
i have this but I can see fine at night, during the day is the problem for me when its really sunny
@@samuelfajreldines674 im feeling the same rn lmao i always do. its a side effect and it comes with a lot of paranoia , dw about it man. it sucks but its one of those things you gotta live with.
I have experienced the exact same thing since I was a child. But a lot doctors have never heard about this or don't know anything about it! It is very frustrating indeed.
@angelosaracco7442 it's so good to know I'm not alone. Man, I tried explaining it and mo one understood it.
Well, at least we're not completely blind.
I wanna know if it worsens? 😢
Back in 2008 a neurologist told me my symptoms were all psychological. Nice to finally see it being properly diagnosed. Now to get over the medical trauma caused by that neurologist and see a new one.
I'm so sorry you had that experience. I hope you can find a doctor you trust very soon.
You didn't get the point there is no cure
Migraine with aura, check. Dry eyes, check. Tinnitus, check. Floaters, check. Image retention.... check. Jeeze, Louise! Who knew they were all related? Thank you, TH-cam gods, for dropping this in my 'recommended' list.
Do you get the insomnia too? Some weeks it gets out of hand.
I’ve got all of those too. This actually had a big, negative effect on my life. They all started together when I was around 23, and I spent years thinking I had a brain tumor and was doomed. I was afraid to see a doctor, even an eye doctor, because I was afraid and I didn’t want to know. It actually caused me to make many poor decisions, because I was convinced I was dying. I had a great job opportunity once, and I bailed on it because I knew it required a medical examination. That’s just one example.
me too.
It's been a year now since I am suffering from VSS.
To all the VSS warriors, I understand at times it feels devastating but we are together in this ❤️ Hope we will get a treatment soon 🤞
Also, Thank you Dr. Rupa for making this video and spreading awareness. ❤️
So sorry you struggle with this. Thank you for sharing the encouragement and thoughts! 💓💞
Hey riddhi, I am from India too, and looking for someone with similar condition. I am suffering from this for a long time and yesterday got to know what I exactly have, and it's devastating.
@@DivyaVerma-lt5bthow did you get it...what are your symptoms.. I'm from india
@@ajasshaikmohammed84 I don't know, I started using screen for longer times and then I started facing disturbances in vision, my doctor says everything is normal, but I am not satisfied.
Hi riddhi, even my VSS began last year too! Why is everyone suddenly getting this? Is because of the psychological stress at one point of time, or is it because of excess usage of smartphones?
When I was a child, each time I closed may eyes, I saw crazy lightnings and colourful moving patterns. I tried to tell my parents but nobody understood what I meant.
It can be so hard when others don't understand what we are trying to explain. I'm so glad you now have the answers!
Me too. I thought everyone experienced that.
I tried to tell my mom when I was little.
Isn't that normal? I have alway had this.
@@DrRupaWong hey thanks for covering this but I don’t know what to do. Lost my D3 scholarship, dropped out of school and over the course of 7 months I’ve gotten real sick. No exercise in the past 3 months has caused me to develop high blood pressure, excessive vomiting if I run up the stairs, body chills/ aches, and really pale.
I had this for years. Accompanied with floaters , specks and spots. Went to a few eye doctors over the years with no answers....very frustrating. Glad your able to delve deeper with information into this condition.
Thank you so much. I have had visual snow since I was a child. I remember clearly telling my mom I could see snow like on a tv all the time but worse at night. I have also told a couple of eye doctors but after their reaction which made me think they thought I was crazy I stopped telling people. Last year I noticed tinnitus and when I googled it this visual snow topic came up. Your description was so clear and helpful. I recently got a new family physician so I am going to ask her if I could see a neurologist. (I live in Canada). I also will see if I can get some new glasses with F41 tint as I use blue light blocking glasses at night when I use my computer and I do find they help with eye strain. Thank you!
I'm so glad this was helpful. I hope you can get some relief this year through the new doctor. Thank you for your comment!
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol).
I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever.
Will I be able to return to living normally?
They aren't floaters, the dots.@@samuelfajreldines674
I’ve had this my entire life. My eyes are extremely sensitive to light and the more light I’m exposed to the worse it becomes.
I remember noticing it when I was small.. like 4 years old I would really notice it when look at walls in my house. I remember telling my mom about it.. just pointing it out and she didnt think anything of it. Neither did I until 5 years ago when I happened to mention the fuzz to a coworker in conversation and she was like "what are you talking about?" and i described it and she was just looking at me confused.. I said "you dont see that?" then BAM it occurred to me it wasnt normal and it might be just me.. i went to my computer and started googling and in 30 seconds I discovered it was called visual snow and it wasnt actually normal. I had always assumed it was a part of vision and everyone saw it. I was 49 years old when I finally figured this out. it doesnt really bother me, tho, unless i start thinking about it.. then its all i can see lol
This is the first time i hear a doctor talking about this!! i have had and have this whole my life so thx for acknowledging that it excists! :)
My pleasure! If you have any other questions please leave them in the comments section.
I have been suffering with color spots for almost a year now. I have been to the eye doctor, neurologist, even had heart/cardiac scans and nothing. My neuro said it was migraines and put me on topomax. I think I actually have VSS since I have the tracing and poor night driving as well. I will be bringing that up with my neuro when I see him this week. Thank you! No one had ever mentioned that color spots could indicate VSS. But now I can bring that up with my doctor.
I'm so glad this was helpful for you, Amanda. Thank you for watching!
Honestly I have visual snow (minor but still very noticeable) and had no idea why ibuprofen/migrane meds never worked on me...well, now it all makes sense- thank you for the informative vid!
I'm so glad to help! Thank you for watching!
Developed this 10 years during a time of intense stress and anxiety about health issues. Ironically those health issues have been addressed but the VS never went away. I have pretty much all the symptoms listed but the main drag for me is the impact it's had on reading. Text appears to shift/move every so slightly and is underscored with shadows so it's a struggle to find the right monitor brightness, lighting, even viewing angle to make reading comfortable. The most difficult but helpful behavior I've found is developing acceptance.
I'm so sorry you suffer with this! Thank you for sharing your experience with us. This can be so hard!
Wow, similar experience. I developed VSS 18 years ago due to a traumatic experience. Took a while to accept this was my life now, but like with most things, the mind is a wonderfully adaptable structure. And also reading sucks for me too lol, especially when I look away and the dang words are still visible. Use to freak me out, now it’s just annoying haha
Me pasa igual, lo sufro desde hace años, aunque yo no era consciente, solo notaba que me molestaba la luz y me costaba mucho fijarme en las palabras. Yo siempre he sido un ávido lector de libros y desde hace unos años ya no apetece tanto leer por el este síndrome. Pero bueno, hay que vivir con ello
I had both of my retinas detach and a couple of years after that I started having the snow. Glad to see that I’m not alone and now I can explain it to my doctor better.
You are definitely not alone. I'm so sorry you suffer from this. Yes, please share this with your doctor if they are not sure what you are trying to explain to them.
VSS is the closest to what I've been experiencing basically all my life. The earliest memory for me was 5 years old while in my dark bedroom. At first it was like everything was moving in the dark which eventually left me scared of the dark so I needed a night light. As I got older I started noticing it 100% of the time. It's like translucent TV static. The best way I could describe it as a child was tiny colorful dots everywhere filling up all space but moving all around. I assumed I was seeing "air" when I look up at blue sky's there are these whitish sparkles flowing around which are bigger than the "static vision" or "air" as I call it. They are definitely different from eye floaters as I see them as well. I just booked an appt to see an Opt. So I can get my eyes check and discuss the possibility that what I'm experiencing is indeed VSS. I don't see any connection with migrains in my case. As it's all I've known to me my regular vision.
I'm so sorry you have struggled with this condition for so long. I hope your appointment goes well! If you can remember, let me know what they say. Thank you for being here.
@@DrRupaWong update! I just left the office and honestly I feel kinda upset. The Optometrist did look at my eyes and confirmed there isn't anything in them and that VS is neurological to speak , but he was basically like since I dealt with it all my life, I can continue to just deal and live with it. That part kind of left a sour taste in my mouth. I do understand it isn't in his field but It would've been nice to be pointed towards the right direction to get a possible diagnosis. My next step is to speak to my PCP and get a referral to see neurology.
Oh!! SAME!!! I didn't even know this was a thing! I thought it was normal and how EVERYONE seen the world!!
I've got the same thing, and it's been happening as long as I can remember. I see static or snow, very much like what you would see in a low-resolution video or not-quite-tuned TV station on an old tube TV. It's barely noticeable during the daytime or at least when there is ample light around. In the dark, it's really bad. If I'm stressed out, tired, dehydrated, etc, it's quite noticeable. It can get bad enough to where the "dots" or static cover parts of an object that I'm looking at, obscuring it. But the good news is that I can control it. When it get's bad to the point that I'm concerned, I just start to mentally tune it out, usually just by the simple effort of thinking about other things. If that doesn't work, I just get busy working on something and it goes away almost immediately. The best way to describe it is it's like looking into the abyss. The more I stare (focus on it), the more abyss stares back. My uncle is schizophrenic, quite severely. Sometimes it makes me wonder if our brains are wired wrong and that this is a mild version of what can be a larger problem.
@@erickeith1466 Spoke with 3 eye doctors including a Navy doctor and they all thought I was making it up. Finally spoke to one who knew about it and he prescribed me lamotrigine. Didn't help, but that's just me. Seeing a neurologist soon for something else and am asking about it.
Thank You! As a artist I have suffered for over 20 yrs with these eye conditions and after all the tests and traveling all over the country seeing specialists , no one was ever able to tell me what was going on. They always told me I described the symptoms perfectly as an artist but never could tell me why. I gave up years ago and learned to deal with them. I will tell you this I noticed when I wore my sunglasses Oakleys the glasses seem to filter out a lot of the issues or made them less noticeable , in fact i got to be known for always having my glasses on...most people thought I was just trying to be cool or was an eccentric artist type, lol. The docs could only tell me it was something in how my brain works and that they could not find any issues. Thank You for the videos and information and more importantly ....listening to patiences!!
Of course! Thank you so much for sharing. I'm so sorry you suffer with this. If you ever want to learn about anything else I haven't already posted, let me know!
I was born with this, never had a word for it until I saw another one of your videos re migraines. Was shocked to learn VSS is not everyone's experience. It is my constant companion, sometimes it feels worse at night, with bright lights and some eye strain or stress at the end of the day. Sometimes the severity feels like an early warning of an incoming migraine. But overall I have never thought of it as debilitating. So maybe I got lucky, or we can learn to cope with better as infants / young kids. Perhaps everyone experience a different severity. Thank you for the info.
I'm glad to share. I'm so sorry you suffer from this! Thank you for being here. 💝
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol).
I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever.
Will I be able to return to living normally?
@@samuelfajreldines674exact same ☺️
Thank you for this video. I've had VS since around 8 or 9 years of age (now 38), and have seen many doctors, optometrists etc. I had given up on discussing the condition for years as there just wasn't enough information out there and doctors didn't take it seriously. It's fantastic to see a medical professional discussing this, and the more the better. Hopefully as more research is conducted in the coming years we'll get more answers and in time a cure.
I'm so sorry you have suffered from this for so long. I also hope more progress will be made soon. 🙏
does your vss increase as year passed or it was the same ?
@BLENDER STUDIO For many years it did increase regularly yes, but I would say for the last 7 or 8 years it's been at around the same level.
Going on 24 years I hear you
I am experiencing visual snow since last 5 months along with floaters every time I move my eyeball nobody understands me telling that I have static vision good to hear that what I am experiencing is under existence and I just hope they don’t increase with my age I feel like a dependent person and loosing my confidence without perfect vision because I am also experiencing floaters and double vision along with visual snow
This sounds like things I experience! Honestly, I thought this was how everyone seen the world, because it's been my reality as long as I can remember. I remember seeing a LOT of static when I was younger and into my 20s. In my 20s, however, I started lamictal as part of another medical treatment. I didn't think much of it, but when you mentioned that medication and it helping with visual snow, I realized THAT might be why I don't see that static anymore, though I still get a couple of the other issues. It all doesn't bother me much, since it's been going on for apparently my entire life? Neat! You learn something new every day!
It is so common to think this is normal when you are experiencing it. I am glad this video has found you so you can be more informed on your health. That is great it doesn't bother you much. Thank you so much for watching!
I’ve had this my entire life and never questioned it. I didn’t get it at nine or ten i was born with it but I don’t think I had the language or self awareness to describe it to an adult until that age so not surprised that’s when your patients start showing up. I am happy to say I don’t get migraines often and when i do they are usually allergy related. However when I turn the lights off at night my brain seems to remember an image for eternity and it’s very distracting. My night vision is not that great but generally I have no complaints because it does not hugely impact my life. I can read very well and pass vision tests with flying colours. It is good information to keep in my back pocket though because I see a lot of comments saying they were like me and fine and it started to escalate as they grew older though. So I will keep this information close.
I was born with visual snow. I had a stroke in utero. I found out a few years ago I had it. My friends were talking about vision one day and I was like yeah and we see moving dots. I had some weird looks. Yes strange topic but that’s how I found out I was different.
I remember noticing it when I was small.. like 4 years old I would really notice it when look at walls in my house. I remember telling my mom about it.. just pointing it out and she didnt think anything of it. Neither did I until 5 years ago when I happened to mention the fuzz to a coworker in conversation and she was like "what are you talking about?" and i described it and she was just looking at me confused.. I said "you dont see that?" then BAM it occurred to me it wasnt normal and it might be just me.. i went to my computer and started googling and in 30 seconds I discovered it was called visual snow and it wasnt actually normal. I had always assumed it was a part of vision and everyone saw it. I was 49 years old when I finally figured this out. it doesnt really bother me, tho, unless i start thinking about it.. then its all i can see lol
My mom had bells palsy two weeks before I was born I think it affected me
This is extremely interesting for me. I have had visual snow for as long as I can remember and I’m 72 now. I have had migraines with aura since I was 10 years old which are far more scary to me. They have lessened since I retired but last year I had seven (yes seven) aura episodes of migraine one after another over four hours. I ended up in A & E and had a brain scan as a stroke was suspected but it was not that. They called it a crescendo migraine episode and was hellish. Anyhow its interesting to see migraine may be connected with visual snow. I have floaters but they don’t worry me. As a child I used to see white moving clouds for ages when I closed my eyes to go to sleep. I also see lines of sparkles in my vision every day which I don’t like but no one seems to understand what I am talking about. Nice to know somebody recognises these things actually exist for some of us. Thank you from Lyn .
Thank you so much for sharing that, Lyn. I'm glad you enjoyed this! I appreciate you being here. Let me know if there are any other eye related topics you would like me to talk about!
does is increase by years or it was same for you
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol).
I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever.
Will I be able to return to living normally?
Man, now i have 1 aura migrain per month... Before starting visiting doctors i hard 2 or 3 per week... It was awful. I'm now 38.
Geçti mi peki@@samuelfajreldines674
Just found this, and wow I actually have a name for it! Tinnitus? Check. Migraines? Check. Static, image retention, photosensitivity? Check check and check! I have distinct memories of noticing the static when I was 6 or 7. It's nice to know I haven't gone crazy.
OMG! I'm so glad I've stumbled upon your channel. I have had visual snow, but only in certain lowlight, forever. Every doctor, including neurologist, has looked at me like I'm crazy. More seriously, I've just watched your migraine aura video and it looks like I might have retinal migraine. I'm also am getting checked for early onset macular degeneration which my grandmother had. I suffer from chronic dry eye as well, sometimes so badly that I have to pull over when I'm driving, my eyelids get stuck open. All this missed by both neurologists and eye docs.
I'm also so glad you stumbled upon my channel. Thanks so much for being here. If you have any suggestions for videos let me know. So sorry your drs haven't been helpful. Take care & best wishes
I just learned I had visual snow. Why did I think everyone had it. 😅
Super common!
Mee to! I've had visual snow since my childhood (for as long as I've been aware) and always thought people also had it 😂
this is the BEST video on subject along with other great information god bless you
Thank you for the positive feedback!
I'm now 27, and I have just found out that this wasn't normal. As far as I know, I've had this from birth. I have recently been introduced to the term Visual Snow after finding out that it isn't normal to constantly see static. I see color dots and was born in 95. I've recently discussed this with my mother, and she also has it and thought it was normal. My grandfather believes he has it, but I haven't really discussed it with him much. I believe my type of Visual Snow is genetically passed and I experience every single symptom described in this video and have yet to see a doctor or become diagnosed with Visual Snow but I'm 100% sure that i have it.
I'm so sorry you suffer from this, Curtis. I am glad you know more about what is going on now. Thank you for being here!
@Dr. Rupa Wong thats just the thing, though. It's the only thing I know that helps with the sun. I know that when I'm in a dim light area and my 22 ultra and I try to get a close-up and adjust the focus on something small like a coin, with my camera out of it looks more exact to the snow than the old tv static that I remember as a kid. Almost down the exact size of the static, but not quite the same. But the color scattered throughout the screen of my phone looks pretty close to the exact pattern of my V.S
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol).
I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever.
Will I be able to return to living normally?
@Samuel Fajreldines no I can't ignore the floaters. I've come to ignore the static during the day, but at night, it's impossible. I rain-x my windshield on my vehicle because it helps keep the rain spots out of my view. I can actually drive at night without having to slow down in a lighted area or when someone's headlights are bright. It isn't the answer you were looking for, but I'm still new to realizing I have V.S. I research as much as I can, but everything that is known is in the video above, and every video that I watch or the website that I read has the same information.
I honestly and truly believe the only way to help would be some sort of electronic study because the only thing that I've ever seen that come close to V.S. are the pixels on a camera or television. I believe the static is like having a literal camera lens as an eye. It's all about your body's electrical current and nervous system and most likely the shape of the eye and how it reflects light or something like that. I'm not a doctor or anything. I actually wrap vehicles with graphic vynil, so don't take what I said as the solution. I'm no professional. Only curious.
OMG! I thought it was just me! I just saw a headline with the phrase "visual snow" and that exactly describes what I've been trying to tell my friends and family for years! So glad I'm not alone!! It usually happens a couple of times per year and lasts for several minutes. It usually gets triggered by light hitting my eyes from a low angle, or many directions at once. The lights in the supermarket or drug store have triggered it in the past, all the reflections from low angles. I sometimes wear my sunglasses in the store to avoid it being triggered. The last time it happened I was walking in the woods with brown leaves all over the ground. The way the light hit them and the repeated pattern of them seemed to trigger it. It was like a video processor with a slight delay. I have described it as snow from an old TV channel being superimposed over everything I see. I also describe it as what you see when someone takes a flash picture of you, that lingering light effect, only it came from nowhere and lasts several minutes. So glad I saw the article and then searched youtube for it. I hope I can reduce it happening in the future!
You definitely aren't alone! I'm so glad you found this as well. Thank you for watching!
@@DrRupaWong thanks for the video, very helpful.
@@dj-flights7376 💖💖
@@DrRupaWong 💖
wait what? 99% of people who have visual snow have it 24/7... I guess you're really lucky that you get it only for a few minutes@@dj-flights7376
Just commenting to say ive had this since i was 13, now 35. I have all symptoms except for trailing and after images. So glad there is more recognition. I have an adhd referral to neurodevelopment services in the UK, i hope they can help me with proper diagnosis. This got me so depressed as a teenager
I'm so sorry you have struggled with this. It can be so hard. I am also glad there is more recognition. Thank you so much for sharing and for watching. If you have any other content you would like to see feel free to let me know :)
Did it got worse? And can you ignore the floaters currently? I've lived with them my whole life, and now that I've discovered it's a rare syndrome, I feel like crying all day. I can't ignore them anymore. It feels like they've increased a lot because I'm constantly paying attention to them, and it distresses me that they'll never go away (even though I've always had them, lol).
I used to live normally, and I probably would have continued thinking it was normal forever.
Will I be able to return to living normally?
I’m 34 and have experienced visual floaters since I was 15. It’s never gone away. I have also always been a headache sufferer and notice the floaters are worse when my head hurts.
So sorry, Nena. Wish I could take it away! Thank you for being here. 💖
I am honestly going to send this video to like 200 people who told me to go to therapy cause I am crazy for saying I see colourful dots everywhere, specially when I look at white colour! Prolonged after looking at imagines is another, colour swirls - literally every single example you've mentioned I have had it since I was little. Doctors back in the 90s were telling my parents I am IMAGINING things ;/
I'm so sorry people made you feel crazy, Sara. You are certainly not. I hope you can find an educated doctor that you trust. Thank you for being here.
@@DrRupaWong Thank you for making it all clear for me after so many years ;) Even a couple of eye doctors in London in Vision Express or Spec Savers didn't comment nor help when I asked them about it, just said " you are probably stressed" pfff the world is full of doctor wannabes ;)
@@saranocun2959 Glad to answer your questions. If you have any other topics you would like me to make videos on feel free to share your ideas anytime. 💖💖💖
I was born with retino blastoma in my eyes. I lost my left eye to it. My right eye had a lot of radiation and frozen treatments to kill the cancer. I had vision for 40 years though, but 3 years ago my optic nerve started to atrophe, and now for the past 3 years I am assaulted by bright light, all day, that looks like a literal broken tv channel that changes colors from white to pink to bright yellow. It is as bright as a neon bar sign. It never stops. There is a 'flower' thing in the center of my vision that is one central dot surrounded by six other dots. They're usually red on the outside and the middle dot is yellow, I can see the middle dot venting 'gas' in to the rest of my vision that becomes bright when it starts to get really really bad. The flashing around the flower thing increases and that's when it gets super bright, and lasts until I got to bed. I do have some dark days, but even in the dark days Ican still see the flower, it's always there, I have no idea what it is, but I'm guessing it is my optic nerve being squeezed by a deflated lack of blood flow. My doctors have not helped, they have either ignored me or just said they cannot do anything for broken optic nerves. I am living in Hell, and this is only a brief description of it all.
I have this even when it's pitch dark and lots of tinnitus. Sometimes I wish I could take a break from all this!
I have the exact same issues, recently found them. it's really annoying I struggle to sleep at night. visited many doctors they just ignore these conditions since it has no cure and talk to me as it's normal and many people have it. so I guess we just have to do the same ignore these conditions, be strong, and get back to our normal life again.
@Grant Yentis - Yes!
try benzodiazepines or hypnotics
Thank you so much for your video! I've had visual snow since I was a child (it went away for about 10 years then came back in my mid twenties). I've always thought I was crazy, since no one I know knew what I was talking about!I also get ocular migraines. You are the first medical professional I found on the internet who touches on this subject so thoroughly. I have never realized until now that most people don't get the after image😮
Thankfully I don't find those symptoms debilitating and my brain seems to be good at tuning the snow out... like when we used to watch TV in the past, after a while you just forget about it😅
I'm so glad to help! Thank you for being here!
💕🫶
I've minimized as much as I could and had a neurologist work on my migraines for a year now and I have a great retina specialist. Gotta send all my love to zoloft for triggering this shit.
So sorry you suffer with this! Best wishes always.
THERES A NAME FOR THIS?? Omg 😱 my whole life I’ve described my vision as grainy like what you see when your face is inches away from the tv screen! I’ve always wished I could create an image to show people what the world looks like to me. I’ve always had other things to focus on when it comes to my vision, and I guess maybe the Visual snow isn’t very severe but it’s never bothered me as much as the other things have.
A lot of care and attention has been put into my eyes since I was a baby due to a birth defect affecting my right eye. It’s an extremely rare condition called Marcus Gunn jaw-winking Ptosis, I have never met another, online or in person who shares my condition, which is quite lonely 😓. I’m even rarer because I needed corrective surgery, which normally isn’t require but my case was severe enough that i would’ve developed complications because of it. I needed a total of 3 surgeries to get it right but as a result I can no longer close my eye completely. Ironically the affected eye actually has the superior vision, contrary to what the doctors where afraid of lol.
I have severe Photophobia(name for Light Sensitivity, not a Phobia despite the name), might be worsened because I have chronic Dry Eye due to not being able to close the right eye fully. The left eye says “Okay, bet” and decides to stay open like the right eye while I’m sleeping for no reason other than it’s a butthole, resulting in severe dry eye in both eyes.
I have never been able cloudgaze , It hurts me to look at the sky even when the sun is in the opposite direction. When there’s snow on the ground, the the intense bright white and reflection of light off the snow is painful to my eyes.
I also have trailing, I’ve noticed lately that I get dizzy sometimes if I turn my head to quickly while walking around places like Sams Club or Home Depot.
I have this strange phenomenon that I experienced everytime after coming inside from Recess as a child. As soon as I entered the building my vision was off-color. Take a photo and put a sepia filter on it. That’s exactly like what I experienced. This lasted for several minutes.
The visual snow does reduce a bit when I’m wearing my glasses but it’s still there, still kinda fuzzy even though they say I should have 20/20 with my glasses. I have pretty poor vision in both eyes although I don’t know my exact prescription, I have Antimetropia which means one eye is nearsighted and the other is farsighted. Antimetropia Is apparently very rare and I didn’t know this until very recently. Nobody ever expressed to me just how rare this is, I found out when I tried to order glasses online and there was no option for one farsighted lense and one nearsighted lense. But come to think of it, I’d never met another person with Antimetropia so I guess I at least understood it wasn’t a normal prescription?
I'm so glad you are able to put a name to what you are experiencing. I'm so sorry you have suffered with this. Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I appreciate you being here!
I have MS, and visual snow is a major part of my current flare-up to the point that it is impacting my vision quite severely. I've always had visual snow, but it has become much worse with my most recent MS flare-up. Thank you for your glasses tint suggestion - I will be looking into it!
YES! i finally figured out what this fuzzy white dot-like things are!!! it's visual snow! thanks for this, i was like hey, i just realized, i see kinda static stuff, huh, im pretty sure it's rather swirling dots or the fuzzy tv screen thingy
Glad I could help!
I developed this 3 years ago after I caught candida auris and blastocystis. I have all the symptoms you listed.
I worked for a state agency that provided services for individuals who are visually impaired/blind and I had a high school senior on my caseload who developed this. He wanted to be a pediatric nurse and had to change his career path. I had never heard of this before him.
I get that sometimes. Mine usually mix a bit of the 'tv' plus the colored swirls, some anecdotal correlations I feel it has a link to hydration (and more specifically a lack thereof), I find I can mitigated the effects and reverses them rather quickly by drinking a good amount of cold water, I have a 1,5 liter plastic bottle I keep in the fridge, and as soon as i feel it coming on, I reach for the bottle and star drinking and as the water gets into my system slowly but surely the symptoms begin to abate and disappear.
Wow you explain my problem in very simplest way🙂
I'm so glad to help! Thank you for watching!
Hello doctor
I am Afreen
I have vss since two years
But I am depressed
I can't survive
My symptoms are 1) tinnitus
2)24*7 small dots in vision eye open or closed
3)after image
4)floaters
5) flashes like white dots
Hello Afreen. I am so sorry you are struggling with this. I will link a couple videos I have posted that relate to your symptoms. If you haven't gone to see you local eye doctor, please do!
What Causes Eye Floaters? Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/JKvBw4jtlsA/w-d-xo.html
Natural Cure For Eye Floaters? Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/u2l7kN5_HD4/w-d-xo.html
Foods to Protect Your Vision | Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/zShTaM9JMLc/w-d-xo.html
What Is An Ocular Migraine? Eye Doctor Explains-th-cam.com/video/SwZio4X9Z5A/w-d-xo.html
Ya learn something new every day...had never heard of visual snow til recently, but it's description is something I've experienced as far back as I can remember. I've had enough experience in sharing symptoms with physicians just to be told, it's all in your head to discover decades later it simply was not recognized by the medical profession, fibromyalgia being one, which was not recognized as a neurological syndrome til the late 80s and even now, not much is known. To have a name to describe something you are experiencing is helpful...it beats the explanation of "I can see the humidity in the air," tended to result in skepticism from my elders and peers. While there may be limited options in treatment...knowing something is a reality, rather than hallucinatory/imagined makes a world of difference in ones ability to cope with it.
I'm so glad you have a name for what you are experiencing now. It can be so frustrating to not know how to explain what is happening well. You definitely aren't hallucinating. Thank you for sharing and being here!
@@DrRupaWong Thank you for sharing your knowledge, while specific, of a mind you take account to other fields of study which indeed is relevant, was particularly taken by your attention to children, of taking their experiences seriously. At 65, many of the experiences I dealt with growing up, loving parents/ familial, concern by professionals ,society et al...Know enough to to be curious, to learn, to understand my own, to function within "the norms"...Kudo's for actually payin' heed to what a child shares, giving credence...it matters!
I'm diagnosed with visual snow syndrome (according to a screening of VSS study participants), and have always had it. I have almost all of the symptoms in the current diagnostic criteria.
I do think it may have worsened with age, but so have my slowly-progressing cataracts. Also have ADHD and dry eye syndrome. A lot of other factors may have worsened my sensory processing problems and ability to tune out the VSS symptoms that appear in my visual field. I've had eriods of prolonged, externe stress, and a medication that had neurological side effects. I also have chronic pain and fatigue that has worsened over time. VSS makes visual processing a lot of work, and flare-ups of pain and fatigue make *all* sensory and executive functions a lot of work.
When I read on my phone or laptop, I always use large, sans serif fonts and light text on dark, so the snow, floaters, etc. are less intrusive. I also have to keep changing the font size and colors when one of them stops working as well. Sometimes I switch to black on gray. Sometimes I have to stop reading altogether because it's an uphill battle.
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Can you tell me about what the current data shows about yellow-tinted lenses?
The clearest, most high contrast, high definition vision I ever experienced was when I tried out a pair of yellow goggles (more like plano glasses that can fit over normal glasses) that are marketed for helping hunters see better at night. This was in the daytime in my house. But it really made reading printed paper in my laptop easier.
The problem is I know you're not supposed to wear them full time. I read that blocking too much blue light prevents your retinas from getting the wavelengths it needs to keep a circadian rhythm. Which can destabilize some mood disorders, and I definitely don't want to invite that scenario.
I've also read that you're not supposed to wear that type of yellow-tinted glasses when driving at night.
I’m now 45, had visual snow since the ages of 7/8? Started off with a single floater, then my whole vision flooded with static, and has remained all these years. I have all the other symptoms, light sensitivity, hallows around lights, after images, increased floaters, visual trails (which can get a bit disturbing) Definitely neurological, although not diagnosed, as symptoms change dependant on mood, tiredness, wellbeing etc. I filter most out as I’ve had it so many years, but more apparent in the dark, or bright backgrounds such as the sky, plain white walls etc.
This can be so hard to live with. I'm sorry you have to experience it. Thank you for sharing and for being here. 🫂
Had the same experience at onset. I had a worm like floater in my upper right corner of my right eye. One week later I had all the symptoms full blast. Going on 24 years now.
I've only as recently as a few months ago realized my experience is not what everyone else sees. While im lucky enough not to experience migraines too frequently, but i do think the visual snow is at least a contributing factor to my lifelong sleep issues (I always take very long to fall asleep, usually laying awake for more than an hour, and sometimes spend entire nights awake when i need to be ready for work the next morning). I just completed an eye examination and the optometrist and they seemed to not know what i was talking about at all, but they could at least confirm that nothing is wrong with my eyes physically.
I'm so sorry you suffer with this! Thank you for sharing your experience with us.
Thank you this video. In high school, I smoked Marijuana and had a pretty severe head rush. From that moment on I've had it. I saw a Dr way back when and I was informally diagnosed with "probably HPPD" or Hallucinogen Perceptipn Persisting Disorder. This was about 13 years ago. Have you seen that diagnosed before for Visual Snow? My symptoms are the staticy tv that's about 95% transparent, night vision issue and light sensitivity. This video gives me hope, thank you for making it.
I have visual snow. I close my eyes and I see black-and-white pixelated static. When my eyes are open, I see the static still there and it's a constant thing. I also have aphantasia so makes for an interesting time.
I am so sorry to hear that, but thank you for sharing your story.
Can this go away as you get older? This is something I experienced a lot as a child, particularly when my mom would send me off for a daytime nap. I hated it. It was just like you showed, static. But it also gave me a horrible feeling. And that buzzing in the ear. I never told anyone because I never could find the words to describe it and I thought I was crazy. Eventually...as I reached adulthood, it went away. But I do experience floaters to this day.
Thank you for posting this! I experience something like this constantly yet lightly and it's more visible over dark colours - I haven't heard a lot about it or why it happens. Would like to hear a video on coloured lenses for astigmatism if there hasn't been! Not sure if there are any coloured lenses for it but I've heard of trioculr or something like that but not sure if they are recommended.
You're so welcome! Sure, I will work on a video covering that. Thank you for the suggestion. I appreciate you sharing your experience
Hello Doctor, Can you please make a video on the following topics:
1. Duane Retraction Syndrome
2. Iris Coloboma
3. Icl Surgery
Detailed Video on these topics would be really appreciated
I will add these to my list! Thank you for your suggestions.😊
@@DrRupaWong Thank you Doc 😊
Eagerly waiting to watch these videos!
I’m glad I found this before I thought I was too crazy🙃 I have realized it as a child I also liked the effect sun gazing had on my sight and I would think it was fun to look at the ticking shapes that would float around, but in high school I found myself distracted by it. I could see a glow around ppl and with they would talk to me I’d realize I didn’t hear a thing they said because I was looking around them and the sea of colors, i was to scared to mention it if it wasn’t normal so I trained myself to ignore it kinda of like how you don’t see your own nose. But now at 32 I can’t make it go away, my vision has only got worse over the years and I can’t drive at night. I don’t sleep well and I was freaking out until I can across your video and comment section. ❤
Thank you so much for talking about this. I feel so relieved that what i experience actually exists and I'm not going crazy. Thank you so much! ❤
You're so welcome! You are definitely not going crazy. Thanks for being here!
Thank you very much for the explanation 🙏🥰 It really helped me understand a lot of things Although I think I was born with it and I'm already used to it and I've learned to ignore it and it doesn't bother me I tried to describe to others what it was and ask but they just didn't understand and I just thought I was just imagining things and stopped asking But thanks to you, I understand a lot more and also identify with it, so thank you very much you really helped me 🙏😄
Wow, after years getting a pat on the head by doctors, watching this video took a weight off my shoulders! If I can recommend one thing to anyone experiencing the “snow,” watch your caffeine intake. My snow goes on hyper speed even with one cup of coffee. Try limiting it to see if it helps. It’s still there with me, just not as weird.
I'm so glad this was helpful for you. I'm sorry you struggle with this!
Doctor, I have Visual Snow Syndrome (with all the symptoms described in the video). I also had migraines with aura when I was a teenager. Years ago I had a severe pain in my head while I was sleeping. I had an MRI which showed a "pseudo brain tumor". But the doctors said I didn't need to worry. I don't know which way to go, as doctors don't know about this visual condition. I would like to try some medicine mentioned in the video. Thank you very much for the enlightening video!
Thanks for this Video 🔥💜️
I was born in 2002 & I can barely remember seeing some sort of TV Static 📺 appearing for 4-5 seconds, Then it dissapears during my Childhood & I had Tinnitus since Childhood. 🚼
In 2017 I had very small floaters & it didn't bother me very much. In 2020 I started using my Phone & PC more frequently because of COVID & it caused me to feel Pain in the Eyes. 👁️
Also since 2019 I started studying a Subject Stream which I which I don't like very much for my Advanced Level Exam as the Subject Stream I wanted to study wasn't available in my school. I faced the Exam in February of 2022, This was the Main Reason which brought me a Huge Stress. 🤯
As a hobby I did Digital Drawing, Video Editing & Animation, In August of 2022 I did my first professional animation to check for a foreign client. Unfortunately I got all Symptoms of VSS & Vitreous Detachments in both eyes after working on this project as I worked about 10-12 hours per day infront of the Computer Screen during a Whole Month, Even my Country Sri Lanka is on an Economical Crisis & that's why I wanted money to help my family, Now I can't even do a Single Artwork using Phone or PC, I never thought my passion for Drawing & Animation would become a Huge Problem in my Life. 😔
In September of 2022 I got lower results from the Advanced Level Exam which aren't enough to get a job. This made my VSS worse. 💔 Everyone thinks I only have Eye problems & I am tired of explaining my Symptoms to my Family, my friends & Doctors. There isn't anyone who knows about VSS in my country 😑
• How I manage my Symptoms
° During the First 3 Months of VSS Insomnia bothered me a lot. I couldn't sleep because of Tinnitus, Self Lightning of the Eyes & The Sensitivity for Sounds & Lights. But by the Time I got adapted a little to Tinnitus & Self Lightning of the Eyes. I covered the Light bulb in the room but didn't make the room completely dark. And I removed the Clock from my Room as I used to count hours while not sleeping. 😴
It would be awesome if we can build an App which would work on a VR Box to represent the Symptoms in a Virtual World. Then it would be helpful to Doctors & People to understand this Syndrome much more accurately. 📑
I think in the Future someone will find a cure for VSS or At least a Brain Scan for to prove VSS. I am not giving up hope on that. 💜️
Thank you so much for sharing!! The app is a great idea. I also have hope for a cure!
Hello, Eye 2 Eye am an artist… I have had a lot of these problems most of my life but it is worse because of migraines and problems I have with my retina that causes blindness as I get older.… I find the use of natural light/halogen light to do my artwork in traditional format, helps strengthen my ability to discern color and shadow looking at screens and artificial light makes my symptoms worse. I do have to look at these things sometimes so I use orange/yellow lenses to help protect my eyes. The thought of not being able to draw or paint as a hobby or profession is very sad to me. So even though I’m not as good as I used to be I can still do what I can. My passion is illustration, similar to animation but not digital. Doing things in traditional format can still translate into digital and the combination can relieve the use of too much computer. Most traditional work can be scanned and altered I’m sure you know this. I don’t know when I will completely lose my eyesight due to my genetic condition, but the added visual snow mix things harder and more exhausting so I can relate. And yes when I become upset or stressed it gets extremely bad. Honestly I can’t see it from one day to the next why some days are good and some days are very bad. The neurological system is the hardest thing for doctors to treat. you are very young, and I wish you a relief and a success with your art :-)❤️
I have this. I remember noticing it when I was small.. like 4 years old I would really notice it when look at walls in my house. I remember telling my mom about it.. just pointing it out and she didnt think anything of it. Neither did I until 5 years ago when I happened to mention the snow to a coworker in conversation and she was like "what are you talking about?" and i described it and she was just looking at me confused.. I said "you dont see that?" then BAM it occurred to me it wasnt normal and it might be just me.. i went to my computer and started googling and in 30 seconds I discovered it was called visual snow and it wasnt actually normal. I had always assumed it was a part of vision and everyone saw it.
I've always had visual snow so it is not debilitating as I'm mostly used to it. For me it is progressive in that the after image part has worsened as I age. It often looks like a translucent book page is in my field of vision, sometimes more like over exposed light and dark lines (think sun exposed window blinds). My night vision has worsened as well. I hadn't realized my ocular migrains could be related. Good to know there are treatments if it continues to worsen. Thanks for the info! Definitely getting the glasses.
I didn't see you had a video about this, so I'll ask it here. In your clinical experience, how many of your patients get negative dysphotopsia post-cataract surgery, how many of them ultimately tell you it went away, and how long did it take on average? Thanks.
Great question! I'll work on a video about post-cataract surgery. Make sure you subscribe and click the bell to see when I post it. Thank you for watching!
I really enjoyed this video, It's crazy how many people do have it lately, I've also had VSS since I was very young and could not identify any potential causes but honestly the most debilitating issue for me is tinnitus, I tried lots of different medications including lamotrigine but nothing seems to be working tho.
Hopefully they'll find a good treatment for this soon and somewhere a cure, cannot imagine living with this for all my life since I'm still a young dude and it impairs my function to concentrate, work and study and overall doing important things to get going in life unfortunately :(
That sounds really difficult, John. I'm sorry you struggle with this. It can be really debilitating. I also hope there will be more treatment options in the future.
I really appreciate your comment.
Hi. Try White Noise treatment by a qualified Audiologist for you tinnitus. It’s worked for my deep loud Alpine Horn tinnitus.
Why has everyone started getting this all of a sudden?
My VS began last year with strain on the right eye to point where it had tuned smaller. Now the problem only started after that.
Occasional problems in assessing depth, had an episode of night blindness twice, and you know, the noice in the dark!
I hope treatments are found for this
I also hope treatments are found for this soon!
Well mine developed right after covid infection or vaccination (nearly same time), out of nothing it started and got worse for 2 years now.
@@sv3n940same for me
Had it all my life. I only notice the snow on artificial matt surfaces but, the coloured lights are perpetual. They move in trains from left to right across my field of vision.
I have RP and visual snow syndrome. I see static on my peripheral all the time but only in the center when my eyes are closed. I have dry eye, and get get migraines. No doctor has even suggested to see a neurologist to see what's going on with it. My pcp has told me that she doesn't know a lot about the eyes and to talk to my eye doctor. I'm going to be seeing him within the next few months. Stress does make it worse for me too. I see so many different types of flashing lights and even had my vision go completely black once, when I was a preschool teacher. That was one of the scariest moments because there was a child right in front of me when this happened. I was walking around the room as well, when it had happened. If I didn't stop walking when I first noticed it, I could have hurt the child. Luckily, the kids knew that I had bad eyes. I've been seeing static as far back as I can remember. I honestly don't know if I never seen it because I've had this happening for so long! I would tell EVERYONE I would see that I see static all the time and no one even said a thing about it.
You are not alone. So many have the same experience. So sorry! Best wishes.
I want to share my experience of how I mistakenly believed that I had Visual Snow. My vision decreased after stress and I began to see poorly in the dark, especially there were ripples (pixels like 240p video quality). I always had ripples in the dark, like all people. I thought I was suffering from VSS and started seeing flickering dots on the wall and other similar objects in the dark because I was fixated on them, they are identical to when you see red blood cells when looking at the daytime sky. They are not visible throughout the entire field of view, but only on certain objects. I asked my friends, relatives and other acquaintances. It turned out that they all saw it that way, some even explained it in detail. I calmed down and my symptoms decreased. And one day I met a girl who really suffered from VSS and shared her experience. It turns out that the difference between a healthy person is that he sees small dots and ripples, but only under certain conditions, on certain objects and with weak intensity, while a person suffering from VSS sees constantly and throughout the entire field of view
My night vision is practically non existent. I can see when drive because of headlights but walking around is dangerous.
I'm so sorry you suffer with this! Thank you for sharing your experience with us.
I've been recently diagnosed with visual snow by my optician after having an eye test. I see white dots continuesly and have light sensitivity issues. I live in the UK and was told by my optician if I got referred to a hospital they wouldn't see me as there are no treatments available to help
I always thought it was my brain trying to edit out floaters
That makes sense!
I have had such a hard time describing what I'm experiencing and this is it!! In November 2022 I cracked my neck and it was the loudest crack I've ever heard (bad habit I know)-but ever since I've had persistent visual snow, brain fog, and it feels like inner ear or sinus pressure (ears will "un pop" just sitting at home). I've also just have had tinnitus for years. Went to 8 doctors with no luck (Ophthalmologist, ENT, Allergist, Primary care...) so I've been trying NUCCA chiropractic since this seemed to have been caused by my cracking of my neck. I'm at the very beginning of treatment so I feel worse than when I started, but hoping to get relief within the month. If that doesn't work, next step seems like a Neurologist...
But also want to add, I've had visual snow since I was a child - I used to consider them "all the atoms that made up everything" :) However, the cracking of my neck in Nov '22 has made it unbearable!
I'm so sorry they weren't helpful for you. I am glad you can now put a name to what you are experiencing. Thank you so much for sharing and good luck with your next steps.
"It's NOT eye...it's Brain!!!"
Visual Snow IS A SYMPTOM of a complicated neuro-disorder associated with several more symptoms with thought processing being the worst. But VS is the best identifier for this syndrome. In certain conditions VS is a smorgasbord of a living nightmare.
My VS began 48 years ago while I was in the Navy and stationed at Pearl Harbor Hawaii. I was a welder and had a concussion several weeks before the onset of VS. So, toxic fumes? A bump to the head? I don't know. Tripler hospital couldn't figure it out.
Symptoms: Static-like vision, blindness at night, tinnitus, confusion, brain-fog, depersonalization, depression, and a cognitive reading/writing imbalance (understanding what you're trying to read and incoherent writing.)
Klonopin seemed to help, probably the anxiety and insomnia associated with VS. But now after 48 years, almost all medications and even those over the counter have harsh side effects on the brain.
Those with VS know at bedtime, it's turn out the lights and let the VS light-show begin.
Thanks for publishing this video......Aloha
I had a similar experience when mine started. I was stuttering for a while. I would totally shut down. Couldn't make decisions (more than normal, I'm ADHD) I couldn't do anything for a while. Now, a year later, I often I can't focus or retain reading. Sometimes I'll try and focus real hard and read an academic article and then my speech after will be all weird/garbled for a bit and I'll be real clumsy. I can't drive at night, headlights hurt.
I am 41 years old, and I have had Visual Snow Syndrome all my life... the only trouble it it wasn't a recognized condition until around 2015, I didn't even know other people had it at all until I was in my late 20's.... The WORST thing about it is that back in my early 20's I was saddled with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia because all the Visual Snow symptoms got labelled as "Persistent Visual Hallucinations". No amount of medication prescribed for it ever did anything except ruin my life.
I am ecstatic that I finally have real answers as to what I see... and also absolutely gutted over the realization of just how much the misunderstanding of my condition has actually damaged my life.
I'm so sorry, my friend! Best wishes and hugs.
I do have visual snow, and my symptoms are both static, colorful circles, I feel/see that bright lights are so bright, I also picture images when I close my eyes, I have migrans, black and black spirals when I stare/look a light bulbs/producers of light, and have dry eyes
@Dr Rupa Wong. You might wish to re-edit this video. Everytime you said F 14 and it flashed up on the screen it was changed to F 41. I am numbers dyslexic at times so I really pay attention to them. If you are aware of this problem, I sorry to have disturbed you. Thanks for the great videos. I always learn a lot. I will see about getting the tinted glasses for myself and my daughter
I accidentally was saying F-14 but the correct term is F-41. That is why I put that in there. So sorry for any confusion!! Thank you for watching.
Had this my whole life never knew what it was thank you
I was born early in the 90’s, as I remember my first years of life, when I started to be curious about life and learned to speak, I asked my parents if they see like watching the TV with that noise image, I was also seeing my eyes and light when I close my eyes. they never understood what I meant, but deep down I knew that not everybody sees the same.
I found out yesterday I had this through a Reddit thread. 😅 To me it's hilarious, because I thought everyone saw like this. My mind was blown.
So glad you know now!!
Aha ! Now I have the second piece of information to the migraine video… This is what I’m seeing all the time in addition to migraine aura… I commented on the migraine video saying that I see these types of things every day all the time… So now I know what it is :-) thank you! I now have the vocabulary to talk to my ophthalmologist and neurologist, and hopefully someday I will actually get to see a Nuro ophthalmologist…
Me too! I have both the ophthalmic migraine and just now learned that my other visual disdurbance in visual snow. Calling my ophthalmologist tomorrow.
@@bevinboulder5039 My ophthalmologists were not very helpful… I have been telling them this for at least four years. But after seeing this video I now know what to say it is called. Maybe they will refer me to a Neuro ophthalmologist. At least I know it is not just bad eyesight although it still affects my vision … Good luck to you :-)
@@creativesolutionstoart Thank you! It really doesn't affect me that much because my spots are light and I usually only notice them when looking at a dark background.
Very Cool Thankyou. Awesome Interesting Explanation. I have Visual Snow Symptoms for a few years After Images Tinnitus Snow etc was checked by Neurologist and said to be Migraine Aura although Visual Snow Symptoms seem more likely. Can Be Very Debilitating and Frightening. Thankyou for your explanation.
I thought i was crazy for the longest time. Seen doctor after doctor. Went to the eye doctor several times. Finally the eye doctor told me I had visual snow. I seriously thought I was have serious symptoms and could be dieing. Now I am looking for a cure. I have been reseaching everyday to find something to help. Some research I found was something to do with cereberal fluid drainage issue. Idk im just going down a rabbit hole because i would to anything to fix this. im tired of getting headaches, the dots, light sensitivity, and bad night vision
I’m noticing a little bit of flashing of light and a little bit of black dots when I look at the sun and look away after. Are these symptoms or visual snow?
This was a great video!❤ This is the way it's always been for me. I am an artist so I use some of my visual snow inspiration in my work. It's wild art for sure! Light sensitivity has become worse with LEDS seems like..
Anxiety and lack of sleep cause my vss to worsen. Even do I feel food ans some supplement like gaba might help to be mindfull, get enough sleep and non anxious has the best effect.
At the very least for us, everyday is a "White Christmas" lol. 🤣
I have Visual Snow and eye floaters with tinnitus in my ear, recently found them. it's really annoying I struggle to sleep at night. visited many doctors they just ignore these conditions since it has no cure and talk to me as it's normal and many people have it. so I guess we just have to do the same ignore these conditions, be strong, and get back to our normal life again. that's what I do I hope all people here do the same, good luck to everyone.
Got VSS 4 days into covid never had any visual problems before, got 10odd symptoms, been neuro everything normal, been just over a year now
I'm sorry you have these symptoms. That is good your neuro exam came back normal, though!
me too, Covid caused my visual snow.. along with blurred vision, brain fog, headache, tinnitus, dry eyes, crackly sore neck, weak wrists, buzz / fizz sensation through-out body. It's been 1.5 years so far, no change. Keto diet, antioxidants and DHA omega supplement has helped with some symptoms. -Henry
For anyone trying to find the glasses, google FL-41 glasses not F41
Thank you for that clarification! Sorry for the error.
I was diagnosed with covid and Lyme disease at the same time when I lost vision in my right eye...I have tinnitus in my right ear and pulsatile tinnitus in my right ear...I sure wish you were my doctor...Even if you couldn't help me, your lovely spirit would help me to get through the day...end/
Thank you for those kind words. I am so sorry to hear about your diagnosis.
Thanks, sometimes I feel like a mistake...I forgot to mention that I am paralyzed from the breastbone down due to a drunk driver...I also have double vision even after looking at my Iphone for a few seconds...As long as I don't look at my phone for long time, the double vision is not so bad...I tried switching between 1.75 reading glasses to 2 but to no avail...Oh, I also have PVD in my left eye...53 years old also plays a part in eye disorders too I believe...@@DrRupaWong
I found out about visual snow very recently and I think I have it. I always see coloured dots everywhere and thought everybody did too, I have floaters, post image, and migraine auras I think. But it's really quickly sometimes idk, I have the dots all the time
Hi, I experience symptoms such as rainbow around lights, halo around lights, floaters, photosensitivity, after images (because the lights that I see are very bright) and also I see black and white lines when I read white text in black background and vice-versa.
I think i got slight VS after a concussion after a car accident. I started seeing a ton of floaters too a few weeks after the tinnitus. When I wake up I get bad after images but it usually gets better in the day a bit.
Thanks for this video. Heard that one of the reasons may be caused by mold toxicity which need to get rid of mold environment.
Interesting! Thanks for sharing that.
A gas station clerk thought it would be funny to shot a bar code scanner gun right in my eye on Tuesday. Now I have really bad visual snow and right eye pain. I'm hoping its temp.
Oh my goodness! How rude! I'm so sorry they did that and I hope that it clears up quickly for you.
I had no idea this was a recognized phenomenon. I told my teacher about it when I in like 3rd grade and she told me that it wasn't normal so I just never mentioned it to anyone again. I have the colored static, the light bugs (I called the photon gnats) that I recently learned are capillary vacuums trailing white blood cells, shadow movements in the peripheral vision that I always think is a person or animal coming up behind me, light sensitivity, terrible migraines that have me curled up shaking in ball in the darkest room I can find (usually with extreme nausea and sweating) floaters and tracers and tinnitus to the point I have to have some background noise at all times cause the ringing is deafening in silence. But until five minutes ago I didn't know anyone else delt with this. I just....deal with it
You definitely aren't alone. So sorry you have this as well!
So there’s no such thing as true darkness. It’s normal to see colorful patterns when you close your eyes at night. There’s terminology for the expressed colors and patterns and it’s caused by the small amounts of electricity in our bodies. Your vision will become very dark but not absolutely dark. Dim colors and patterns are natural to see. Visual Snow on the other hand appears whether your eyes are open or closed and will be very apparent when looking at the sky or looking at any solid colors.
Thank you for sharing!
@@DrRupaWong you’re welcome. also the name for the phenomenon that causes this is called “Eigengrau” and it is only present when there is no perceptible light.
For the past 10 years, I have experienced floaters and sometimes see tiny bright lights floating around. The lights decreased after contracting Ramsay Hunt Syndrome, but my floaters increased with tired eyes. I do not experience headaches, but I have a slight buzzing in my ears. Sunlight irritates my eyes; I see dots depending on where I look. Unfortunately, my doctor does not believe me when I explain what I see. They only say that the floaters are part of getting old.
I'm so sorry your doctor doesn't believe you. Here is another video I have done on floaters - th-cam.com/video/JKvBw4jtlsA/w-d-xo.html
Mine started when I first got a smartphone and looked at it in the dark. It was sort of bad at first and then reduced down over time. Some of the other things like light-sensitive , image retention, and floaters I did have most of my life but also seemed to get worse after looking at a smart phone in the dark. Idk if the two are related, but if more and more of these younger generations have similar complaints, it could be a possible correlation.
Something to think about for sure! I'm sorry you struggle with this. Thanks for sharing and for watching!
wow, I think 90% of the people who have visual snow is because of excessive use of screens and visual snow can also be caused by looking at screens in the dark... someone in my area went blind because of looking at a smartphone in the dark!
Nice explained. I've been watching your videos for long. Thanks for the education. I'm diagnosed as CSCR in both eyes. And my doctor's are not understanding what I'm feeling or seeing. Is it this possible if i send you my scans, can i discuss it with you? I'll be thankful.
I appreciate your support so much! If you can find a way to Honolulu, I would love to do an exam on you.