A little support
Hello,
I’ve been suffering from ocular migraines (with aura) for the past 20 years. The first one I had was one of the most frightening experiences in my life.
Now I’m kind of used to them but recently they have become more frequent. Sometimes I get three a week. Like many people, the aura lasts for pretty much 20 minutes, and sometimes I get a headache afterwards, sometimes not. Sometimes I don’t get any for months.
I suffer from anxiety, my sleep pattern certainly isn’t the best and now that I’m over 60, it has been advised that I go and visit my Doctor. I’m in the UK so this could take anything up to 3 weeks to get an appointment.
Sometimes I’m pretty pretty relaxed and in control when the zigzag pattern begins as I know it’s going to be finished in 20 minutes, but there are times when I just freak out.
I’ve only had two outside of the home and I have just carried on regardless, but on my own open (in the house) I do get very anxious.
Does anyone have any words of encouragement that I can maybe call upon when I realise that I’m going to have to sit down for 20 minutes and let things take their course.
Thanks in advance.
Yes, I get these. I'm 69. I got them a lot during the recent Winter. Then, around 2-3 months ago, they just stopped happening. I had my first in months around 50 minutes ago. It lasted around 27 minutes, in all. They sometimes scare me, too. I've heard that they are happening in the rear of the brain and that the eyes don't even know that they are happening at all, which is reassuring. I've heard them called Scintillating Scotomas and are harmless passing neurological events that can be mostly just disregarded. They are scary, though.
Thanks for getting that to me. I haven’t had one for a week, but this morning I started having one when I was lying down for a bit of a nap (only because it’s so hot here) The pattern started to appear in my eyes and I just went to sleep. I woke up an hour later and it was still happening. After about five or six minutes it went, though that has never happened before. He love
I’ve spent quite some try time trying to figure out what it is that set it off and I think most of it is down to tiredness. As I’ve got older, I don’t sleep as much as I used to, so I’m thinking that this is something I’m just going to have to put up with.Some months ago, I had one smaller one come on while I was still lying in bed, but awake, with my eyes still closed and in a dark room. It was a short attack. I got up, came on this computer and I had another one. But, I don't think it was a separate attack. I think that this 2nd one was just the other "part" of the first one...I've heard of it, since then, having happened to other people.
I've heard that people who suffer from stress get these a lot, but they DON'T GET THEM WHEN THE STRESS IS HIGH AND HAPPENING THEN...they tend to get them, later that day, or later that week, when the stress has already gone away - WORTH REMEMBERING, THAT! That has VERY VERY often seemed to be my situation. I've woken in the night, felt incredibly relaxed and okay and I've watch one form, and that's without even opening my eyes. I wait for them to go and just carry on lying there, during them. But, they went away for 2 to 3 months, and now I'm just getting over my first in that time. Those could happen (this was mostly Winter just gone) during excellent nights of sleep, but during months when I really was stressed up because of my mental health causing anxiety and severe depression, usually during the days. So, if they are stress caused, they are highly likely to happen at times when the stress has actually PASSED OFF, rather than right in the middle of the stress times, themselves. That might be comforting to know!
Thank you, yes understood. A lot of stress related incidents don’t actually happen during at times of stress, it’s normally after the event. I try not to spend too much time dissecting everything, as I’d rather just get on with my life. However, I’m getting these ocular migraines with aura about once a week now, and I’m pretty sure as it’s the summer and the sun comes up earlier and it’s hotter, it’s due to lack of sleep.
