Weird Eye Symptoms Could Be a Sign of Serious Diseases, According to Doctors
Your eyes play a huge role in how you experience the world around you, so when they start acting weird, it can definitely set off some worry. Symptoms like pain in your eye socket, feeling like there’s something in your eye, or eyes that feel heavy can be a direct result of an issue with the eye itself—but it can also be a sign that something is seriously off elsewhere.
“Nothing in your body is in a box,” says Deborah Herrmann, M.D., assistant professor of clinical ophthalmology and attending physician at Scheie Eye Institute at University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. “Your eyes are connected to your central nervous system and everything else. Something that’s affecting your body can be affecting your eyes as well.”
Below, doctors explain the potential reasons your eyes are acting weird, whether it’s due to something within your eyes or beyond.
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a disease that damages your eye’s optic nerve, which transmits messages from your eyes to your brain, allowing you to see, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). Glaucoma typically happens when fluid builds up in the front part of your eye, increasing pressure that eventually damages the nerve. That can cause symptoms like blind spots and halos.
“The blind spots usually start along the outside of the vision, but can occur close to the center,” says Danielle Orr, O.D., M.S., F.A.A.O., assistant professor at The Ohio State University College of Optometry. “Depending on the nature of the missing area of vision, part of a sentence may disappear while reading, or an object to the side may not be visible when looking straight ahead.”
If pressure in your eye is high, halos (bright circles around a light source) can be seen, says Aakriti Garg Shukla, M.D., assistant professor of ophthalmology at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia. Glaucoma can lead to “severely reduced vision” and even blindness.
Cataracts
Cataracts are a problem with your eye’s lens, which bends light rays that come into your eye to help you see, the AAO explains. The lens should be clear, but when you have cataracts it becomes cloudy, causing blurred, hazy, or less colorful vision.
“As we age, the lens’ cells grow and die, leading to buildup of debris and clouding of the lens,” Dr. Shukla says. “This causes distortion of the way the light enters the eyes.”
A cataractous lens is yellow or brown instead of clear and can cause you to develop a yellowish tint to your vision. People with cataracts also have difficulty seeing details in the dark, and can struggle with glare, Dr. Orr says. “The combination of increased glare and decreased contrast makes night driving especially difficult,” she adds.
Macular degeneration
Macular degeneration (or age-related macular degeneration) happens when a part of your retina, the thin layer of tissue that covers the back of your eye, is damaged, the AAO says.
“Macular degeneration occurs when the eye cannot get rid of byproducts formed by the photoreceptors in the retina,” Dr. Orr says. “The byproducts form deposits, called drusen, disrupt the smooth layers of the retina and can lead to distorted vision.” Over time, those photoreceptors don’t function properly, and your vision can become blurred.
Macular degeneration specifically affects the macula of your retina, which allows you to have sharp focus and see fine details, Dr. Shukla says. That can cause objects or faces to seem distorted, and make straight lines appear wavy, she says.
Eye strain
“Eye strain occurs when the eyes become tired from constant use,” Dr. Shukla says. This can happen when you’ve spent too much time staring at a screen or book, or have been driving a long distance for a long period of time, she says. “This attention leads to a reduced blink rate or prolonged staring, causing dryness and accompanying symptoms—soreness, burning, itching, and tired eyes,” Dr. Orr says. “The discomfort can become so severe that keeping your eyes open may be painful.”
High cholesterol
High cholesterol is a condition that causes the level of unhealthy fats to increase your blood, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). This is usually a result of certain lifestyle factors (like your diet) and genetics.
“Someone with high cholesterol can have transient vision loss that comes and goes, like a curtain or shade coming and going over their eye,” says Dr. Herrmann. This is a sign your carotid artery is plugged with plaque and struggling to get blood to your eye. You may also have eye pain, notice a grey ring around your cornea (called an arcus senilis), or have trouble adjusting to bright light. In some cases, yellowish cholesterol deposits called xanthelasma can show up on your eyelids or in the corners of your eye socket.
Thyroid problems
Your thyroid is a butterfly-shaped organ in your neck, and it controls certain hormones that help regulate your growth and metabolism. If your thyroid isn’t functioning properly it can lead to a host of problems, which sometimes includes swollen eye muscles and congested eye sockets that cause your eyes to bulge out and look bigger than usual, says Dr. Herrmann. You might also have double vision.
Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder that affects your thyroid, can make your eyelids retract, which can also make your eyes look bigger than usual, the AAO says. If your eyelids retract enough that you can’t close your eye, you may develop dry eye, since your lids can’t keep moisture in.
Diabetes
Regular eye exams are a good idea for anyone, but it’s a must if you have diabetes or are at high risk for the condition. “Diabetes can make the macula—the part of the retina that controls your central vision—swell or retain fluid or fluid,” says Dr. Herrmann. While you might not completely lose your vision, she says, you’d definitely notice a change for the worse.
People with diabetes are also nearly twice as likely to get glaucoma and up to five times more likely to get cataracts, and they should be on the lookout for diabetic retinopathy—a set of disorders that affect the light-sensitive part of your eye. Retinopathy can cause problems like blurry vision or even retinal detachment.
Retinal migraines
Temporary blind spots in your vision could mean you’re having a migraine of the eye. This isn’t the same as a headache-type migraine. Retinal migraines cause “blank spots” in your vision called scotomas. “[The blind spots] only last for a certain number of minutes, and you may or may not have pain,” says Dr. Herrmann. You may also see flashes of light, have blurry vision, or get a headache before or after your eye symptoms. If it happens repeatedly—especially if it only impacts one eye—see an eye doctor to get checked out.
Autoimmune disease
Got droopy eyelids? It could be a sign of an autoimmune disorder called myasthenia gravis, which can cause muscle weakness that can make it hard to open your eyes all the way. Meanwhile, lupus and certain types of arthritis can lead to uveitis, an infection in the layer of your eye called the uvea. And eyesight changes are sometimes a clue that you should get screened for multiple sclerosis.
“If you develop decreasing vision in one eye over the course of a few days or weeks and you have pain in or around one eye—especially when you move it—it could be your first presenting sign of MS,” says Dr. Herrmann.
Stroke
Sudden loss of sight is startling—and for good reason. It could be a sign that you’re about to have a stroke, or that you’ve already had one. Normally, vision loss from a stroke happens in one eye only, but it can happen in both, causing blindness. Sometimes strokes damage the nerves that move your eyes, which can make you see double.
Strange as it sounds, it’s also possible to have a stroke in your eye only. This is called a retinal stroke, or retinal artery occlusion, and it happens when blood vessels in your retina are clogged with plaque. You’re more likely to get a retinal stroke if you have high blood pressure or carotid artery disease. Any kind of stroke is serious and calls for immediate care, so call 911 if you suddenly go blind in one or both eyes.
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