Blurred vision.

[Wazza84]

Hiya everybody.

Last week (Sunday) I was playing on my PlayStation which I haven’t done for a few years as when I did play on a game concentration was difficult and fatigue would take over in the early years of my recovery.. anyway..

I was playing for a couple of hours in my bedroom and decided to turn it off and go watch tv downstairs when I got headache and my vision started to blur and the light/lamp seemed to become really bright to the point I had to turn the lamp & tv off and close my eyes.. it lasted about 10/15 minutes, this happened again two days later (pretty much the same things)

Nothing has happened since as I have limited myself to an hour to two hours on my PlayStation.

Has this happened to anybody else?

I’m associating it with playing on game but I don’t know..

[sospan]

It is very common to feel the all sorts of strange after effects when playing video games and for a few hours afterwards.

All lot is to do with the amount of visual processing the brain has to undertake with the moving images, planning, reacting and the motor controls through you arms to the keyboard/joy stick etc.

Your brain has to deal with the motion within the game - within the game you are moving whilst you are physically sat still. It is quite hard for your brain to rationalise this.

I nearly collapsed in a Tutankamen exhibition recently when they darkened the lights and projected a fly through of Egyptian monuments on a curved screen. I wasn't expecting it and couldn't adjust quickly enough and had to hold onto a pillar for support.

Fortunately, you have found your own solution - limiting the duration !

All the best

[Wazza84 in reply to sospan]

Thanks sospan.

I never thought of the visual processing of the movement and images of the game.. but yea limiting myself seems to help.

[cat3]

As you know Wazza, you & I are both 8 years on from our haemorrhages and I'm convinced that, for me, screen-time has played havoc with my eyesight.

Headway and other online interests have allowed me the feelings of normality I miss in the outside world. And as it doesn't have the stress of on-the-spot word finding/excess stimulus/poor balance, it's tempting to overstay.

I see marked improvements after prolonged periods of keeping the lid down on my laptop, and then deterioration on days like today when, after days of gardening I'm physically shattered and resting......with laptop !

My close vision has been ruined by cataracts (despite new lenses and laser treatment) so although my distance viewing is good I find reading books a struggle unless, once again, it's another screen (Kindle) to magnify small print for reading.

And perhaps the extra concentration of gaming, plus the glare, is extra wearing. I use dry eye drops every night to mitigate the effects as most of my screen time is late evening.

I know people who use prescription glasses especially for computer viewing. I sat on mine and haven't got round to replacing them ! 🙄 xx

[Wazza84 in reply to cat3]

Thanks Cat

I have prescription glasses but not specifically for screen time.

My laptop really sets my fatigue off so don’t use it much but I spend a lot of time using my phone which doesn’t seem to have an effect.

I’ll definitely try using eye drop thing and limiting myself seems to of helped.. it just freaked me out a bit 😬

[Ben666]

Hi Wazza

I limit myself to about 1 hour of playing my Xbox and if I go longer it is too much brain stimulation and I have a banging headache. It’s all about learning how much is too much and it also depends what type of game you are playing. Before my BI I would sit up all Friday an Saturday night playing until the 2:00 in the morning so it’s a big change for me.

[Wazza84 in reply to Ben666]

Hiya Ben666.

I was playin GTA5 so a lot goin on at the same time and trying to focus was difficult..

I have limited myself since and it hasn’t happened so think it must of been too much screen time.

[Ben666]

I’ve tried playing GTA5 and most the time when I’m driving fast cars I seem to get tunnel vision and mostly crash or I can’t steer quick enough. Which at first I got very frustrated. Now I just laugh when I crash. And if I’m in a mission it’s nice to have the replay option.

[Wazza84 in reply to Ben666]

Yea pretty much the same for me but I’m gettin used to it now