Eye Floaters

[cmcrawfo]

I have eye floaters, most of the time they don't bother me ... but when Its a white out, or if I get a bit of moisture in my gogs ... particularly if I use an iridium lens.... it gets worse.

Does anyone have any good management tips for floaters?

Has any one had them removed surgically?

Thanks

[old goat]

Nothing you can do about them and generally they're harmless but annoying. However, you should see an eye doc to make sure no serious problem with the retina. Any eye docs out there?

[Meadow Skipper]

I freaked out recently when I got a whole bunch of floaters at once and, concurrently, some flashing lights on the periphery when it's dark. The optometrist just shrugged and said to get used to it. But you should go see a specialist in case it is a prelude to retinal detachment.

If its any consolation, the way you are right now is the best it's going to be.

[Gripen]

I freaked out recently when I got a whole bunch of floaters at once and, concurrently, some flashing lights on the periphery when it's dark. The optometrist just shrugged and said to get used to it. But you should go see a specialist in case it is a prelude to retinal detachment.

If its any consolation, the way you are right now is the best it's going to be.

Flashing lights in the corner of my eye is what led to the discovery of a brain tumor a year ago. They had initially thought it was a detaching retina and I went to a bunch of ophthalmologists before I got an MRI.

I don't want to scare ya man but follow up on the flashing light thing with an ophthalmologist if you can.

[ColoMike]

X2 with what Gripen said. My eye doc said my floaters are fine, but if I start to see flashes, I need to come in right away. They do really suck in flat light.

[Meadow Skipper]

There goes the good night's sleep that I was hoping for. But I appreciate it.

ETA: now I think I've got a headache.

[Gripen]

There goes the good night's sleep that I was hoping for. But I appreciate it.

ETA: now I think I've got a headache.

Don't worry man. I never had headaches.

[ate'em]

If its any consolation, the way you are right now is the best it's going to be.

No sure about that, mine have gotta a lot better in recent years. I always had the floaters, or 'amoebas' as I called them, since I was a kid. But lately they have gotten a lot better, pretty uncommon now. I think it may be due to improvements in diet and eye strain. good luck.

[detrusor]

As I approached 40 I got some, agree w all the posts. Especially the flashing lights, that's not a floater and needs immediate attention.

[stuckathuntermtn]

I had some eye trouble in my teenage years (insert masturbation joke) due to auto-immune inflammation around the lens. I have some floaters, especially when the light is really flat. It's literally just some loose pigment or somesuch floating around your eye. Nothing really to worry about to do anything about. I think some of you missed the fact that Meadow Skipper didn't say the flashing lights weren't there. He just saw some floaters from a strobe effect. If you're just seeing floaters in flat light and fog, it's totally normal, even if it IS annoying.

[old goat]

An occasional flashing light is OK. A bunch of them is not. Still worth seeing an eye doc and let her tell you when to worry. It could be AIDS. (Not really).

[Jethro]

On a blue bird day, I used to play missle command with my eye floaters with jetliners overhead. Since they are floating in the eye fluid, it is kind of challenging to move them around

[stuckathuntermtn]

OMG, I think I have a new chairlift game.

[stuckathuntermtn]

"Is that man ok?"
"Yeah, he's just gaper bombing."

[XXX-er]

I understand that if you have had a knock on the head and you start seeing flashes you should get checked out by the pro's?

A friend of mine fell on icey stairs smacked the head and got knocked out cracked a bone in the wrist and started seeing flashes so went to the doc, got sent to the eye doc, eventualy the flashes went away

a few years later they ran into someone on the dance floor and started seeing the flashes again went to the eye doc, again the flashes eventualy went away

just stuff to think about for people who do the very active sports

[old goat]

Flashes can be a sign of a detaching retina--likelihood depends on the frequency and persistence of flashes. Should be checked out by an eye doc. Other docs like me know exactly squat about the eye--what little I know is from having floaters and the occasional flash myself. We can't make the slightest sense out of eye doctors' medical records, a lot of numbers for the most part, a foreign language as far as I'm concerned.
Dance floor or mosh pit?

[old goat]

Thanks for nothing cmcrawfo. I had forgotten about my floaters until you started this thread, now I notice them again.

[XXX-er]

Because of the type II diabetes I go to the eye doc every year he takes them pictures of my eye that all look like the sea of tranquility on his computer screen and I buy another pair of raybans on the HCSA ... he loves me

it was a wild wedding 2 old people colliding AND there's a story there