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What Causes Eye Twitching Along With Dry Eyes?
Question: Dear Dr.
As you can see in my previous records, I've been experiencing eye twitching since the onset of dry eye symptoms. I don't know if I'd had it before developing dry eyes but it's been bothering me for weeks now.
I know eye twitching is usually not a serious problem but I'm scared because it is a bit different from what people normally experience.
PROBLEM 1
At night, when I turn off the lights (it's dark but there is some light in my room because of my cellphone charger and lights from outside), lie down and look at the ceiling, my eyes start twitching VERY RAPIDLY for about 5 to 10 seconds. Most of the time, when it happens I don't really feel my eyes twitch. The shadows and lights in my vision start to tremble (I don't even know if my eyes are actually twitching but I would describe the affect as "VERY RAPID EYE TWITCHING". When I turn on the lights and look at the ceiling, the light does not tremble anymore.
PROBLEM 2
This is a bit little hard to describe in words but I also realised that sometimes when I turn off the lights, the room (dark but with some light from outside and cellphone charger) becomes gradually darker. Maybe this is because my eyes close slightly by themselves? Again, I don't notice these changes when the lights are on.
1. WHEN WE EXPERIENCE SUCH CHANGES IN VISION, DO WE NOTICE THEM MORE IN LOW LIGHT OR DARK AREAS? If I don't notice them when I turn on the lights is it because people usually don't notice them when the room is bright?
2. My eyes do twitch and I can feel the rhythmic movements but what I described above is different. The movement is VERY FAST and most of the time I don't feel them 'twitch'.
3. Is there any neurological condition that makes the eyes sensitive or respond differently in DARKNESS or LOW LIGHT? I had my eyes examined by ophthalmologists and the results were fine. My retina and optic nerves are healthy.
4. Does what I'm experiencing say anything about my occipital lobes? I'm just hoping that there is no problem with my occipital lobes.... I know I tend to worry a lot when it comes to the eyes and the brain but these things have been bothering me for awhile now.
I just hope this whole thing will not affect my vision in a negative way.
Dr, I'm asking you these questions (instead of an ophthalmologist) to rule out all neurological related conditions. Thank you in advance.
As you can see in my previous records, I've been experiencing eye twitching since the onset of dry eye symptoms. I don't know if I'd had it before developing dry eyes but it's been bothering me for weeks now.
I know eye twitching is usually not a serious problem but I'm scared because it is a bit different from what people normally experience.
PROBLEM 1
At night, when I turn off the lights (it's dark but there is some light in my room because of my cellphone charger and lights from outside), lie down and look at the ceiling, my eyes start twitching VERY RAPIDLY for about 5 to 10 seconds. Most of the time, when it happens I don't really feel my eyes twitch. The shadows and lights in my vision start to tremble (I don't even know if my eyes are actually twitching but I would describe the affect as "VERY RAPID EYE TWITCHING". When I turn on the lights and look at the ceiling, the light does not tremble anymore.
PROBLEM 2
This is a bit little hard to describe in words but I also realised that sometimes when I turn off the lights, the room (dark but with some light from outside and cellphone charger) becomes gradually darker. Maybe this is because my eyes close slightly by themselves? Again, I don't notice these changes when the lights are on.
1. WHEN WE EXPERIENCE SUCH CHANGES IN VISION, DO WE NOTICE THEM MORE IN LOW LIGHT OR DARK AREAS? If I don't notice them when I turn on the lights is it because people usually don't notice them when the room is bright?
2. My eyes do twitch and I can feel the rhythmic movements but what I described above is different. The movement is VERY FAST and most of the time I don't feel them 'twitch'.
3. Is there any neurological condition that makes the eyes sensitive or respond differently in DARKNESS or LOW LIGHT? I had my eyes examined by ophthalmologists and the results were fine. My retina and optic nerves are healthy.
4. Does what I'm experiencing say anything about my occipital lobes? I'm just hoping that there is no problem with my occipital lobes.... I know I tend to worry a lot when it comes to the eyes and the brain but these things have been bothering me for awhile now.
I just hope this whole thing will not affect my vision in a negative way.
Dr, I'm asking you these questions (instead of an ophthalmologist) to rule out all neurological related conditions. Thank you in advance.
Brief Answer:
Symptoms do not suggest any serious neurological disease.
Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Thank you for posting your query.
I have noted your symptoms and would like to reassure that your symptoms are not suggestive of any serious neurological disease.
Eye twitching are common in normal life and almost always benign, without any serious consequences. They are often caused due to strain, less sleep and fatigue.
They do not suggest any disease of occipital lobes.
Also, there is no neurological condition that would lead to more twitching in dark.
I hope it helps. I would be pleased to answer any follow up queries.
Best wishes,
Dr Sudhir Kumar MD DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist
Symptoms do not suggest any serious neurological disease.
Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Thank you for posting your query.
I have noted your symptoms and would like to reassure that your symptoms are not suggestive of any serious neurological disease.
Eye twitching are common in normal life and almost always benign, without any serious consequences. They are often caused due to strain, less sleep and fatigue.
They do not suggest any disease of occipital lobes.
Also, there is no neurological condition that would lead to more twitching in dark.
I hope it helps. I would be pleased to answer any follow up queries.
Best wishes,
Dr Sudhir Kumar MD DM (Neurology) XXXXXXX Consultant Neurologist
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Dear Dr XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
First of all thank you for your decent reply.
I really appreciate it.
However, I'd like to know if the symptoms I'm experiencing are all due to eye twitching.
1. When the lights and shadows tremble REALLY FAST, I DON'T FEEL my eyes twitch. I'm worried some neurological disorder is causing the shaky vision.
IF THE EYE-TWITCHING-LIKE SYMPTOMS (lights and shadows trembling) ARE NOT DUE TO EYE TWITCHING, do I still have to worry about any possibility of neurological conditions affecting my vision?
ANSWER:
2. Also, what happens more frequently than above is when I turn off the lights and look at the ceiling the remaining lights (reflected light from cellphone charger and outside) gradually fade and become even darker.
ANSWER:
Thank you doctor.
First of all thank you for your decent reply.
I really appreciate it.
However, I'd like to know if the symptoms I'm experiencing are all due to eye twitching.
1. When the lights and shadows tremble REALLY FAST, I DON'T FEEL my eyes twitch. I'm worried some neurological disorder is causing the shaky vision.
IF THE EYE-TWITCHING-LIKE SYMPTOMS (lights and shadows trembling) ARE NOT DUE TO EYE TWITCHING, do I still have to worry about any possibility of neurological conditions affecting my vision?
ANSWER:
2. Also, what happens more frequently than above is when I turn off the lights and look at the ceiling the remaining lights (reflected light from cellphone charger and outside) gradually fade and become even darker.
ANSWER:
Thank you doctor.
Brief Answer:
Unlikely to be due to a neurological condition.
Detailed Answer:
Thank you for getting back.
I have noted your follow up queries, and can understand your concern.
However, I would like to reassure you that no neurological conditions cause visual symptoms depending on the presence of light or darkness.
Shakiness of vision may occur with diseases of cerebellum, however, they would be present all the time, whether in bright light or dim lights. Also, in addition, there would be imbalance while walking or using hands. So, I do not think you have cerebellar disease either.
Best wishes,
Dr XXXXXXX Kumar MD DM (Neurology)
Unlikely to be due to a neurological condition.
Detailed Answer:
Thank you for getting back.
I have noted your follow up queries, and can understand your concern.
However, I would like to reassure you that no neurological conditions cause visual symptoms depending on the presence of light or darkness.
Shakiness of vision may occur with diseases of cerebellum, however, they would be present all the time, whether in bright light or dim lights. Also, in addition, there would be imbalance while walking or using hands. So, I do not think you have cerebellar disease either.
Best wishes,
Dr XXXXXXX Kumar MD DM (Neurology)
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Dr XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
Thank you very much for your answer.
I did not reply yesterday because I wanted to observe more and organise my thoughts first. Since this is my last follow up question, I'd really appreciate it if you could give me your opinions on each question... Thank you Dr. XXXXXXX
1. I've noticed that what happens more frequently when I turn off the lights in my room is that (with some light from cellphone charger and outside lights) MY ROOM "GRADUALLY" BECOMES EVEN DARKER. I see the room becoming dimmer little by little. This happens a lot when I wake up in the middle of the night.
Q 1-- Are people more likely to experience these when they wake up in the middle of the night than during day time?
Q 2 --"IF" something similar also happens during day time, does it have anything to do with occipital lobes?
2. When my eyes are closed, I can see something flickering in front of me (similar to someone waving hands in a fast motion in front of you when you are taking a nap). I don't know if this also comes from eye twitching but does it have anything to do with neurological conditions?
3. When someone suffers from occipital lobe diseases like occipital epilepsy or seizure, do they experience visual hallucinations and illusions constantly? I know I don't have them but I'm just asking to make sure.
Thank you very much for your answer.
I did not reply yesterday because I wanted to observe more and organise my thoughts first. Since this is my last follow up question, I'd really appreciate it if you could give me your opinions on each question... Thank you Dr. XXXXXXX
1. I've noticed that what happens more frequently when I turn off the lights in my room is that (with some light from cellphone charger and outside lights) MY ROOM "GRADUALLY" BECOMES EVEN DARKER. I see the room becoming dimmer little by little. This happens a lot when I wake up in the middle of the night.
Q 1-- Are people more likely to experience these when they wake up in the middle of the night than during day time?
Q 2 --"IF" something similar also happens during day time, does it have anything to do with occipital lobes?
2. When my eyes are closed, I can see something flickering in front of me (similar to someone waving hands in a fast motion in front of you when you are taking a nap). I don't know if this also comes from eye twitching but does it have anything to do with neurological conditions?
3. When someone suffers from occipital lobe diseases like occipital epilepsy or seizure, do they experience visual hallucinations and illusions constantly? I know I don't have them but I'm just asking to make sure.
Brief Answer:
My replies are below.
Detailed Answer:
Thank you for getting back.
My replies to your queries are below:
1. This can be experienced at any time, either in middle of night or day time, however, the chances are more in the middle of night.
No, it does not suggest occipital lobe disease, if it occurs in daytime.
2. Flickering in front of eyes do not suggest any neurological disease.
3. Occipital lobe disease such as epilepsy would lead to visual symptoms intermittently and not continuously. These would occur as flashes of light or zig zag lines or other phenomena, usually occurring in one half of visual filed, and would last for a few seconds or minutes. This can occur at day or in night, with eyes open or closed.
In an occipital lobe tumor or infarct (lack of blood flow), symptoms may be more continuous.
Usually in doubt, an MRI of brain would exclude all the possible diseases.
Best wishes,
Dr Sudhir Kumar MD DM (Neurology)
My replies are below.
Detailed Answer:
Thank you for getting back.
My replies to your queries are below:
1. This can be experienced at any time, either in middle of night or day time, however, the chances are more in the middle of night.
No, it does not suggest occipital lobe disease, if it occurs in daytime.
2. Flickering in front of eyes do not suggest any neurological disease.
3. Occipital lobe disease such as epilepsy would lead to visual symptoms intermittently and not continuously. These would occur as flashes of light or zig zag lines or other phenomena, usually occurring in one half of visual filed, and would last for a few seconds or minutes. This can occur at day or in night, with eyes open or closed.
In an occipital lobe tumor or infarct (lack of blood flow), symptoms may be more continuous.
Usually in doubt, an MRI of brain would exclude all the possible diseases.
Best wishes,
Dr Sudhir Kumar MD DM (Neurology)
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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