# Sleep and Dreams > Sleep and Health >  >  Visual Snow

## jmp

Anyone else here afflicted with this? I've had it for as long as I can recall.
Basically is it like static on the T.V except in your vision.
This site explains it in more detail; http://www.visualsnow.com/

During the day I can see a static sort of thing on white walls, have these 'floaters' when I look at the sky combined with static and blue balls (which I have been told are white blood cells).
This picture shows what I mean clearly;
 
This is not so bad as it's more of a mild visual disturbance than a problem, though at night it is different.

At night (read: in the dark) ,and in the evening though it isn't as bad but still worse than day, this minor visual disturbance turns into extreme static causing my ability to see anything to be minimal and there are colours mixed in with the static. This is hard to explain, this paint diagram sort of explains it though the colours aren't as defined and neither is the static.


I get afterimages and burn-in from light when in the dark and ghosting. It is sometimes difficult to watch movies at night, especially when tired.

This wikipedia article also covers it; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_snow

Just wonderin'..

Edit: This is hard to explain, here are some simulations that will help you understand.
http://www.visualsnow.com/examples/simulations/

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## Bonsay

I have that. I thought it was normal. Although this snow isn't as drastic as in the pictures shown on the page. That or I just got used to it. I also have lots afterimages and have the same experiences when it's dark. So yeah  :tongue2:

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## jmp

I thought it was normal as well, it is annoying at night. 
I just stumbled across a link to something about visual snow, I thought it might've been something about a book called snow crash (I was wrong).

Then I found it there is no known cure. Ohwell.

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## ThePhobiaViewed

Yep i get this too. Whenever I go sledding (and probably alot of other times but its just very obvious when looking at white snowy hills) I get this thing where wherever i look there are black dots going to the point I'm focused on. I havn't really been affected by this stuff at night, just more of seeing floaters during the daytime and that sort of thing.

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## Spartiate

I don't have this, but when I get sleep deprived, I get this sort of staticky hallucination, like my vision is full of brown blotches.

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## Bonsay

> Yep i get this too. Whenever I go sledding (and probably alot of other times but its just very obvious when looking at white snowy hills) I get this thing where wherever i look there are black dots going to the point I'm focused on. I havn't really been affected by this stuff at night, just more of seeing floaters during the daytime and that sort of thing.



I don't think that has much to do with this visual snow. Although it is an interesting phenomena. Must be a product of staring at the same thing for a long period of time. I've experienced this hallucination somewhere else besides skiing and I guess you see it because you fall into some sort of trance...?

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## Asymptote

Oh, wow...I thought I was the only one. I actually have this fairly bad. Especially the damned floaters...they drive me crazy.

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## jmp

> Oh, wow...I thought I was the only one. I actually have this fairly bad. Especially the damned floaters...they drive me crazy.



I just thought it was normal. Then I was talking to someone and brought it up and, well, it was an awkward moment.

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## red_flag

i get this too!  but it's more sort of transparent flecks/ miniature circles and it really annoys me... then i have to stop thinking about it and distract myself so i don't obsess on it

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## ThePhobiaViewed

> I don't think that has much to do with this visual snow. Although it is an interesting phenomena. Must be a product of staring at the same thing for a long period of time. I've experienced this hallucination somewhere else besides skiing and I guess you see it because you fall into some sort of trance...?



I do get visual snow and floaters too but this is kinda weird. It could be like a trance. Possibly seeing all the white and being in a calm/cold state makes the mind try to fill in the blanks.

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## K-P

You find more about visual snow at this website: http://www.migraine-aura.org/content.../index_en.html 

Please participate in the Sofia Greene survey on such persistent perceptual alterations (you find it here: http://www.migraine-aura.org/content.../index_en.html ).

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## Idolfan

I see all that immediatelly upon closing my eyes at any time of day; but loads of people I've asked say they just see pitch black! Am I like, not normal?

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## Lucidbulbs

I see that stuff when I close my eyes too, or sometimes when I'm just focusing off at things [usually near lights and bright places], not nearly as bad, maybe one or two that I really notice... 

The only time it's really bad is when i have those "classical migranes" I can't even see it blinds me so bad, but typically afterwards it's gone [afterwards as in after the whole purge and wait out painfully the mirgrane thing, plus the required R&R]

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## K-P

Hello, could you participate in the visual snow survey (see the link in my above post) - there is often an association with migraine (Lucidbulbs)

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## jmp

I don't know if it's relevant but I also see streaks of light coming off lights. Hard to explain, internet's going to slow at the moment to make diagram/find a picture.

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## Spartiate

> I don't know if it's relevant but I also see streaks of light coming off lights. Hard to explain, internet's going to slow at the moment to make diagram/find a picture.



You mean like this?

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## Lucidbulbs

> Hello, could you participate in the visual snow survey (see the link in my above post) - there is often an association with migraine (Lucidbulbs)



Yeah, I will, and I know it's associated with migranes [at least it is with me], I even said it's with my migranes "The only time it's really bad is when i have those 'classical migranes' I can't even see it blinds me so bad, but typically afterwards it's gone." But yeah, I'll participate.

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## jmp

> You mean like this?



Yes, for every light. Though not as extreme as that, though about that at night.

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## K-P

Hello jmp, did you get my personal message via this board? Thanks, KP

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## Bonsay

> Yes, for every light. Though not as extreme as that, though about that at night.



How else do you expect to see brightness etc.  :smiley: ?

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## blade5x

I have that a little. I don't notice it unless I sort of blankly stare into the sky. I can even notice it slightly blankly staring into this bright monitor (thanks to the light background).

But at night... I can't say I've ever seen it at night.

I also have some floaters in my left eye - again only noticed when I want to see them. I'm definitely going to get it checked out eventually though. I remember reading something about eye detachment which can eventually lead to blindness in the later years - no thanks!

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## Bonsay

So you're telling me that you see "total" blackness when you close your eyes? 
That's interesting, to me anyway. I've never seen a clear colour actually.

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## blade5x

Well not exactly. When I close my eyes... I think I just see the after-image of everything in my field of vision. It's kind of cloudy at first, and slowly darkens, and then I start to see random patterns everywhere, which I can't say is really anything like the visual snow because these patterns are just so random.

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## Bonsay

Yeah, I see that + the visual snow. That's what I've always been interested in, what do others see.

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## yay

> i get this too!  but it's more sort of transparent flecks/ miniature circles and it really annoys me... then i have to stop thinking about it and distract myself so i don't obsess on it



I have that too. The one in the picture has a lot, I usually don't see that many. But they are transparent and  kind of move. But they don't really change, I can recognize a couple by their shape. They aren't all circles, but like the shape of a small piece of hair , or like these ~~.  

I've tried to figure out what they were, I've thought a lot about it and came up with some guesses. 

1. I have a history with drugs, so I was thinking it could be from that.

2. Seeing dust particles, either close to the eye or reflecting light in a certain way.

3. This is the best reason I can think of. Small scratches on my eye. I think this could be it since they are the same shape and size, and they are transparent. I've also had a dirtball thrown at my eye and it was pretty badly stuck in there and I went to the hospital to flush it out. They checked for scratches, but they are probably too small to make a difference, or to be seen easily. 


I also kind of see the colors in the dark, but not with static. It's sort of a blueish blob that fluctuates in size.


Does anyone push their fingers into their eyes at all? (with your eyes closed of course, haha) I do this sometimes randomly, and people don't understand why. I love it, I used to do it as a kid a lot, and would see cool patterns and colors. I' almost always see a tunnel, and going through it and turning left or right, and one time the tunnel ended to my surprise, and fell into a colorful spaghetti-Os place. 

But now when I do it I mostly see a lot of colorful dots, mostly blue, and almost like that blueish blob that fluctuates, but then everything is all striped , but the striped are vibrating almost.... Its hard to explain.


I'd really like to hear what people see though, I asked some of my friends and they didn't see anything, but some other used to do that too when they were young.




OH! and one of my favorite things to do is when you look at a bright light, and move your head up down left right and all around while facing the light, then looking away and closing your eyes, and maybe covering them too, you can see the trails and imprint of the light, it looks so cool! : :boogie:

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## Spartiate

> Yes, for every light. Though not as extreme as that, though about that at night.



Hmm, that's odd...  That effect is caused from light diffraction when there is a small opening in between the light source and the destination (you can confirm this by looking at a lightbulb while keeping your eyes just barely open).  Are you sure you're not just squinting all the time  :tongue2: ?

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## LucidFlanders

> Anyone else here afflicted with this? I've had it for as long as I can recall.
> Basically is it like static on the T.V except in your vision.
> This site explains it in more detail; http://www.visualsnow.com/
> 
> During the day I can see a static sort of thing on white walls, have these 'floaters' when I look at the sky combined with static and blue balls (which I have been told are white blood cells).
> This picture shows what I mean clearly;
>  
> This is not so bad as it's more of a mild visual disturbance than a problem, though at night it is different.
> 
> ...




Yes, i have it every day. I can lay on my bed and look out the window at the roof of my carport and i see millions of those tiny dots floating everywhere. I can look anywhere and when i look at some things i still see millions of those tiny dots. ::?:  I even see them on my monitor, it's like seeing water drip down the monitor showing the colors from the monitor screen.

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## K-P

http://www.migraine-aura.org/content.../index_en.html

jmp: I would like to ask for your permission to reproduce your posts at the website above (see link above)

jmp : can you tell me your year of birth?

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## jmp

> http://www.migraine-aura.org/content.../index_en.html
> 
> jmp: I would like to ask for your permission to reproduce your posts at the website above (see link above)
> 
> jmp : can you tell me your year of birth?



Sure!
1991; 16 now, 17 in couple months.

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## K-P

jmp, thanks for permission and additional info

Do you have a positive family history for migraine? If yes, who in the family is affected?

Did you ever consume hallucinogenic drugs? If yes, when? and did these have an impact on your persistent visual phenomena?

Can you also make illustrations of the other visual you described ( floaters, blue balls, increased starbursts around lights, increased afterimages, diplopia)?

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## K-P

Dear Lucidbulbs, thank you for sending me your survey responses. Please have a look at this webpage where I have summarized your posts (of course, anonymously): http://www.migraine-aura.org/content.../index_en.html  Is it right that you had the visual snow/static for as long as you can remember? Thanks, KP

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## Aporu

Haha well look at that, when I close my eyes I usually see nothing... literally pitch black, except for really dark smudges of colour. Think dark-neon? But this time, reading about visual snow and what not, I honestly saw sperm-like 'snow' in my right eye while closed. So cool xD

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## Wake_Me

I consider myself healthy, I have no history of drugs and a lot of people in my family are near-sighted.

I see stuff like this all the time, I thought I was messed up or something. Sometimes it's pretty extreme with white flecks plus bursts of color that I can follow in my vision if I don't look at it directly.

Very hard to describe.

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## Burned up

I get these and have done all my life.  But as I get older (early 40s) they are getting worse.  I put this down to time spent looking at a screen close-range.  I don't do drugs and don't drink much.

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## K-P

Hello WakeMe, would you participate in the survey below: 

1. Name or screen name (optional): 

2. Email (optional): 

3. Location (optional): 

4. Age: 

5. Sex: 

6. Nationality and Race (optional): 

7. Do you have classic migraine (migraine with aura) or common migraine (migraine without aura)? When did it begin? 

8. What do you take for your classic or common migraine and does it help? 

9. Have you been diagnosed with persistent aura (prolonged migraine aura status)? 

10. What is your visual problem and how long does it last? 

11. Any other problems that you think might be related? 

12. What do you take or do for your vision problem and does it help? 

13. Have you found a trigger for your vision problem? 

14. What tests have you had and the results? 

15. Drug history (pre VS) 

16. Drug history (post VS - effect on VS - negative, positive, not at all) 

17. Do you have a positive family history for migraine? If yes, who is affected? 

18. Other information you want to provide?

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## K-P

Hello BurnedUp, would you participate in the survey above?

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## silicovolcaniosis

i have a big black worm shaped floater in my left eye, sometimes its there but when i look at it too hard it fades away or runs from my central vision

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## Noobody

are you sure this visual snow isent pretty normal?
I always had it, especially those floaters, always just thought it was scratches in the eye.
And in sunny days, i see alot of like small light-ish dots, but have been ignoring it since i was 10years old.

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## Focus_Mode

Hi people, new to Dream Views and lucid dreaming... I was instantly drawn to this post as i too have this visual distortion... Among other things... It is a symptom of HPPD (hallucinogenic persistent perception disorder) and if any of you have used hallucinogenic drugs in the past then they are probably what caused it... If you also suffer from other visual disturbances (tracers, negative/positive afterimages, pareidolias, geometric distortion, micropsia/macropsia, colour confusion) then it is more than likely that you have  HPPD, a lot of helpful information, advice and support is available from this website.

http://www.hppdonline.com/forum/index.php

Hope this info is helpful to some of you.

Take it easy.  :wink2:

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## IZ

Oh yeah I especialy see a lot of static in the dark.

hmmm.... Some thing I would do when little. I would actualy rub my eyes hard and close them tight then put pressure on them with my fisted hands. This would actualy create more static, but I managed to actualy control it and make objects out of them. Man, did I have fun on those boring school lectures doing this. But I think doing this alot when young affected my eye sight now.  :Sad:

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## IZ

This thread reminded me of this Family guy reference  ::lol:: 

http://video.aol.com/partner/hulu/fa...c0P0GGTn_xjkre

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## shotbirds

I get that also, especially in the dark - i hate looking around in the dark, for some reason it bothers me and I don't like it. When I look at a clear blue sky i get it also.

Sometimes I get like streaks of colorful dots, real quick and short...not sure what its from.

But eye floaters can be caused by too much masturbation, from what i've read.

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## Exhalent

I thought everyone had that. I think it's the iron in your blood. :buns:

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## spitfire riggz

yeah, i  have that, except sometimes i get these wierd "spots" in my eyes, where ill see some germs or something swimming around hahahah

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## shotbirds

lol that's what I see. gets annoying when looking at something white.

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## wer

> Anyone else here afflicted with this? I've had it for as long as I can recall.
> Basically is it like static on the T.V except in your vision.
> This site explains it in more detail; http://www.visualsnow.com/
> 
> During the day I can see a static sort of thing on white walls, have these 'floaters' when I look at the sky combined with static and blue balls (which I have been told are white blood cells).
> This picture shows what I mean clearly This is not so bad as it's more of a mild visual disturbance than a problem, though at night it is different.
> 
> At night (read: in the dark) ,and in the evening though it isn't as bad but still worse than day, this minor visual disturbance turns into extreme static causing my ability to see anything to be minimal and there are colours mixed in with the static. This is hard to explain, this paint diagram sort of explains it though the colours aren't as defined and neither is the static.
> 
> ...



I have this all of the time, expecially in dark places, or when I am staring at a large white space. To me the snow looks transparent, although I can still see it. The best way I can describe it would be that it slightly resembles what hair, cells or skin looks like when under a microscope, and it constantly moves around. It *usually* doesn't interfere with my sight because they are, after all, see through. This is why I can only see them well on white walls or in dark places, because there is no background to hide them.

From what I understand visual snow is commonly caused by psychedelic drugs, so I've assumed that they are the cause of my "condition". Has anyone else here who uses or used psychedelics get visual snow?





> yeah, i have that, except sometimes i get these wierd "spots" in my eyes, where ill see some germs or something swimming around hahahah



I get that as well. Its a part of the visual snow, and its usually always there with the visual snow, but there are no where near as many of those skinny, somewhat long (when compared to the rest of the snow) "germ-like" things then there are little transparent dots, which are constantly in motion. The germ-like snow stays in one spot, perfectly still until I move my eyes, and the it follows in the direction that I moved my eyes. Its so weird!!

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## dasein

Had to do some research on colour vision for a philosophy class recently and learned that 'floaters' (vague points of distortion that move around as the eye moves; more or less stay in the same spot in the visual field) are often times just bits of the fluid inside your eye that has become more gelatinous then regular, or has slightly crystalized.  Floaters is an appropriate term since they correspond to something that actually is floating in the fluid of your eyeball.

I also get visual snow/static, but usually just when it's very dark (say, if the room is just illuminated by the glow from a few digital clock displays) or when I close my eyes.  I think it's pretty normal in-and-of-itself, just the degree to which it's noticable that changes between people.

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## theyearthreethousand

I think that there is a big difference with occasionally seeing 'floaters' (which I am sure everybody has experienced before) and this static vision (which sounds incredibly worrying imo) - I would go to the doctor's asap, personally.

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## wer

> I think that there is a big difference with occasionally seeing 'floaters' (which I am sure everybody has experienced before) and this static vision (which sounds incredibly worrying imo) - I would go to the doctor's asap, personally.



Well, in my case it is partially drug induced, but I clearly remember seeing visual snow as a toddler. In my opinion most people have some mild form of it (even if they haven't used drugs), but just don't recognize it. All of my friends see it...

If someone has it really bad and has no history of drug use (and gets plenty of sleep, water and food - I think it can also be caused by stress, but I'm not sure), then yes, it could be product of an underlying health problem, and they should get checked out immediately.

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## vinn

ive seen things like that , are they floaters?

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## Schmaven

I have the visual snow going on all the time whenever I look at something large and solid colored.  I thought I was the only one, I guess I'm not going crazy.  And I asked my eye doctor about the floaters, and he said they're just proteins floating around your eye and that 70% of the population says they see them, and the other 30% are lying.  The frequency and amount varies all the time.

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