They'd just appear out of nowhere

How did you take the screenshot?

He sneezed and farted at the same time
- No, that’s a screenshart. A screenshot is taken by blowing your nose when you have a sinus infection.
- Honestly the worst feeling only thing comparable would be dropping the soap.
- Burpsnart reference?
Not this again

Fun fact, this is because your vitreous humour is shrinking and as it shrinks bits of it congeal into little protein strings. They're called floaters, but some people laugh whenever I say that for some reason.

If you get a bunch of new ones all of a sudden it may mean you're at increased risk for retinal detachment.

The way its been described to me is that if you suddenly see a snow storm in your eye then you need to get to the doctor immediately
To help the the confusion, "floaters" can refer to when small chunks of poop dont flush and instead stay floating during the flush.
- My ex told me to stop calling them floaters because it made her think of poop. Thing is, that's literally what they're called.

Nope, you're the only person ever to have seen this weird stuff. It's probably a sign that you're about to die.

I have a permanent eye floater. When I get really bored I find suitable things in my field of vision to look back and forth between and play pong with.

That is some exemplary "silver linings" shit
You should be a motivational speaker or something
Hopefully you had your eyes checked just to be sure.
It's likely just a glass body part which is normal sadly.
But also could be something with the nerves , no panic just a thing my wife got similiar stuff and gets checked yearly to be safe.
- I've had it checked out and it's fine, thanks. That's good advice.

Seen them for decades, but thought it's best to keep them a secret. Until Family Guy just casually mentioned them like they were no big deal! Not as crazy as I thought, after all ...

That fucking plane!

Yes, since as long as I can remember. Welcome to the alien hive mind comrade! /s

Squiggly line in my eye, fluid.

I see you there, lurking on the periphery of my vision.

But when I try to look at you, you scurry away.

Are you shy squiggly line?

Why only when I ignore you do you return to the center of my eye?

Oh squiggly line, it’s alright, you are forgiven.

Honestly haven't seen em in years....

They left.

Immediately made me think of Baldurs Gate

You’re turning into a mind flayer!

Pretty sure I fucked up my eyes from psychedelics even though I didn’t trip more than 5 or so times in my life. I took some golden teachers and I noticed that my glasses felt like they were in the way of my eyes. I took them off and I could legit see. I need glasses to see anything that is 2 feet away from me, all I see are huge masses of colors and blobs without them on since I was about 9. Ever since that trip I see weird shit randomly, especially when I’m nervous, it just swirls and flashes. Eye doctor says nothing is wrong, I’m just seeing floaters. Shits weird.

Lol, HPPD goes brrrrr.
I can't tell you if this is what you're experiencing, but worth a read if you haven't come across the term before: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallucinogen_persisting_perception_disorder
- I had heard of it before but hadn’t read much about, mostly from fear that it would be true, like this part of the wiki article hits too close because I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what I’m experiencing. FML.
  “Many report that their visual distortions become more pronounced or even emerge during periods of heightened anxiety or stress.”

Like all of us?

It's light refracting through otherwise invisible bacteria on your eyeball.

NB. This comment has since been retracted by the author.

Pretty sure that's incorrect.
The common type of floater, present in most people's eyes, is due to these degenerative changes of the vitreous.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floater
- Well, it's what I always heard. But I'll retract my previous comment.
There are no bacteria in your eye. These perceptual disturbances are due to increased retinal sensitivity to vitreous substance. It's why they move when around like they're in liquid when you turn your head fast.

I have a lot of these because I’ve had numerous eye surgeries and they’re ultimately just gunk in the vitreous fluid of the eye. I wish there was a way that they could drain, filter, and replace your vitreous fluid when it gets like mine. Like an eyeball oil change. There’s not though, as far as I know.

A tip: if you suddenly see a ton more of these get it checked out asap, especially if you are very near sighted

Someone in my family had a double retinal detachment and the surgeon asked if he wanted his floaters removed while they were in there putting things back together. It's apparently possible because he has no more floaters.
This but for tinnitus too please
Everytime I see this warning, I become hyper aware of every single one and it freaks me out.
- If it makes you feel any better you’ll know when it happens, they increase by a lot. If they increase noticeably you should get it checked out but if it increases so substantially that you’re like man what the hell is going on then you need emergency care, basically, but also you can’t really miss it?
There actually is. I have looked into it before because I have a lot of floaters, but have never had surgery. The risk and downtime with the surgery is pretty high, so it's usually not recommended.
I know someone who got a vitrectomy for his eye floaters, and I've been considering doing the same when I can afford it

Nope but I see these when I'm getting a optical/ocular migraine.

I had one once, a decade ago, no pain, but mine was black and white squares, some had x's in them, it looked like some unholly mix of Apple and Xwindows just righ there in my vision in just about that overall shape you displayed. I also felt SUPER disconnected at the time. My wife and I were picking stuff up at storage, I just ignored it, got what i needed from storage and it went away in less than 5 minutes. I was thankful to not have the oft associated headache
- I just ignored it, got what i needed from storage
  This is the most American Male statement I've ever seen. You probably had a fucking stroke or something bro, dang. Good luck out there, try to take care of yourself.
- I had this a few times when I was working an extremely stressful job. Changed jobs and voila! No more ocular migraines. Mine was more silvery and blue than red but otherwise your pic looks just like it.
I don't get ocular migraines so I have never seen something like this. I can see subtle multicolour flashes if I close my eyes and do things like looking around quickly or apply pressure to my eyes. This image reminds me of the flashes I see, but 1000x more intense. Would you describe it like that?
- It is called a scintillating scotoma or ocular migraine. Scintillating is accurate; this clear crescent shows up in your vision and It is rippling with rainbow fringes. It starts off as a point somewhere in your vision, slowly expanding into a visible crescent that continues to expand. After about half an hour the crescent expands beyond your field of vision (FOV). For me it is paired with a loopy slightly lightheaded feeling that goes away with a whoosh once it leaves my FOV.
  They are often triggered by bright light and may be correlated with migraines. I’ve had three of these happen but never had a migraine headache afaik.
  Edit: clear might be the wrong word? My mind blends it in other than the rainbow fringes, but I think I can’t actually see what is behind the crescent.
- No I've seen what you describe. What I see when I'm having one is most often a shimmering electric zigzag. Sometimes it take different shapes and the colors vary. Its always at the edge of my vision and moves when I move my eye. Its better to close your eyes when they are happening. At least for me. I have had them in both eyes at once and its really freaky since normally I only get them in one eye at a time. They don't merge well and the combined blind spots have rendered me almost completely unable to navigate. I've pulled over while driving more than once and waited it out.
Do you happen to have astigmatism or relatively poor vision, by chance?
I used to get these every month or so since I was like 10 until a few years ago, when I finally pulled the trigger and got LASIK. Have not experienced one since, which is a Godsend given that they would usually last for an hour or two and be accompanied by a gnarly headache which would otherwise render me useless.
- I'm a little far sighted with perhaps a slight stigmatism. Mine are triggered by the seasons as far as I can tell. I get them mainly when the pollen drops in the spring and when the mold comes in the fall. They were particularly bad last year but some years they are just a minor annoyance.
I've seen that exact same shit. Well not exactly, but as you describe elsewhere, shimmery. No pain whatsoever, just that strange visual artifact
- I read if you see lightning bolts you should go to the doctor immediately.
Yikes, you're actually seeing that?
- It doesn't do what I see justice. They are often beautiful. When they first occur it causes a blind spot. The zigzags are a rainbow of shimmering color. They go away after a hour or so and I feel lousy if I don't have a headache. If I do get the headache with it I have to find a dark room and try to sleep.
- That's the shape. But it's constantly oscillating and the colors shifting rapidly.
  Vision gets obscured but for me my visual processing/reasoning gets cloudy too. I can still navigate the world but finding a door handle is difficult.
  I get sore behind my eyes after and real tired. Happened a few times in the last couple years, anxiety I think.
  Youtube mostly has classix migraine aura but this is close enough if you imagine the zigzag image.
- I don't know what it was like when my sister was young, but I also got occular migraines as a kid, and it'd be like a static spot in my vision where things just disappear behind it. Once that static appeared, I only had 10-20 mins or so before an awful headache would set off, and I ended up needing meds for it. They went away after 13 though.
- Well, yes and no. It's kind of an area you can't see, but it's there. Also, it starts as a small dot and them starts expanding/moving. It's also flashing, kind of like static noise on an old TV. Luckily those things usually last like 15 minutes or so. Still, not a fun experience.
- Yeah and it has the best name, Scintillating Scotoma. The first time I experienced one it was terrifying.
- I occasionally get them and mine feel more black & white than color, the the jagged shape and the arc around the center of your vision is spot on.
  And remember the jagged arc is always in your peripheral vision. You can't look directly at it and study the details because it moves when your eyes do.
My ocular migraines always come with a pretty strong headache. Last week I had my first one without the headache. Very difficult to try to concentrate when you cannot see.
Also when I get both types of migraines, I can’t remember names or do any sort of math.
I typically get a song or something stuck in my head and cannot let it go while I have the headache, it sucks.
- Glad I'm not the only one! I had one a bit ago that was weird. If my right eye could see my right hand but my left eye couldn't, it felt disconnected from me. Like it was someone else's hand. Once my vision came back I still couldn't read for about 2 hours without sounding out each word. Migraines can be wildly scary sometimes.
YO that's a gnarly aura!
Same. Took me a while to figure out what it is cause I never get headaches.
First time I had one of these I was so stressed out. I thought I was about to have a stroke.
- Same! I was on a road trip in Ireland and it came out of nowhere. Freaked me out. I'd never had one until a few months after my first bout with COVID. Now I get them but usually only if I've not been drinking enough water for a few days, and ONLY when I stand up. It's preceded by a weird sort of throbbing where it feels like sound is turned down in time with my heartbeat.

You'll never believe what they're called

Real life needs better writing
I had some since childhood and as a child trying to explain these to people lead nowhere, and I just thought I had something nobody else had. Then, years later, the internet came, and some random post like this came, and I went holy shit! It was amazing to finally know what it was and that they really aren't a big deal.
- They're not a big deal unless you get a lot of them all of a sudden. Then it's an emergency.
i got a floater in my eye
The Germans call them "flying mosquitos"
- In Australia we call them eye snags
Beats "miodesopsia" from my language

This is not inside your eye, it's outside out there. Please, do not ignore it and write to your FBI agent immediately

If you see something, say nothing, and drink to forget.
- Is that from Welcome to Nightvale?

Congratulations! You are getting older. They are called eye floaters and most people have them in some compacity. I notice them mostly when looking at the blue sky on a sunny day.

I've seen these since at least the time i developed long term memory as a small child.
- if they're only dots yours might be the blue field entoptic phenomenon which is different. they're just blood cells flowing before your retina and it's totally normal.
You can also see the individual white blood cells flowing through the vessels your eyes this way. It's actually really neat. It's called the Blue Field Entoptic Phenomenon.

I got few permanent ones.

When I was a kid I played geologist and crushed rocks with a large iron hammer. Few of the metal splinters that ended in my eyeballs left a mark that is still visible today when I look at the sky.

Not actually floaters, I know.

I got one or two from looking at the sun for no reason when I was a kid
god I was dumb
- You can still be dumb if you wanted to!
- What was your high score? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTEGOI9Leys

Slightly different but similar and related:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_field_entoptic_phenomenon

EDIT: If you're on a mobile device, or in strong lighting conditions, view the image fullscreen or futz with your brightness/gamma.

Part of the whole point of this is that it is a subtle effect, only visible in certain lighting conditions.

Or maybe you need to clean your screen, lol.

I didn't realise these were white blood cells. Thanks for the read.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_snow_syndrome
- I believe this is another related, simililar, yet technically different phenomenon, with different causal mechanisms, but yes, lets keep adding to the list, lol.
  Also, brb, you'll never believe this, apparently my pizza delivery guy's name is 'Hiro Protagonist', he's almost here, and I gotta ask him what is up with that name.
- Visual snow is different, it's constant and looks more like tv static or film grain, fun stuff, not.
You sure you don’t have high blood pressure?
- I mean, now maybe, lol, but I noticed this as a middle schooler, and I was in pretty good shape back then... and I still have the exact same experience to this day, in the right lighting conditions, if I can just sit or stand still and look at a mostly cloudless sky.
I most commonly see these these when I have a migraine, really bad sneezes, or I flick my eyes or move my head quickly. I've heard it's fine unless you see a bug chunk at the same time as that could be a sign the retina has broken or come loose?
- The dots are white blood cells moving in the capillaries in front of the retina of the eye.
  From the wiki page.
  So, yeah, it makes sense that very similar or even just the same effect can be intensified by all those things you mention, they all alter the motion of blood in your eyes.
  As to a big chunk moving?
  I am not an eye expert, but I would intuitively think that yes, a big splotch moving could be the retina itself moving... but it could also potentially be something like a clot in one of those capillaries breaking loose... which is probably still bad, but maybe not necessarily as bad?
Always wondered what this was called. I get this often in winter, less during summer. It really puzzled me the first few times it happened, I just figured I was getting diabetes. I have a black tail that follows them so it's even more noticeable then in the picture.
- Basically, lighting conditions have to be just right to ... basically, allow you to actually see your own white blood cells, in your own eyes, against the ... background/everything you are seeing.
  So my guess would be that in the summer, where you are, the ... ambient light of the sky is too bright, it overwhelms this effect, but in the winter, maybe its mote generally humid, or the light is coming through more atmosphere , at more oblique angles, and is thus less intense.
  Though if you are also seeing a... black tail, like... they're followed by a black smear or a motion blur or something... that could be something else?

Eyeworms. Villagers get them from touching raw meat then rubbing their eyes. It's only a matter of time before the worms burrow into your brain. Then you shit yourself and die in a most embarassing way.

At least I won't have to deal with the mess.
This isn't true.
Source: RFK jr is alive :/
(But seriously it probably is...)
That sounds right. No wonder I've been repeatedly shitting myself everywhere I go...

They are my little worm friends

They're always with me :3

Having an astigmatism that changes really frequently means I notice these more obviously within months of changing my prescription. Fuck these things!

For some reason this comment is what made me finally realise that I haven't seen floaters since I stopped needing glasses
Huh .... I never noticed that I stopped noticing my floaters after getting glasses. When you have something like that for decades, you stop actively seeing those things.
wait does it mean my prescription needs changing? i dont know if i read that right
- Near-sightedness makes you more likely to notice them, but I don't think it's a serious sign of anything unless you're seeing them so much that it's a problem. They're always there in healthy eyes, your brain just tunes them out most of the time. I would assume that changes in the way your eye focusses - either because of a change in the actual eye like the person above describes or because of a change in the prescription of glasses changing the light that enters your eye - just makes it more likely for your brain to not tune them out because they suddenly look a bit different to what your brain got used to

this song came to mind

It's bacteria eating your optical nerves

hope theyre having fun :D

Eye-Tapeworms better see a doctor.

That'd be more likely filariasis, an infection caused by a subgroup of nematodes, like roundworms.
Tapeworms are entirely different animals and I don't think they'd survive in the eyes.
Of course, they don't look like that because you can see the actual worm moving around the eyeball if that were the case.
☝️🤓
- I was just making bad jokes, but thx for the facts.