Ocular Migraine / Aura - have you ever wondered?

[Loren Pechtel]

I just scanned through the rest of the thread and was surprised at how many here have those symptoms, seemingly without the headache. Perhaps somebody should do a survey of migraine patients and find out how many are atheists who have only the scotoma, because, after all, correlation means causation.

Well, my wife is a very lapsed Buddhist, not atheist.

However, perhaps this is a sign from God. Something individual, obvious and generally not harmful. (What happens to my wife would be a bad thing if she were driving but she doesn't.)

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

I first got a "Scintillating scotoma" when I was sixteen. Scared the shit out of me, then it went away and I proceeded to forget about it. Next time was in my mid-thirties, also scared me because I was living deep in the bush, miles from any help. It also went away. Lately (in this time scale) they have been more frequent, every couple of years, then yearly. The penny finally dropped, I looked up "migraine" in Wikipedia, and there it was, amongst the symptoms. I do get headaches, but fortunately not associated with the aura.
Scotoma can have a number of causes, but I'm guessing that mine is a migraine -type, mainly because I haven't developed anything else over the years.
From Wikipedia: "Common causes of scotomata include demyelinating disease such as multiple sclerosis (retrobulbar neuritis), damage to nerve fiber layer in the retina (seen as cotton wool spots[3]) due to hypertension, toxic substances such as methyl alcohol, ethambutol and quinine, nutritional deficiencies, vascular blockages either in the retina or in the optic nerve, stroke or other brain injury, and macular degeneration, often associated with aging. Scintillating scotoma is a common visual aura in migraine.[4] Less common, but important because they are sometimes reversible or curable by surgery, are scotomata due to tumors such as those arising from the pituitary gland, which may compress the optic nerve or interfere with its blood supply."
Let's hope yours is as seemingly harmless.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotoma

I liken them to a little electrical storm moving across the brain. When I first got mine I'd close one eye and then the other trying to figure it out but it made no difference, the aura was still there.

As to Loren's comment maybe a magic spaceman has taken up residence inside my head. Must like it because he hangs around.

 

[Thomas II]

Had one at work this evening, I think from eating a chocolate bar. Nothing else unusual I can think of.

The aura is like that old Bonanza TV show where the map catches fire and starts to burn from a point near the center then out toward the edges, only more colorful.

 

[ZiprHead]

Any of you ever heard of daith piercing for migraine? My sister in law asked about it on FB and some responded that it helped them. I had never heard of it before.

 

[couch_sloth]

Had one at work this evening, I think from eating a chocolate bar. Nothing else unusual I can think of.

The aura is like that old Bonanza TV show where the map catches fire and starts to burn from a point near the center then out toward the edges, only more colorful.

LOL. That's a pretty good description.
Lake Tahoe would be at the center of my vision.