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Vision and Adrenal Fatigue

• Several vision problems are common with adrenal fatigue

Like many Adrenal Fatigue Symptoms , your vision problems are not really related to your adrenal glands.

But they are connected to chronic stress, and years of chronic stress results in many symptoms.

Your vision / eyesight problems can be caused by the following (explained below):

• Hyperventilation Syndrome, which is common with chronic stress, can cause vision problems.
• Collagen breakdown, which can result from high cortisol.
• Hypoglycemia, which is very common with adrenal fatigue.
• Tired Ciliary Muscles (responsible for focus)
• Partial Mydriasis, which is a condition where you pupils do not constrict as much as they should to light.

Below are responses to survey questions of visitors to this site. You can see just how common vision problems are with adrenal fatigue.

Eye Floaters and Adrenal Fatigue

Eye floaters are a common adrenal fatigue vision problem.

If you have chronically high cortisol, it leads to connective tissue problems. Collagen formation is reduced, and collagen is broken down with high cortisol.

See the article Eye Floaters and Adrenal Fatigue. for more detailed information.

Blurred Vision and Adrenal Fatigue

Another common adrenal fatigue symptom is blurred vision. There are a few possible reasons for it.

Blurred vision can be a sign of chronic subconscious hyperventilation. Some adrenal fatigue symptoms are actually the result of hyperventilation, which can be causes by stress.

To see if you are hyperventilating, try the Nijmegen Questionnaire. Note that blurred vision is actually one of the questions.

One study completed on 75 patients found that this Nijmegen Questionnaire was very effective at correctly identifying people who suffer from chronic hyperventilation².

My blurred vision went away when I reduced my hyperventilation by practicing the Buteyko Breathing Technique, which is a breathing exercise specifically intended to reduce sub-conscious hyperventilation.

Blurred vision can also be the result of hypoglycemia³. Some adrenal fatigue symptoms stem from hypoglycemia.

Tired ciliary muscles can also cause blurry vision, which is covered below.

Flashes of Light and Adrenal Fatigue

Do you ever see flashes of light with your eyes closed? I had this myself for a several months.

It really has nothing to do with your adrenal glands. But it can be related to chronic stress. Here is the path from stress to flashes of light:

Stress ---> Hyperventilation ---> Peripheral Neuropathy --->Flashes of Light

• Stress leads to hyperventilation⁵
• Hyperventilation can lead to Peripheral Neuropathy^7,8
• And .... peripheral neuropathy can lead to Flashes of Light^8,9,10

Note that hypoglycemia can also lead to neuropathy¹¹, so this is another possible path to flashes of light.

Hypoglycemia and Vision Problems

Hypoglycemia, which is responsible for many adrenal fatigue symptoms, can also cause problems with your eye sight.

In addition to blurred vision, hypoglycemia can result in double vision¹⁶.

See the article: Hypoglycemia and Adrenal Fatigue.

Tired Ciliary Muscles

Your Ciliary Muscles are responsible for focus¹². Tired ciliary muscles can result in the following symptoms¹³:

• Blurred Vision
• Slow to Focus
• Double Vision

These are all fairly common symptom complaints for those with adrenal fatigue.

You have probably noticed that your muscles tire more quickly than they used to. Tired ciliary muscles may happen more easily with adrenal fatigue, leading to the above symptoms.

Sensitivity to Bright Light

Another annoying eyesight issue common for those with adrenal fatigue is sensitivity to bright light.

Like other symptoms you may have, it can be connected to chronic stress.

Mydriasis is an eye condition where the pupils remain dilated even when exposed to light ¹⁴.

One cause of Mydriasis is having a dominant sympathetic nervous systems (the stressed side), or weakness of your parasympathetic nervous (the relaxed side) ¹⁴.

The stressed side of your nervous system (sympathetic) is responsible for dilating your pupils.

If the stressed side of your nervous system is dominant, which is common for adrenal fatigue, you can become sensitive to bright light if your pupils do not constrict enough when exposed to light

This is sometimes called an adrenal fatigue eye test. But it is really related to the status of your nervous system.

Adrenal Fatigue Forum Posts

Below are a few forum posts from the adrenal fatigue forum on Curezon.com. These individual were asking (just like you) if vision problems are common for adrenal fatigue.

  I never hear anyone say they been having fuzzy vision and eye floaters. I just want to know if this has anything to do with Adrenal Fatigue.¹

  .... Can you see a flashing when your eyes are closed? ⁴

  I have floaters mainly and sensitivity to bright light. ¹⁵

  I've had blurred vision, strobing lights and what I can only describe as vibrating vision for several years now.⁶

Summary

So yes ... vision problems are common adrenal fatigue symptom. I was able to solve blurred vision and flashes of light by correcting hyperventilation using the Buteyko Breathing Technique.

The eye floaters are still there. I don't notice them much anymore unless I look at a very light colored background such as a white wall or a blue sky. They don't really bother me anymore.

Good luck you, and I hope you found this article helpful for you.

References

1. Curezone.com post be User byron1122
2. Efficacy of Nijmegen Questionnaire in recognition of the hyperventilation syndrome
3. Hypoglycemia
4. Curezone.com post by Craig1129
5. Hyperventilation: Medline Plus
6. Curezone.com post by AngelofEventide
7. The Hyperventilation Syndrome*
8. Peripheral nerve diseases
9. Optic neuritis
10. Acute Optic Neuritis
11.Hypoglycemic neuropathy
12. Ciliary muscle
13. Computer use and eye care
14. Mydriasis
15. Curezone.com post by PurplePixie
16. Hypoglycemia Symptoms (Mayo Clinic)