Hypnogogic imagery (I think)

Is it usual to be able to see this when you're fully conscious? Frequently when I wake up I can see strange images on the ceiling, or, more usually, apparently floating a few inches below the ceiling. Sometimes it's like a regular pattern of hieroglyphics. This morning it was a Sudoku grid with numbers in it (which isn't surprising, as I've become horribly addicted to online Sudoku recently). I could read the numbers quite easily, and if I looked at a specific number, looked away, then looked back at the same place, the number would have changed.

Sometimes when I try to do WILD, I can see the same imagery whether my eyes are open or closed - often swirly, cloud or mist like patterns, sometimes silhouettes that appear to be backlit - often animals or just abstract shapes.

So this doesn't happen to anyone else then? :wink:

There's another name for that kind of imagery when you're awake. I don't remember what is is, though. It's not as common a hypnogogic imagery and I can't say that I've experienced it myself, but it's not just you.

I don't think there's a lot of information about it, but you could look around. Sorry I can't help you out more.

-Ame

Please correct me if i`m wrong but isn`t hypnogogic imagery the only light when you close your eyes? When i was a kid i learned that if u press your eyeball a little (not too hard offcourse lol) you`ll get this trippy vision when u open your eyes again. Also if i roll my eyes far towards any direction the lights become more bright but it puts a little strain on my eyes... is this a healthy way to try getting more vivid images or should i just relax my eyes?

Well, Mummy, I hypnogogic imagery isn't caused merely by the light. As for pressure on the eyes, I'm assuming (with my best guess) that by doing that one is also cutting off oxygen to the eyes, thus creating the visual sensation of going blind that may be associated with blacking out.

However, when you fall asleep, there's usually no more pressure on the eyes as there is when one is awake. Rather, it's like a dream that is just beginning. Light doesn't affect the surroundings of a dream (typically), but rather the mind is creating or regurgatating images from our waking lives. Since one is just falling asleep, these images are few and random, eventually growing into a whole, relatively cohesive dream scene.

Then again, I may be wrong... but who knows.

-Amé

Apparently pressing your eyes sends impulses to the brain which interprets the pressure on your eyes as light so that is what you see. I'm sure it's more complicated than that, but I read something of that nature recently.

Interesting. I see coloured "lights" behind my eyes most of the time when I close them, most noticeably when I'm tired and in the dark. I see them in front of my eyes too if they're particularly strong and it's dark. The effect is different than when I press my eyes and it's different to the "sunspots" you get if you stare at a light souce too long.

The colours I see are always an unpleasant luminous yellow-green and a rather pleasant shade of lilac. They're always swirling and changing, swapping in and out with each other.

I don't know why this happens, or if it's related to anything described above, but I suspect it's probably due to eye strain, since it's most pronounced at the end of a hard day.

Yeah, I discovered the pressing-on-the-eyes trick at a very young age. For me, the colors are green, yellow, then white. They gradually get brighter and brighter and then seem to "cap off" at a certain point. But it starts to hurt a bit after several moments, so there's a limit to how long I can do it. When I stop, my normal vision is filled with strange swirls and white/yellow/red/green "spots" for a while like when you look at a bright light.

I don't do it much anymore, just in case it's harmful. I sort of wonder why it's always those particular colors, though.

I get the colours without pressing my eyes, they're just there all the time. But what you get sounds almost identical to what I get.

I'd really like to know how to switch this effect off. I get the colours a lot of the time without wanting them and they can be extremely infuriating. They make it very hard for me to sleep, but as nothing I try fixes them I just have to sit it out.

Anyone got any advice?

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Originally posted by Grey Dragon
I get the colours without pressing my eyes, they're just there all the time. But what you get sounds almost identical to what I get.

I'd really like to know how to switch this effect off. I get the colours a lot of the time without wanting them and they can be extremely infuriating. They make it very hard for me to sleep, but as nothing I try fixes them I just have to sit it out.

Anyone got any advice?

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Is it severe enough that you think it might be an eye or other medical problem?

I'm not sure.

Thankfully the effect is fairly unnoticable during daylight hours, although if I close my eyes I can see that the colours are still there, but more faintly. It's at its most annoying in the dark, when I open my eyes and they're still there, blocking my vision. Luckily they go away after a few moments when my eyes readjust.

Last time I had a routine check by an optician, they didn't find anything wrong. But I didn't mention this effect and I suppose they wouldn't be looking for it.

Well, I'd tell your optometrist. I don't think it's anything to worry about, honestly, but I'm sure they'd like to know for future reference. Chances are they'd just tell you "It's normal. Don't worry about."

-Amé