Problems with vision, and, more specifically, with the brain processing visual signals, seem to be common with ME/CFS, though I have the impression they tend to receive less attention than many of our other symptoms. A quick search through a handful of forums produces a number of threads in which unusual symptoms are shared, a few users will immediately pipe up with “I thought I was the only one” and then the thread dies because, well, that’s what always happens – it’s a bizarre, debilitating symptom that no one recognizes, no one can quantify, most struggle to even describe it, and there’s whatever to be done about it.
Common elements, all of which I recognize in myself, seem to include:
difficulty with high-contrast environments
problems with depth perception, sometimes including visual-flattening, in which the brain has difficulty mapping three-dimensional space (I also have an issue where my brain struggles to process illusory three-dimensional space, as when looking at a two-dimensional image)
Problems processing reflections and glare
a sense that the eyes are not focusing properly, even when a “sharp” image is actually being produced by the eyes
being told by the ophthalmologist (and neurologist) that they can’t find anything wrong – lots of people with ME actually seem to have excellent vision according to various tests
I struggle with all of these, and more. As time goes on, I find that I also struggle enormously with creating mental images. Over the last year or so, I have become aware of developing partial aphantasia. The degree varies depending on the day, though the overall trend, as with everything else, is toward the severe. On a good day, I can still create some mental images, but concentrating on them feels physically exhausting and can generate PEM.
My question is whether there are any other known conditions that consistently produce similar symptoms when it comes to visual processing and mental imagery – I know and have known quite a few people whose cognition has been severely altered and impaired as a result of Parkinson’s, Lupus, CTE, stroke, Alzheimer’s, etc., and none have described experiencing anything quite like what I do, though one person I know with Lupus has some similarities (they attribute them to migraine). This is obviously a limited sampling, so perhaps I am just ignorant.
My apologies if this has been asked and discussed before.
TLDR: Some people with ME/CFS have significant difficulties with visual processing, often in ways that seem nearly unique. Are there other conditions that manifest similar symptoms?
