I started wearing glasses in second grade, when I finally realized that the teacher was writing actual words and numbers on the board and not just doodling. By fourth grade, I had to wear the glasses all the time. I tried contact lenses when I was a teenager, after realizing that getting hit in the face with a volleyball hurts more with glasses on, but I never really got used to the contact lenses and eventually gave them up. Since then, I really only take my glasses off to go to sleep or take shower (and there really should be windshield wipers for glasses by now). At some point, I developed intermittent exotropia (part-time crossed vision) and farsightedness, but the prisms and bifocals I tried made me nauseous, so I learned to accept a little bit of blur in my life. And I’m not blind without my glasses. If I forget to put them on first thing in the morning I don’t, usually, bump into walls or trip over a puppy dog.
But recently, I’ve noticed something strange. Sometimes, when I first wake up, before I put my glasses on, I see things that aren’t really there. Like the big white dog at the end of the bed, which turned out to be my laundry bag (I was too lazy to put the clothes away the night before), or the black column that seemed to shimmer and maybe opened a portal to another universe, which turned out to be my half open closet and a black shirt. It’s as if some part of my brain has decided to decipher the blurry images instead of accepting the blur, despite incomplete visual information.
One morning, I woke up to a huge dragonfly hovering over my bed. I could hear it buzzing like a tiny helicopter, and then I put on my glasses and the whole thing, noise and all, disappeared. There wasn’t even a shadow or a crack in the ceiling to explain what I’d seen, and the only buzz-adjacent sound was my very loud air conditioner, which had never reminded me of a dragonfly in the past.
I’m afraid to google this and find out it’s a symptom of yet another incurable disease, so for now I’m just trying to remind myself that it’s unlikely that a house elf is hovering over my dresser (Jewelry box), or that a faceless stranger is standing by my bookcase (exercise bike). So far, each time I’ve imagined something impossible, I’ve been able to put on my glasses and watch it disappear. Which, to be honest, is kind of sad. I really miss that big white dog. He seemed very nice.
If you haven’t had a chance yet, please check out my novel, Yeshiva Girl, on Amazon. And if you feel called to write a review of the book, on Amazon, or anywhere else, I’d be honored.
Yeshiva Girl is about a Jewish teenager on Long Island, named Isabel, though her father calls her Jezebel. Her father has been accused of inappropriate sexual behavior with one of his students, which he denies, but Izzy implicitly believes it’s true. As a result of his problems, her father sends her to a co-ed Orthodox yeshiva for tenth grade, out of the blue, and Izzy and her mother can’t figure out how to prevent it. At Yeshiva, though, Izzy finds that religious people are much more complicated than she had expected. Some, like her father, may use religion as a place to hide, but others search for and find comfort, and community, and even enlightenment. The question is, what will Izzy find?
My brother used to get these phenomena. Our doctor called them hynopompic hallucinations. Although they’re alarming, they do not indicate problems. They’re related to but are not the same as sleep paralysis. My brother was not getting enough sleep and had been stressed about school. If they trouble you, I’d consult a physician or therapist.
Thank you! For now, I kind of like my visions.
🙏
Cool
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Sounds like a great basis for a fantasy novel. Go for it.
As long as I don’t start seeing enormous cockroaches…
Author & cartoonist James Thurber wrote about similar experiences in his short story The Captain On The Wheel. It’s one of my favorite stories of his.
I’ll have to look for that. Thank you!
I agree. This could be the seed of a great story for young people! 😊
As I understand, blurry vision that gets worse could create phantom images. The brain is just trying to make sense of the blurry picture. Headaches, medication, and worse things such as a mini-stroke can also cause phantom images. Don’t google. You will end up having every disease there is if you trust google. Ask a doctor.
I will. Thank you!
I also like the concept of using this as a basis for a children’s story! 😊
Cute story! I like the passage to a parallel universe. I have one of those 😉 they are highly recommended 👌
Always!
Your upbeat outlook will help when the unexplained comes up, like dealing with dragonflies and phantom dogs. 🎈
I agree with the folks who said go see a doctor. Then let us know if there really are giant dragonflies and big white dogs in your home!
I really miss the dog; the dragonfly, not so much.
LOL!!
Me, too! However, I used to have better than 20/20 vision – up until my 40’s. Now, I’ve cataracts and experience all kind of problems. Intermittently. A recent visit to an eye doctor was comforting – it’s all normal for my age. The weird stuff? Comes and goes. Our minds are amazing organs.
Reading is hard, now. But your posts are worth the struggle. Cheers.
Thank you so much!
Interesting how your mind and eyes can play tricks on you.
Isn’t the brain fascinating?
Ooh! This would make for a good book! It could be about a woman who really has eyes for an alternate universe, but people in her world with “good” eyesight or trying to convince her it’s all in her mind and control her ability to see beyond this world by wearing glasses. I’d read it!
That really sounds good!
Rachel, interesting. I often mistake shapes for things without my glasses on. It is funny at times to my wife and me. Yet, usually I have something to work with. Best wishes. Keith
It keeps the world interesting!
I’ve been shortsighted all of my life but after cataract operations have lens implants that now allow me to see near and far. Maybe that’s something to look forward to in the future.
I don’t know, the idea of having surgery on my eyes freaks me out.
I got general anaesthetics for both. I couldn’t bear the thought of being aware throughout as well.
That sounds like a fantastic idea!