Spotlight on: Lydia Patten ???? @lydiapatten
“My name’s Lydia! I’m 22 years old and a graduate student. I’ve dealt with VSS for about 2.5 years now. The onset was random for me. I remember looking at a snow bank on my way to class one day in 2019 and noticing a bunch of small, moving stars all over my vision. Since then, I’ve noticed a variety of symptoms. I mainly experience BFEP, floaters, static, palinopsia/after images, shaking/flickering vision, light sensitivity, glare at night, and more. My VS increases the most under bright, fluorescent lighting, or at nighttime, which makes classes and night driving hard. I also deal with chronic migraines that, at times, are pretty debilitating.
At first, my symptoms caused me a lot of anxiety. I wasn’t sure if there was something really serious going on with me neurologically. It was hard to explain and scary/isolating to deal with. After lots of tests and trips to the eye doctor and neurologist, I was finally diagnosed by a neuro opthamologist in the winter of 2020.
I’m proud of how far I’ve come since VSS came into my life. I’ve learned how to better cope with my symptoms and find support in pages like this. It’s difficult to deal with something that my friends/family can’t fully understand. And it’s tough to know that my vision will likely never return to the way it was. Some days are definitely better than others. But, now I know that my symptoms aren’t caused by something dangerous. And I know that I’m not alone. I want everyone with VSS to know that things can truly get better over time. Your symptoms may never change, but your mindset and mental/emotional wellbeing can.”
