Eye strain

[Adamski101]

I took two flashlights out on Sat night and was comparing hot spots by shining them both on the ground. The last couple of days I've had wicked strain and blurred eyes. Anyone would think I'd been looking directly into the beams!

Dangerous things these 'ere bright torches. Has anyone else suffered indirect eye strain when using flashlights and how long did it take to correct itself?

 

[PaladinNO]

I'm gonna out myself here, and say the stupidest, dumbest thing I have done (in this regard - I have done a lot of other stupid things too) was taking a binocular and looking at the sun on a very bright summer day. That took about 16 hours before the afterimages were fully gone.

So without knowing the full context here (brightness of the flashlight, type of emitter etc.), you may have caught a stray beam, focused by something else and had it reflected into your eyes. And at night, when your pupiles are already dilated, your eyes would naturally absorb any light they could get.

Did your eyes hurt immediately, or did it come after a few minutes? Are you susceptible to flashing / strobe lights, having migranes etc.? On the more serious end of the scale, the Google AI called it "photosensitive epilepsy". This is bordering on personal information, so I don't want you to answer, but if the answer is "yes", especially if the pain came after a few minutes and not instantly, I would contact a doctor and have it checked out. Because several days is far from normal without some underlaying issue.

 

[Adamski101]

I once had a laser shone in my eyes whilst driving and I remember having eye strain for days then too. It's a similar vibe pretty much.

Is it normal to experience serious and long-lasting problems from high powered beams reflecting off the ground? Hopefully my eyes well be OK in a day or two.

 

[dc38]

I once had a laser shone in my eyes whilst driving and I remember having eye strain for days then too. It's a similar vibe pretty much.

Is it normal to experience serious and long-lasting problems from high powered beams reflecting off the ground? Hopefully my eyes well be OK in a day or two.

Go to the optometrist or...opthamologist. Don't you Europeans have great insurance coverage?

For the eye issues to last that long could be indicators of any number of underlying issues.

 

[Adamski101]

So in other words nobody has had bad eye strain from bright flashlight beams....

 

[dc38]

So in other words nobody has had bad eye strain from bright flashlight beams....

Not for longer than two days, unless (like you mentioned) it was a laser or something sustained...but theoretically, it's about as bad as having your phone on max brightness while driving, etc. The rods and cones apparently shed themselves and any temporary "damage" gets sloughed off. But I imagine it's like an oxide layer...very very faint scratches can buff out, but a deep dent won't.

Long story short, if you're comparing hotspots at close range, try to use the dimmest visible mode, and compare on a minimally reflective surface...

But for real, unless someone here is an eye doctor offering medical advice, you should go for an eye check to be safe.

 

[hsa]

We pay good money to get eye strain.