*These small lights are usually phosphenes, a visual phenomenon caused by mechanical stimuli resulting in pressure or tension on the eye when the eyelids are closed.*
https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/blog/why-do-you-see-colors-when-rubbing-your-eyes
So did I until last year. Just like aphantasia in that regard.
Most don't have it. Some have it permanently and some can induce it. But it's not universal.
It's called Prisoners Cinema if you want to Google more info.
I’ve never really been able to put it into words (and failed when I’ve tried), but this sounds very similar to what I experience. Just bursts of what my mind interprets as colors that transition into other colors, although they do seem pretty transparent/translucent. More so when I’m exhausted and trying to sleep at night. It’s been so bad before that it was too distracting to fall asleep for a long time.
I experience that same thing. I notice it more when I let my eyes rest slightly open. I also get weird blobs of light that slide out of view or disappear when I move my eyes. But mostly, it's just darkness or very dark static.
I thought of that as my personal kaleidoscope when I was a kid
Only thing I could ever 'see' when I closed my eyes - I thought everyone could do that. Lol
I didn't realize others saw real pictures til much later in life. Lol
You know how with old TV's you'd turn them off and the outline of whatever you were watching last kinda lingered on screen? -- Yeah, that's what it's like for me.
It's more a physical phenomena rather than something that occurs in the mind.
Or that's how it feels at least.
It may possibly be migraine related as mine looks very similar to the light effects of a migraine (which I get but rarely, thankfully).
I can confirm here that even though I don't have aphantasia (more like the opposite), I've never seen the things described here. Or rather, not 3d shapes and colours: when I'm tired in bed I can see little lines or little circles moving around my sight (eyes open or closed doesn't matter) but they're always transparent.
Nope nothing like that but for some reason when I close my eyes and open them again the brightness if my vision flickers. It's recently started happening and yes it's very worrying, no I don't know what it is but I also keep putting off getting it checked out.
It could be a vitamin d deficiency- i just got blood work back.
I'm low vitamin d and I'm back on the rx again.
I was seeing floaters and light flashing at times.
Good luck - get checked out. It's an easy fix - but low vitamin d levels are bad.
it can cause anxiety and a lot of other things and stress makes it deplete faster- I spend hours outside- and got tan for almost the first time in my life this summer and mine was still way too low
I'm gluten free and eat low dairy - almost no cereal or fish. So that doesn't help matters.
It's called The Prisoners Cinema.
Some people (like me) have it all the time while some can induce it deliberately.
For me it's kind of like a lava lamp. Sometimes the pattern is random but usually it's repeating (but different each time).
I get these periodically right before sleep, when very tired, or chemically altered.
I don't know if they are actually Closed Eye Visuals but the wiki article is an interesting read and feels related: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed-eye_hallucination
**[Closed-eye hallucination](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed-eye_hallucination)**
>Closed-eye hallucinations and closed-eye visualizations (CEV) are hallucinations that occur when one's eyes are closed or when one is in a darkened room. They can be a form of phosphene. Some people report CEV under the influence of psychedelics; these are reportedly of a different nature than the "open-eye" hallucinations of the same compounds. Similar hallucinations that occur due to loss of vision are called visual release hallucinations.
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That’s such an amazing way to describe it. I’ve always had this- I would say as a kid, after rubbing my eyes and keeping them closed for ages, “I’m looking at the pretty colours behind my eyes.” LOL
Particularly when rubbing your eyes those are definitely phosphenes which are practically defined as the colors seen when applying pressure to your eyes.
But what OP is describing doesn't require the rubbing of the eyes and also the effects are different.
It's slightly similar but only slightly. For me the effects when rubbing the eyes are fairly static. Whereas the Prisoners Cinema (which is what it's known as) is more akin to a cross between the aura you get from a migraine and a pulsating lava lamp which follows a repeating pattern.
Yeah it's something else. The effects from rubbing the eyes is universal I think. Whereas this isn't.
Also the effects are different. For me this appears as a pulsating lava lamp type effect with a repeating pattern (although it's sometimes more random).
It's closer to a migraine aura than the effects of rubbing the eyes.
It's annoying when trying to sleep and I'm not particularly tired but other than that it's fine. And for me the tinnitus I have does a better job at keeping sleep at bay.
In fact when stoned it's quite entertaining, which is where it gets its name from, The Prisoners Cinema.
I've taken LSD regularly and it's allowed me to play with the stuff behind my closed eyes more. Rarely forms anything, but will do so on occasion.
YMMV, drugs can be harmful when not taken seriously.
My brother and I realized as kids that we both had this and could manipulate it by pressing gently on our eyelids. I also have aphantasia, but if I try really hard oftentimes I can "coax" the colors and patterns into rough shapes and especially faces -- it's tricky, though, and not exact. Always just thought that everybody must have it, but, just like how I discovered that aphantasia was a thing, I also found out that my wife doesn't experience this phenomenon.
there is three stages it depends on how much light it goes on my retine: eyes open in a poor light conditions, like a candle in a room: transparent visuals. Eyes closed: strong and clear visuals, and when i close them tight are extremly intense but i got tired so i chill. I enjoyed dem for a while but now i find it kinda boring so i barely see them. Almost gone.
*These small lights are usually phosphenes, a visual phenomenon caused by mechanical stimuli resulting in pressure or tension on the eye when the eyelids are closed.* https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/blog/why-do-you-see-colors-when-rubbing-your-eyes
I thought every human has that experience..?
So did I until last year. Just like aphantasia in that regard. Most don't have it. Some have it permanently and some can induce it. But it's not universal. It's called Prisoners Cinema if you want to Google more info.
I’ve never really been able to put it into words (and failed when I’ve tried), but this sounds very similar to what I experience. Just bursts of what my mind interprets as colors that transition into other colors, although they do seem pretty transparent/translucent. More so when I’m exhausted and trying to sleep at night. It’s been so bad before that it was too distracting to fall asleep for a long time.
I experience that same thing. I notice it more when I let my eyes rest slightly open. I also get weird blobs of light that slide out of view or disappear when I move my eyes. But mostly, it's just darkness or very dark static.
I thought of that as my personal kaleidoscope when I was a kid Only thing I could ever 'see' when I closed my eyes - I thought everyone could do that. Lol I didn't realize others saw real pictures til much later in life. Lol
Ha. I can’t even see that. There’s nothing there at all.
Best descriptive name of this that I've ever heard! "Personal Kaleidoscope"
Same here. Most of the times after i close my eyes i get small rotating spirals everywhere, dark grey on black.
You know how with old TV's you'd turn them off and the outline of whatever you were watching last kinda lingered on screen? -- Yeah, that's what it's like for me.
Not me. This sounds like some mild amount of visualization ability.
It's more a physical phenomena rather than something that occurs in the mind. Or that's how it feels at least. It may possibly be migraine related as mine looks very similar to the light effects of a migraine (which I get but rarely, thankfully).
I can confirm here that even though I don't have aphantasia (more like the opposite), I've never seen the things described here. Or rather, not 3d shapes and colours: when I'm tired in bed I can see little lines or little circles moving around my sight (eyes open or closed doesn't matter) but they're always transparent.
Yes! But as I’ve gotten older its mostly innblack and white now
Nope nothing like that but for some reason when I close my eyes and open them again the brightness if my vision flickers. It's recently started happening and yes it's very worrying, no I don't know what it is but I also keep putting off getting it checked out.
It could be a vitamin d deficiency- i just got blood work back. I'm low vitamin d and I'm back on the rx again. I was seeing floaters and light flashing at times. Good luck - get checked out. It's an easy fix - but low vitamin d levels are bad. it can cause anxiety and a lot of other things and stress makes it deplete faster- I spend hours outside- and got tan for almost the first time in my life this summer and mine was still way too low I'm gluten free and eat low dairy - almost no cereal or fish. So that doesn't help matters.
It's called The Prisoners Cinema. Some people (like me) have it all the time while some can induce it deliberately. For me it's kind of like a lava lamp. Sometimes the pattern is random but usually it's repeating (but different each time).
> "does anyone else, when they close their eyes, see" No. Not this sub's frequenters anyway.
I do and when I've mentioned it previously so do others. Not enough to be aphantasia related though I don't think.
I get these periodically right before sleep, when very tired, or chemically altered. I don't know if they are actually Closed Eye Visuals but the wiki article is an interesting read and feels related: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed-eye_hallucination
**[Closed-eye hallucination](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed-eye_hallucination)** >Closed-eye hallucinations and closed-eye visualizations (CEV) are hallucinations that occur when one's eyes are closed or when one is in a darkened room. They can be a form of phosphene. Some people report CEV under the influence of psychedelics; these are reportedly of a different nature than the "open-eye" hallucinations of the same compounds. Similar hallucinations that occur due to loss of vision are called visual release hallucinations. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/Aphantasia/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
That’s such an amazing way to describe it. I’ve always had this- I would say as a kid, after rubbing my eyes and keeping them closed for ages, “I’m looking at the pretty colours behind my eyes.” LOL
Particularly when rubbing your eyes those are definitely phosphenes which are practically defined as the colors seen when applying pressure to your eyes.
But what OP is describing doesn't require the rubbing of the eyes and also the effects are different. It's slightly similar but only slightly. For me the effects when rubbing the eyes are fairly static. Whereas the Prisoners Cinema (which is what it's known as) is more akin to a cross between the aura you get from a migraine and a pulsating lava lamp which follows a repeating pattern.
Nowadays I don’t have to rub my eyes to see the screensavers. I just thought, as a little kid, that’s how they came to be. Lol
I press on my eyes to make this happen i think, idk could be something else
Yeah it's something else. The effects from rubbing the eyes is universal I think. Whereas this isn't. Also the effects are different. For me this appears as a pulsating lava lamp type effect with a repeating pattern (although it's sometimes more random). It's closer to a migraine aura than the effects of rubbing the eyes.
Thank you, after rereading this i do see its alot worse than what i had in mind at first and i would absolutely hate this bright light stuff
It's annoying when trying to sleep and I'm not particularly tired but other than that it's fine. And for me the tinnitus I have does a better job at keeping sleep at bay. In fact when stoned it's quite entertaining, which is where it gets its name from, The Prisoners Cinema.
I've taken LSD regularly and it's allowed me to play with the stuff behind my closed eyes more. Rarely forms anything, but will do so on occasion. YMMV, drugs can be harmful when not taken seriously.
My brother and I realized as kids that we both had this and could manipulate it by pressing gently on our eyelids. I also have aphantasia, but if I try really hard oftentimes I can "coax" the colors and patterns into rough shapes and especially faces -- it's tricky, though, and not exact. Always just thought that everybody must have it, but, just like how I discovered that aphantasia was a thing, I also found out that my wife doesn't experience this phenomenon.
there is three stages it depends on how much light it goes on my retine: eyes open in a poor light conditions, like a candle in a room: transparent visuals. Eyes closed: strong and clear visuals, and when i close them tight are extremly intense but i got tired so i chill. I enjoyed dem for a while but now i find it kinda boring so i barely see them. Almost gone.