I’m a fainter. I’m not ashamed to admit it. In fact, whenever there’s blood or needles involved, I know after much experience that I need to start out sitting or lying down or I’ll end up flat out on the floor. It’s vasovagal syncope — the condition under which a stimulus causes the sympathetic nervous system to dilate the blood vessels, precipitating a rapid drop in blood pressure. With that drop in blood pressure comes a decrease in the amount of oxygenated blood being pumped to the brain, and loss of consciousness. It’s been a long time since I’ve actually fainted, though. Like most people who experience this phenomenon, there are a number of precursors that signal an impending faint: tingling fingers and toes, fuzzy peripheral vision, nausea, lightheadedness and sweating. When I get these signals, I lie down, take some good deep breaths, and start tensing and releasing my arms and legs to get my blood pumping. The feeling usually goes away within a minute or two, and after about five minutes, it’s as though nothing happened.
Here’s the thing, though: it isn’t just blood or needles. I’ve nearly fainted in the dentist’s office, standing at the checkout desk after having a cavity filled. And last week, I almost passed out at the eye doctor’s. Before checking for glaucoma and injuries to my cornea, Dr. Brigham gave me eye drops with fluorescein dye in them to help with the examination. They didn’t do anything to affect my vision, unlike the drops used to dilate one’s pupils, and they stung just a bit, but no more than the antihistamine drops I have for severe allergies. Regardless, after about 30 seconds, I started to feel those tell-tale signs. It was embarrassing, even more so after the doctor commented, “That’s never happened before.”
That got me to thinking: what is is about my body that it can’t distinguish between mildly invasive or uncomfortable procedures, and serious injury? I started to do a bunch of research (because that’s what I do), and I haven’t been able to find a description of anything that matches my pattern of fainting. There’s lots of stuff out there about people who are afraid of needles or who faint at the sight to blood, but that’s not what’s going on with me at all. In fact, I have some empirical evidence to this effect. Several years ago, I had a whole bunch of blood work done, including a bleed-time test to check coagulation. A typical test involves making a small incision on the forearm, and then timing to see how long it takes for the incision to clot under constant blood pressure. To ensure constant pressure, the lab tech put a blood pressure cuff on me, and I take the fact that both my blood pressure and pulse were completely normal right up to the stick as evidence of a lack of any anxiety or fear on my part. As soon as the incision was made, however, my blood pressure dropped and the tech had to pump up the cuff again to bring up the pressure in my arm and ensure the validity of the test.
My sister is a physician, and an email to her prompted the following reply:
You aren’t fearful of these things, but the “noxious” stimulus triggers an exaggerated reflex response… Sounds like you have a response to somewhat invasive superficial stimuli such as a needle poking you or the fluorescein being dropped into your eyes.
This makes me feel a little bit better. I also found an article from the journal, Clinical Autonomic Research, called “Vasovagal Syncope and Darwinian Fitness,” which frames the issue in evolutionary terms. Interesting, and somewhat calming.
What would make me feel much better, though, would be reading something about other cases like mine, where seemingly benign procedures trigger my body’s shock response. That’s part of the purpose of writing this post, so that when someone else searches for stuff about syncope and overreactive reflexes, they’ll come up with something.
65 Comments
1 Dana wrote:
I had the same thing just the other day with my eye exam. I didn’t faint, but I felt like I could, and I had to stay on the floor for about 15 to 30 minutes. The optomotrist said she has seen about 60 cases of near-fainting with the eye drops in her 20 year career. I’m also having trouble finding anything about it on the web.
2 Nancy M wrote:
I just had the same vasovagal fainting that was described by others after eye drops were administered and the pressure glaucoma test was done. It happened within 5 minutes of the drops being placed in my eyes. I was out cold for about 5 minutes and needed about 2 hours to recover! I didn’t receive very much reassurance from the medical community. Very glad to see your posting to feel like I’m not the only one. I, too, was not anxious about the exam.
3 Kevin wrote:
I had the same thing happen with the same drops. I passed out only long enough to fall off the chair and hit me head on the floor. Then I woke up. I was shaky for about 2 hours, then I felt ok.
But I also just had this same problem with contact lenses. I have never had contacts before, and I decided to get fitted for them when I decided that my vision was bad enough to do something about it. I put the test pair of contacts on, and after about 2 minutes, I started feeling faint. I took the contacts out, and I had to sit down for about 20 minutes before I could leave without fainting. It’s been about 3 hours now, and I STILL feel lightheaded and dizzy…
4 Brian wrote:
Same response here, both to dilation drops and the dye drops. allergy drops do nothing, nor do contacts. It sucks because I want to give Lasik a shot, but I know I’ll never make it through all the tests. I’m out like a light in a matter of seconds after the drops are administered.
5 Cheryl wrote:
My 18-year-old son experienced the same response after getting numbing drops in his eye for his LASIK testing. He was fine with all the other tests, but the drops seemed to have triggered the vasovagal response…I was with him through all the tests and was told to just wait in the exam room while they did that one last quick test where they check the thickness of the corneas. My son said he was losing his vision and then fell out of the chair (hitting his head on a wall and his knees on the table holding the machine). We went AGAIN for further testing (about a month after the first appointment). Everything was fine until he got the numbing drops…He then started feeling dizzy. Due to our previous experience, the doctor was smart enough to have him lie down in the chair for about 15 minutes. My son then proceeded with the testing and after a few minutes went into the bathroom and threw up. Needless to say, the doctor told him this condition makes him a bad candidate for eye surgery.
One note from one of the techs who had worked with young military men…he noticed this condition being more common in very young, physically fit men. I’m not saying that is for sure an indicator, just an interesting thought.
6 Maryann T. wrote:
Me, too! Within 2 minutes of getting numbing eye drops, I get VERY dizzy and nauseous. If I don’t lie down and close my eyes for 1/2 hour, I’m confident I’ll faint or throw up or both. I’m usually wiped out the rest of the day. My optometrist (who first gave me the drops) was familiar with the reaction and explained it to me. Three opthamologists since then have looked at me skeptically saying they’ve never heard of it before. Two of those docs gave me the drops even though it was on my chart not to. I had the same reaction then, too. Both docs got very defensive about their error and one tried to convince me that it was psychosomatic (sp?) and suggested I was making it up because I didn’t want the eye exam. Jerk! I have never fainted, but I do get light headed if I watch a blood draw. Shots are no problem. I also get sea sick. I wonder if this is related, too.
7 Maryann T. wrote:
Another note: I am a 42 year old woman and first experienced this reaction when I was 28. My most recent reaction was last year. The doctor who put the drops in had the good sense to immediately flush out my eyes when I realized what she’d done, and the reaction was much less than before.
8 Alysha wrote:
I actually did faint when getting those coloured eye drops just this week. I’ve never fainted in my life, and definitely wasn’t nervous going into the exam. It only took about 20 seconds for the fainting to happen. When I “woke up” ten seconds later, I couldn’t see, could barely hear, forgot where I was for a few seconds, I was sweating all over and I could barely move! With help getting to the bathroom I almost threw up, but was able to control it. I had the second half of my exam today (where they put in the dilation eye drops) and I was scared out of my mind about it, but I didn’t faint or even feel like I might.
9 Glenda wrote:
I went with my 18 year old son yesterday for his first eye exam and dilation. I decided to go with him since he had never been dilated and I was afriad he couldn’t see to drive. I am very glad I listened to that inner voice because he fainted within 5 minutes of having his eye dilated. He got the words out that he was dizzy before falling face first out of the chair onto the floor. The doctor came in and woke him with smelling salts since we couldn’t get him to wake up. After about 10 minutes, we got him back up into the chair and tilted his chair slightly until they were ready to do his eye exam. He seemed okay and then all of a suddent fainted again but woke up fairly quickly with us talking to him. The optometrist feels that it was because of the dilation. We did go ahead and take him to the ER and the doctor there felt the same way and told us to never have him dilated without lying down again.
10 Ashley wrote:
Just today I went for an eye exam and decided that I wanted to try contacts for the first time. So I was leaning back in the chair and he was putting in my right eye lense and then about 5 secs after it went in it started. Spots, cold sweat, dizziness, upset stomach… there I was sitting on the chair with my head between my legs, my head over a garbage can in an eye clinic of all places. He suggested that I go into the other room where he could put back the chair so I was more or less lying down for him to take the darn thing out. I guess people like us will never eperience life without glasses :( No contacts, no eye surgery.
11 Ken wrote:
Add me to the fluorescein syncope list.
My old eye doctor used to give a drop from a single container before during the blue-light test, and I never had a problem. I’ve since moved, and when I went to a new eye doctor, he used a two-part system — first a drop, and then a different drop from a different container — if I remember correctly, it was packaged in a paper tube and was sort of dripping off the end of a long strip of paper — and I came really close to passing out.
Glad it’s not just me.
12 Karen wrote:
I am planning to have Lasik surgery and went in for my initial consultation this week. They gave me numbing drops for the cornea thickness test. I felt like I was going to faint, lay down on the floor and actually threw up twice. Felt better within about 10 minutes and pretty much fine within another 15 minutes.
I definitely am prone to fainting (usually if I haven’t eaten in a long time or if I see blood). But never at an eye doctor’s office! I’ve had dilation exams before, and they weren’t problematic.
As some of the people noted above, the doctors told me that no one had ever thrown up from the numbing drops before, and thought it might be psychosomatic. One doctor just called me and said I may not be a good candidate for Lasik b/c the numbing drop test was the “least invasive” of the tests/surgery I would need to get.
I wish the people at the Lasik office knew more about this, or were able to give me more advice. My eyes also felt stiff/numb for several days after the test. They’re just starting to feel normal again and it’s been three days. The doctor said she thought I might just have a very strong reaction/sensitivity to numbing drops. Any information any of you have on this would be much appreciated!
13 Lisa wrote:
my dad got so sick and passed out,sweating profusely at the eye exam(hes had several times) but the orange type drops did it–it caused a vagal response they said? it was so scarry cause they thought it was his heart,but after heart ck,it was ruled a vasovagal response and some are genetically more prone than others or pressure somewhere causes one? crazy things our body can do-
14 Kyle wrote:
The person that “diagnosed” me with Vasovago when I was 19 said it was most common in young, white, thin, tall males… aka, me. I haven’t ever actually fainted but I’ve come close and I always feel nauseus whenever someone else gives me a shot, draws blood, or messes with my eyes. The only “cure” I’ve found is lying down while the procedure takes place.
For those that think this condition rules out contacts though, I wouldn’t be so sure. I’ve been wearing contacts for about 6 years (I’m nearly 24 now) and it hasn’t once been a problem. I think there’s a HUGE difference when you are the one applying the contacts/drops as opposed to someone else. I halfway want to try giving myself a shot (with a physician supervising, of course) just to see if I could do it. I’m willing to bet that not only could I do it, but that it would make me less nauseous than if someone else did it.
15 Lauren wrote:
Glad to hear I”m not alone. Thankfully, my eye doctor is awesome. I have only had the pressure test done once…and only in one eye. I got the drops in one eye and he went to do the pressure test very quickly and that’s when I informed him I was going to pass out and throw up. I could not see out of that eye for the rest of the day and it took about 2 hours for the rest of my body to feel normal again. Thankfully my mom drove me so i could get home. My eye dr. told me that this kind of an episode, while rare during eye exams, had a name and was a well documented occurance (more often due to needles and the other triggers) and that I should worry about it, just recognize my triggers and take precautions during those kind of situations. Because I’m only 26, i’m not real worried about glaucoma yet, so it’s in my chart not to use the numbing drops or do the pressure test. Obviously when I’m much older I’ll have to suck it up and let them do it, but clearly i will ensure that i’m lying down and that they have salts nearby, hehe. I also pass out whenever I get a shot or have blood drawn or get mildly injured. You know when you bump your knee in that one spot on your knee cap that hurts like a you know what, more often than not, that kind of silly, only hurts like that for a short time, makes me get the tell-tale signs of the vagal response and i feel like i’m gonna pass out. I really just thought I was a big baby, and i may still be, but at least I know that there’s an actual condition and name for my reaction!
16 Misty wrote:
I passed out at the eye doctor 10 years ago when I was 17. The doctor had told me it was probably the pressure test, and though it was scary, I got over it. I have had slight anxiety from then on whenever I went to the eye doctor, but for 10 years and 1 exam every two years, I never passed out again. I usually don’t feel great when they put the drops in, but I haven’t passed out again. Until today that is. I went to the eye doctor today for my usual every two year deal, and I told him I had this issue once. This is also why i had my fiance there with me. And sure enough, I don’t know what was different today, but he never even got to the pressure test! He never touched my eye…but as soon as those drops went in it took less than two minutes for me to begin saying I was going to pass out. It is the most horrible feeling on the planet. Right before I went out I remember thinking over and over “911″ but I couldn’t say it. The doctor had run out to get me some water, my fiance was there holding my hand I guess, and out I went. I guess I was only out for a few seconds, and I awoke to my fiance trying to wake me up. And for a small time, I had no idea where I was or what was going on. I felt like I couldn’t breathe right and my heart felt like it was going to just explode. After a few minutes I started sipping some water and within 10 minutes or so of waking up I felt mostly normal, though my eyes still ached (and still do now 6 hours later). This response scared me very much as there are major health problems in my family history. While I am happy to know I am not the only one with this issue, I would feel much more comfortable knowing what causes it and what to avoid. I can tell this is actually fairly rare, since there is very little information on the internet.
17 osric wrote:
I’m 55 years old and never had a problem with fainting or vasovagal syncope or whatever you want to call it. I first passed out at a normal eye exam about 3 years ago. I never was bothered by the exams before, but I just got through driving all night and got virtually no sleep, so perhaps that had something to do with it. Although I felt like an idiot, I didn’t think much about it. However about a month later I passed out at the dentist. I ended up getting all sorts of tests and everything was fine. A doc finally said it was anxiety and the fainting was vasovagal syncope. Now I pass out at every doctor’s visit or even when visiting someone in the hospital. I don’t feel anxious or depressed, and I don’t even fear doctors or medical things, what i fear is passing out and making a idiot of myself. I never feel faint except around doctors, and don’t have any other medical issues. My family doc just laughs and says that it happens to a lot of people and it’s nothing serious, but it really sucks to fear going to the dentist because I know I’ll end up fainting. Anyone have any ideas how to stop this nonsense??
18 Daniel wrote:
After an eye examination today I discovered that I too have vasovagal syncopy. I passed the fluorescein stain test without problem, but was affected about 5 minutes after the eye dilation drops were administered. The technician had left the room and wasn’t coming back for 10 more minutes. So I was sitting in the chair, wondering why my mouth seemed dry when I started feeling lightheaded and incredibly hot. While debating if this was just my imagination or a result of boredom, I became more lightheaded and was sweating profusely. Concerned that if I tried leaving the room to ask for assistance that I might pass out on the floor, I instead slouched in the chair in the hope that I wouldn’t fall out if I fainted. I came very close to fainting, but within about 3 minutes was feeling better, and within 6 minutes I was perfectly fine (although quite soaked in sweat). When the optometrist returned she was quite concerned and got me some water. She also said it usually happens to 1 patient a week (it’s a large eyecare clinic). Typically it’s more common in morning appointments, when the patient doesn’t eat breakfast and has low blood sugar. She also said low blood pressure can aggravate the problem. In my case, I’m very healthy, age 28, 5’9″, 150lbs, with low blood sugar, low blood pressure, and low body temperature (96.5F). A few hours later I realized I’d had an almost identical experience during the summer while donating blood. At the time my co-workers and I concluded it was from mild heat exhaustion that day (I work outdoors), mainly because we couldn’t think of a better explanation. That day was my 8th time donating blood (1st time in 2 years), and I’d never had a problem before. So at least in my case this appears to be a relatively recent development. I have to say finding this page and the replies has definitely eased my mind a lot.
19 Tallmom wrote:
I am very happy to have found this site. I will forward to our eye doc immediately. Healthy, 18 year old son had first-ever attack of ‘vaso-vagal’ just after his first, thorough eye exam. What happened first, he said, was total blindness, and then the passing out. He doesn’t know how long it took before his vision was restored. Paramedics called, etc. I (his mother) have vasovagal reactions sometimes and does one of our daughters. But I am left wondering what might be in the drops. Our son has allergy to wheat, dairy, grasses, dogs. Any reason the drops could be causing an allergic reaction?
20 Molly wrote:
WOW!! I thought I was crazy until my hubby told me to look online for such an odd thing happening. I was at the eye dr today and had an routine eye exam and again, like you all, was fine until they administered the drops. I am known to faint to morphine and blood draws but this really threw me for a loop!! I thought I was crazy and was freaking out after I was out of the exam. Its now 9 hours later and I believe my eyes are still somewhat dialated..Is that a bad thing?
It seems like we all have more questions than answers on this site. How unfortunate. I’ll ask my mother in law who is a ped dr to see if she’s ever heard of this and her synopsis.
Meanwhile. Im glad Im not the only one, unfortately :(
Happy Holidays and stay conscious!!! haha
Molly
21 Heather wrote:
I passed out at the eye doctor today! I took my daughter for her state-required kindergarten eye exam and figured I would have an exam too, since it has been way too long. Anyway, they gave me the drops and had me hold her on my lap so they could test her eyes while mine dilated. Suddenly, I started feeling hot, dizzy and nauseated. My vision was blurry and I heard a buzzing noise in my ears. I said that I thought I was going to throw up and then I passed out cold. Luckily, the Dr. caught me and my daughter and acted quickly. My daughter didn’t even know anything was wrong, they took her to another area for her test while I laid flat for about twenty minutes. My hands and feet were tingly for a long time as well. I passed out about ten years ago from dehydration caused by a symptomless infection, and I remember the same pre-fainting warning signs. I was scared and embarrassed, but I’m glad to see that I’m not alone. I just thank the Lord that I wasn’t alone in the room and that I didn’t hurt my daughter. The Dr. noted my chart to NOT give me eye drops again :-)
22 Marie wrote:
I’m very glad to hear I’m not the only one either! I have NEVER fainted in my life…my mom does all the time when she sees needles/blood and i just laugh. But i went to the eye doctor today and he gave me those numbing drops (they had a yellow dye in them) and he start checking the pressure in my eye and it wasnt but 10 seconds after I had trouble breathing and couldnt keep my eyes open…then my head started drooping down and his voice got fainter and fainter….next thing i knew i was holding a towel on my forehead and the assistant was giving me a drink of water! i felt so stupid…more like a pansy…but im just glad im not the only one! the doctor said it wasn’t uncommon so that made me feel better…but then again i was like “wait…what if he is just saying that to make me feel better..” Now im nervous to get another glaucoma exam!
23 Debbie wrote:
Wow, what a shame that the ophthalmologists & optometrists aren’t more in tune with this condition. I had similiar experience getting dilated after the drops were administered, I was out. I was not anxious at all prior but once they put those drops in I knew I was going to faint. I had to lay on the floor in my business suit for over an hour before my blood pressure came back up. It was quite humiliating and I sure didn’t get much sympathy from the doctor. I also had a similiar experience getting fitted for contacts. I heard there is an optical camera that can be used in lieu of getting dilated but I tried to google it without any luck. Wish we could get some answers.
24 Chris wrote:
I’ve had problems with this since I was about 12 years old…every time a needle came near me or I watched someone who had something done, I would come close to fainting.
About 15 minutes ago I went for a blood test but before that I had a coffee with 2 tablespoons (not teaspons!) of sugar and I’ve come out perfectly fine – first time in my life! I still took the lying down on the bed option – just to make sure :)
One key is getting your blood sugar level up before you go.
And like Kyle who posted – I am a tall, thin, white young male
Over the years it’s gotten slightly better – I used to be unable to walk into a hospital and smell the hospital smell without getting like that – at least I can handle that now…I still have problems with needles at the dentist or doctors..but I think if I do it again, it’ll be a suped-up coffee!
25 Jane wrote:
Hi all.
I am 16 and have vasovagal syncope. And it is absolutely horrible. I was diagnosed when I was about 13. I have had all the tests done for it and need medication, but they couldn’t give them to me because I use to take Concerta for ADD. But recently over the past summer I was diagnosed with limes disease and had a small encounter with anorexia. I’m very interested in taking medication to prevent vasovagal syncope episodes if anyone has any information on the medicines they normally prescribe please let me know. My parents are threatening to not let me get my drivers license, I just want the episode to stop. Please help!!
26 Nick wrote:
I also had a similar response. I was getting examined for a possible LASIK procedure today and about 10-15 minutes after getting the dilating eye drops put in I started to feel slightly light headed as I walked into the examining room. I wasn’t nervous as I had done another consultation with eye dilation just a few days ago. However they started taping down my eyelids and I briefly passed out. I think it was definitely related to the eye drops though because the place I went used extra strength drops because I have very dark brown eyes. Well they definitely did the trick because my eyes are still dilated almost 9 hours later.
I’m not sure if there isn’t some sort of chemical in the drops that could cause a drop in blood pressure because I don’t have a problem with eye contact (I’ve worn contacts for the past 8 years). Definitely weird, although I think my ophthalmic assistant was far more freaked out than I was!
27 mjb wrote:
This just happened to me today when I had the glaucoma pressure test done during a routine eye exam. I was fine after the drops went in but as the test neared the end, I started to feel lightheaded, sweaty, warm and clammy, and then could tell I was passing out. The student doctor had noticed a change in my breathing, so she finished up and i took my hoodie off. She let me lean back, (laying on the floor would have been better knowing now what was going on), and I guess i was out for a few seconds. Very strange, I came back to normal after a couple minutes.
28 David wrote:
This is all very interesting. I too went to the eye dr a few days back. Everything was going just fine with the light testing being done by an understudy, then the dr placed the dye drops in my left eye and within a few seconds I felt as though I would faint. The next thing I remember, I heard the dr saying “yes, call 911″ and I was thinking I wonder what happened to someone. I then realized that it was me waking up from this vaso-vagal syncope like everyone else has mentioned. I was also told that I had a seizure for about 10-15 seconds. I remember nothing except feeling like I was going to faint and then felt like I was trying to wake up from a bad dream. The back of my head was drenched with sweat and I was really freaked out when I heard I had a seizure. He called it bells palsy, my arms went straight out and I twitched all over. I have fainted once that I remember when I was about 8 years old having a wart cut off of the palm of my hand. I’ve had several surgeries, and at least one traumatic injury as an adult with no instances of syncope. I’m 40 now, and I am convinced that I had a reaction to the drops placed in my eye, these were a dye drop not the dilating drops. The onset was immediate, I barely had time to say I felt dizzy & it was lights out. The paramedics arrived within minutes and my BP was 130/90 and blood sugar was 110, even though I had not had breakfast (normal for me) and it was about noon at the time. Has anyone else heard of this type of seizure during an eye exam in an otherwise healthy adult?
29 Alice wrote:
This just happened to my big strong very healthy husband. Who the heck passes out from eye drops, right? He got the drops to look in the eye–not the dye ones– but the ones before they just look and do the glaucoma test. He said they stung so he closed his eyes and then wham he was out. He was out for about 20 seconds, woke up and was disoriented and shaky. Usually the doc said folks come around quickly but he just couldn’t stop shaking. He was taken to the ER and admitted to the hospital. The neurologist said it was this vasovagal reaction. She said it is not a seizure even though it looks like one since people pass out and sometimes shake like happens in a seizure. It doesn’t affect brain wave function. She said it’s not that uncommon—it even happened to her before. She said the drops cause a restriction in the vessel and the body then goes into a “fight or flight” reaction, blood pressure drops rapidly and the person passes out. She told us not to worry since my husband is young (late 40′s) and this has only happened once. Crazy, huh? Passing out from an eye exam..who knew?
30 Cheryl wrote:
How reassuring to read so many comments from people with the same reaction!!!
I am a 31-year old female and have had vasovagal syncope episodes triggered by blood and needles from the age of about 13. The first time I experienced it was when I was really ill and my doctor ordered a dozen different blood tests to find out what was wrong with me. I had 8+ vials of blood being drawn after doing a 12-hour fast, and as soon as I headed back to the waiting room I started sweating, feeling the room spin, and then my peripheral vision started to black out and my mother (a nurse) recognized what was happening and shoved me into a seat and forced my head between my legs, and I was then escorted to a bed where I could lie down.
Since this episode I am careful to tell health professionals of my history of vasovagal syncope and my generally low b.p. (90/65) when I know I will be exposed to blood or needles, and although I always experience the first symptoms, I never pass out as I will usually endure medical procedures while lying down.
This afternoon I went to the ophthalmologist to participate in a voluntary research study where ironically I was intended to be the “healthy matched control”. I have 20/20 vision and have never needed to have any other eye tests before today, and was unprepared for what happened when I had my eyes dilated! At first I didn’t recognize the out-of-context symptoms, but then I was certain I would pass out without help but the doctor had left me alone in the room. I tried to go to the waiting room to tell the receptionist and my vision completely blacked out and I was incapable of speaking. I don’t think I actually lost consciousness but the receptionist propelled me back to my seat in the examining room, and reclined the seat so I could lie down. She brough me water, and the doctor put a cold cloth on my forehead.
I was so worried that my phobia had reached new and bizarre heights, and I am so relieved that others have experienced the same thing from an eye exam. Thank you ALL for sharing!!!
31 Peter wrote:
So grateful I found this thread. I never had any problem with fainting until today when I went to the eye doctor for the glaucoma test. After he dilated my eyes he sent me to wait outside and I suddenly couldn’t hear properly, felt nauseous, broke out into a cold sweat and nearly passed out. I was terrified. The doctor didn’t seem phased by it and just checked my pulse, put some wet towels on my head and neck and got a candy off one of the other patients. Glad to see that it’s not just me. On the downside, the doctor didn’t want to administer any more eye drops so I had to wait until my eyes naturally undilated themselves, which although he said would take 1-2 hours actually took 7 hours !
32 Jeff wrote:
I had a vasovagal syncope at the eye doctor in 2004. I wasn’t so lucky. I told the Dr. I was feeling woozy, and she said it was just a side effect of the anesthesia. The exam ended and I was feeling worse. We started to walk back to the front waiting area and I fainted. I woke up in extreme pain. I had fallen face first and landed on my chin. I shattered both condyles on my jaw, broke a few teeth, and suffered a severe gash across my chin. Imagine an uppercut from a cinder block and you’ll have the results.
Do not let the eye Dr. tell you that they have never heard of this reaction. It exists. It is real. Just ask my attorney and the slew of professional witnesses that served on my malpractice case. If you say you aren’t feeling right, they have an obligation to stop everything and tend to you.
Most people would find this site after the fact; why else would you be here? I wish Ophthalmologists were better prepared and educated, and willing to admit that this is indeed a real condition.
33 John wrote:
The same thing happened to me this week. The doc put the colored eye drops in and checked both eyes and suddenly I started sweating and my mouth went dry. I started breathing deeper in order not to pass out. This was the second time this has happened to me. Last time I was tested was six years ago and I just assumed it was a fluke reaction. I wasn’t nervous or anxious at all. This reaction just comes out of the blue and freaks me out. I wish I knew what was in those drops.
34 Mac wrote:
Gosh, am I glad to have found this thread. Just got back from the eye dr where my 16 year old daughter fainted and convulsed/twitched after the numbing drops (not yellow) and dialtion drops were put into her eyes. She was totally out for a short while, then did well then felt totally nauseous for hours. Poor thing. We thought it was just her being melodramatic but now I see it really is a reaction to the drops. I had had my eye exam in the morning so we were able to closely compare the feelings we had: she experienced much stronger pain and sensations in her eyes following the drops. For me it didn’t feel bad in any way.
35 Cathy wrote:
I am glad to read all this and to know my daughter isn’t the only one with this condition. It started a couple years ago when she was 14 and wanted contacts. As soon as the dr. put in one contact my daughter fainted. A year later my daughter wanted to try again but said she had to put in the contact. So we went back to the dr and my daughter put the contact in and fainted again. The dr. said no more contacts! Yesterday, we had to go to a different eye dr. and the dr. put the drops in for the glaucoma test and did the testing with the machine and all was fine. A couple minutes later, my daughter’s leg jerked and she had passed out and was twitching, like having a small seizure. After a minute or so, she woke up not knowing what just happened. I think the dr. was more freaked out than me. I guess she won’t be getting Lasik in a few years! She is the only one in the family with this problem too.
36 Glenda wrote:
If you notice in this thread above I have posted to this site before (August 7, 2008) when my first son (then 18) passed out twice in the office after his eyes were dialted. Well, I took my 2nd son (now 18) to the eye doctor on Friday, June 26th for his first eye visit to have his eyes dialated and he passed out as well but his was more like a seizure than passing out cold like my other son. The first son required smelling salts for us to ever wake him up the first time and the paramedics were called. This time son #2 woke up on his own but had the panic feeling of not knowing where he was or what was happening to him. My mother has glaucoma but we have not heard of any other eye problems in either of our families. It is just very strange how this can happen to both of my children.
37 ned wrote:
This has happened to me twice in my life, the first time after catarac surgery and then today at the dermatoligist’s office. Today, after the nurse did some needle work on a chest cyst and another spot on my back,
I became lightheaded, dizzy, began to sweat, and lost the color in my face.
I came very closed to fainting. The nurses gave me some kind of smelling stuff, took my blood pressure which had dropped way below normal, then gave me cold water to drink and applied cold wet towels to back of neck and forehead. Scarey, but 15 minutes later I was okay. I’m happy to learn more about this “condition” and to know it has a name.
38 Barb wrote:
Glad to find these posts. This happened to my 14-year old son at his eye appointment this morning. I literally had to catch him as he fell to the floor. He was only out a few seconds — then back to normal, as if nothing had happened. (This was the first time his eyes were dilated.) The doctor said next time he’ll need to sit for awhile and not get up right after the drops. I read on another site that teenage boys are the ones most likely to have this condition. I’m wondering if he can outgrow it.
39 Amber wrote:
I too nearly fainted today after receiving the eye drops and glaucoma test. I asked the doctor if he thought it was the eye drops, but he felt it was due to the pressure placed on my eyes from the glaucoma test itself. He did try to rinse the drops out of my eyes several minutes after I felt faint, but it was absorbed by my body already. The doctor said he’d seen this once or twice before and had the sense to lay me down immediately.
My symptoms started about a minute after the test. I felt suddenly nauseous, then dizzy, and then I broke out into a hot sweat like a hot flash I suppose. I felt dizzy and agitated as well.
The doctor said my blood pressure had dropped significantly and the technician said I looked extremely pale when the doctor called her in to help.
A note was placed in my file and a letter sent to my doctor.
40 Dianna wrote:
I too have vasovagal syncope (29yo female, 4th year medical student), but I have convulsive syncope so I get a grand mal seizure type activity every time I pass out (urinary incontinence/tongue biting). The neurologist thinks I have a low seizure threshold. It had only happened 5 times (blood draws and concussion), but last summer, they did the “new” glaucoma test (not the puff of air), and I had the syncope/seizure a few minutes after they touched the tocometer to my eye. I wasn’t even aware that anything touched my eye (because it was numb). I had assumed it was the touching of the eye and not the drops that caused the syncope. Did you guys have the glaucoma test and pass out or just the drops and pass out? I’m trying to decide whether to tell them not to ever use flouriscein drops or just not to get the tocometer glaucoma test.
Incidentally, the eye doctor decided to finish the eye exam!…here I am, sitting in a pool of my own urine and feeling nauseated and diaphoretic, but yeah, let’s check my vision NOW!!
41 Diana wrote:
I was at the Opthamologist’s office today for a routine exam. When the doctor put the drops in my eyes for the glaucoma test, I immediately started to feel numb and dizzy. The doctor said that I lost my color and looked as though I may faint. She got me some water and apple juice and left me to relax. I ended up not fainting and felt better after about 15 minutes. The doctor later told me that she has had other patients faint upon administration of the eye drops. Previously I’ve broken out in sweats and felt faint after giving blood for routine blood tests.
42 Melinda Maxfield wrote:
This is FABULOUS!!! I finally figured out what has been plaguing me my entire life. My first episode was at age 11 when I fainted when visiting a friend in the hospital. Passed out cold! Then again when, performing at an old folk’s home at age 13, fainted during a Christmas show. (Lots of IV’s in the audience) Fast forward to the eye test 10 years ago… fainted, had to have smelling salts and oxygen. Then trying to get contact lenses ( hilarious!!!) I threw up and fainted and the doctor said i needed psychological help :) Husband in the hospital with a broken Femur, the nurse says “you look kind of…..” Woke up on a gurney outside his hospital room. (the family still laughs about that !) I am sooooo GLAD to know it is not just me being “squeamish” and to “buck up”…..
43 susan wrote:
Thank you to everyone for sharing.
My 14 year old son suffered a fainting spell while getting fitted for contacts yesterday. He’s had other episodes – at the dentist, after getting hit hard by a baseball, at a school play, getting on a plane – and I thought they were anxiety panic attacks. I was planning to have him talk to a therapist.
Do you think that would help?
44 Ava wrote:
I am so happy to have found this site. I feel so bad for all these people but happy to know that my 9 year old is not ill.
I took my son (9) to the eye doc last week and he fainted right after those yellow drops to numb the eye. That lasted a few seconds and then he threw up twice and looked white as a ghost as well as being sweaty.
He was much better 30 mins afterwards, much so than I was. I have never heard of this but the eye doc knew all about it and he said it typically happens to the marine looking types, that work out and in good health.
We have a doc appt on Friday to just be sure but this site has eased my mind.
Thanks
45 Dianna wrote:
Susan, therapy will not help vasovagal syncope, it’s a physiological response not a psychological one. There is no treatment. Basically your veins dilate or widen inappropriately to bodily stimuli and your blood drops to your feet and pools in your lower extremities. This causes not enough blood to get to your brain and so your body faints, which causes your brain to be level with your feet/heart and blood can then get to your head. If he starts to feel weird (nauseated, darkness of the vision), have him lie down on a flat surface.
For those of you who have this with blood draws, you will often get the false advice to “just relax” because they think you have a needle phobia. Relaxing may lower your blood pressure and instigate the syncope, so instead “pump” your leg muscles while they draw blood (clench or contract your calf muscles), this will allow blood to leave your lower extremities and allow blood to be part of the circulation. I’ve had a number of blood draws using this technique and not experienced syncope.
-Dianna
46 Mariana wrote:
What a relief to find other people that have gone through the same thing. I’m almost 40 and today I saw an eyed doctor for the first time in my life. My dad has glaucoma so they numbed my eyes to check the pressure. After the assistant finished checking the pressure, which was probably no more than five minutes after applying the numbing drops, I began feeling extremely dizzy, lots of nausea, and weak. I’ve fainted only once in my life but I still remember what it was like the couple of seconds before it happened. Today I felt the same way but worse because I also felt the nausea. Unfortunately, the assistant did not know what to do. I instinctively put my head down between my legs and a minute later I began vomiting. After vomiting I felt some relief and noticed how my blood pressure was coming back to normal. After this the eye doctor came in and explained that this vasovagal reaction to the numbing drops was not frequent but that he knew it could happen. It will be difficult to go through this kind of test again.
47 Michele wrote:
I took my daughter to a new eye doctor. She is 15 and has been having her eyes examined since she was 3. She did the first part of the exam and was fine. They put the numbing drops in her eyes and then the dye off a piece of paper. The other doctor had never did the paper strip before. She was in the chair and had her chin and the device and slowly went down. I grabbed her and she remained sitting straight up. She was very clammy and couldn’t respond even though her eyes were open. She just kept answering me with huhu. Finally the doctor checked her pulse and it was good we reclined her and she still wouldn’t respond. The assistant used the smelling salts and she came right out of it. She states she remembers after the paper her eyes feel funny and then like she was in a tunnel. When she finally came out of it she complained her ears were ringing. She was soaking wet even though her hands were cold. It was scary to watch but then she was fine, got her eyes dilated and finished the exam with no other problems. Her pupils remained dilated all evening and she had a slight headache.
48 Nicole wrote:
It cracks me up that this post is three years old, but people are still posting to it because we’ve been so desperate to find other people with the same problem! I passed out once after an eye exam about six years ago, while sitting in the waiting room. Afterwards, the optometrist explained that he’d use the new numbing/eyeball-touching glaucoma test, and mentioned the vasovagel response. I’ve been putting off visiting the eye doctor since, but the two pairs of glasses I got back then are finally biting the dust, so I need to go in again. I’m just very anxious about it — I’ve been a fainter throughout my life (once after losing a tooth when 10; felt faint after getting my ears pierced; fainted wearing a corset costume in a hot room; felt faint after getting novocaine for the first time; fainted when attempting to give blood–even though they hadn’t stuck me with a needle yet(!); have to recline while getting blood drawn at the doctor.) I’m okay with shots, though, and allergy prick testing.
I’m really hoping that the doctor will allow me to have the puff test instead of the touch test. I’d had the puff test at previous appointments and was fine, and have also worn contacts without a problem.
For the record, my fainting episode at the eye doctor’s was my worst. I had a friend with me, incidentally, to help with picking out frames, and she said I had seemed to seize a bit while out. Even though I felt fine when we left the office, I almost passed out again in her car, so we went to the ER. I was released, but spent the entire afternoon napping–I was exhausted. I’d put off eating lunch before my appointment, and think that probably exacerbated my fainting tendency (I get shaky/nauseated from low blood sugar sometimes), but at the ER my blood glucose was 98, so they said that shouldn’t have contributed. Regardless, I plan to eat something substantial with a bit of sugar and salt before I go. Now if only I could get myself to SET the appointment!
49 Elly wrote:
I have V-Syncope and it mostly occurs at resturants even though I don’t go in on an empty stomach. It has occurred at an eye doctors office too. I faint and must lay down and raise my legs so that the blood flows back to my head. Imediately after an episode I must move my bowels. Does this happen to anybody else? I have had all the tests (tilt table included) and they point to V-Sycope. I can’t avoid retaurants and it could be a social problem for me. Any suggestions on how to best control these episodes?
50 Dana wrote:
So I have not had my eyes checked in over 20 years. I made an appointment yesterday to have a regular eye exam. Long story short….I do not do well with my eyes being dilated so during the eye exam everything was fine then the Dr. started to pull out some drops. I said “whoa what are you doing what are those drops?” he said I am not dilating them it’s a drop so I can see better in your eyes. It was YELLOW weird crap. Anyway then he proceeds with the exam and reaches for more drops…AGAIN I said what is that ??? He said it will dilate your eyes but I promise you won’t feel a thing and you won’t even know what I did. I said you better be right because if I end up on your floor passed out it will be your fault. He smirked and said you will be just fine. Then he proceeded to take me to the eye glass area to speak to them further. Suddenly I felt very very hot and started to sweat and felt my heart racing. I told the lady I needed to sit down. Then I really felt bad a little dizzy. I told her I need to go outside for some air. Last thing I remember is went to open the door out of the Dr. office and I woke up face down on a concrete floor in a pool of blood!!!! I blacked out!!!
OMG!!!! then there were people all around me yelling call 911. I went to Hospital in ambulance. Had EKG , CT scan of my brain, 10 stitches in my head, I have broken teeth and a bone fracture. All with no DENTAL ins. YEAH!!!! !!! I am on pain killers and feel like I have been hit by a truck!!!
I guess there is more of us out there ……these doc’s need to be educated on this
51 Kelly wrote:
Hi everyone, OH MY GOSH! I just got back from my routine yearly eye exam and had the same thing happen to me !!! The dr. put the yellow numbing drops in my eyes and within 30 seconds I felt dizzy, flush/hot, with an extremely rapid heart rate!! I felt I was about to faint! I asked the dr. for apple juice (which I tried at the dentist in the past when a similar adrenaline reaction happened after a novacaine/epinephrine shot) and drinking the small bottle of apple juice calmed the reaction down. I’m convinced it’s the drops that caused this reaction ~ I never had this happen at an eye exam before after drops and they tried to say it was anxiety in my head or asked if I had low blood sugar ~ neither of which was the case! I’m not diabetic & I know it’s not in my head!
I immediately looked up the symptoms online and here I am ~ only to find that other people had the same thing happen at an eye exam. Funny that the eye dr. has smelling salts on the desk for people who just “randomly” faint at an eye exam! Seems to me that some of these eye dr.’s are concealing the fact that this is a real occurance caused by the eye drops and are unwilling to admit it!!! I even asked for drops with no type of medicine containing anything similar to epinephrine in it so they gave me something else ~ but for the first time ever at an eye exam I had this episode! Luckily I calmed my reaction by deep breathing, apple juice and staying as calm as possible. I was sure I would faint but didn’t. IT WAS SO SCARY!!!! I’m never getting eye drops at an exam again!!!
My advice to anyone who had a similar reaction in the past or is planning an eye exam to consult with your physician beforehand regarding any medical issues you may have which could complicate this reaction from eye exam drops!!
My success in calming the reaction within 5 minutes was to drink 12 oz of apple juice, breath slowing, relax and talk your way through it.
52 Wayne wrote:
I went out cold a minute after receiving both the numbing and dilating drops. Ten minutes later I threw up. I couldn’t continue the exam. I went out to my car and it took me over an hour before I could drive; I was weak the rest of the day. Awful!
I was not worried leading up to the test. This came suddenly.
There is hope. I have grown tolerant of blood tests, when I was having one a month for a while. Same with the Novocain at periodontal work. Also, my Doc said “as you grow older your nerves dull and the response should lessen.” I’m not sure if this is something to look forward to!
Yes Elly…sometimes I have to move my bowels after a date with Vasovagal Syncope.
53 Rachel wrote:
My husband nearly passed out today after they dilated his eyes–he made it through the exam, but I noticed he was blinking a lot, and when the doctor finished he said he felt dizzy and needed to lie down on the floor. It took him about an hour to recover and get his color back. He says that he’s always had problems with needles and sometimes with injuries. He doesn’t think it is the sight of blood that causes the reaction, but rather just the fact that when he sees it, it causes him to think about the way blood and fluids move throughout the body. He’s nearly passed out a few times in college classes when the instructor is discussing the way blood or other fluids move or travel through the body or vessels. It is very strange, and he, too, is a tall (6’6″) white male.
54 Jennifer wrote:
Glad to find this thread. When I was in college I fainted and had a seizure while the glaucoma test was being administered. My eye doctor put his thumb in my mouth (I guess to stop me from swallowing my tongue) and apparently I really bit down on him hard! He was pretty shaken up. Of course, I now avoid the eye doctor at all costs, which I know is not a good idea.
Sounds like the puff test doesn’t set off this reaction in people–just the drops/eye pressure test. Is that right? Can anyone here comment on experiences they have had with the puff test?
55 liz wrote:
I have also had these episodes throughout my life and was diagnosed by my gp after passing out while lying down and looking like i was fitting, he took my blood pressure while i was out and when i tried to sit up after coming round it would drop sharply. He just told me to let anyone giving me a needle know and that was it. The most random reaction was when i had deep heat put on my neck it made me go. I am desperate to find some kind of solution as its stopping me from having dental work, not fear of the pain though, fear of the reaction as it is so frightening! Has anyone found sedation helps?
56 Cody T wrote:
Today, went and got my first eye test at 40. I can hardly see what I am typing due to the eye dilation. Yes, I too had the response of getting dizzy and feeling like I was going to barf as many here described. However, this was figuratively and literally an “eye-opener” to me.
You see, twice over a decade ago, I went to the doctor and had the typical turn your head and cough examination. Both times, I got dizzy immediately afterward. I felt like I was going to pass out. Until today, I never had a scientific reason as to why. I completely believe now it was a vasovagal response. Funny how these things become known over the years. The only other time I felt like this was when my wife had an emergency surgery. I guess the stressors come out at that point. Ok… can’t see so I am going to stop. Ciao!
57 ian roberts wrote:
Its all very interesting as I had a pacemaker fitted in 2007 after my first severe vasovagel attack put me in the ic and a tilt table test stopped my heart for 21 seconds! I am now 56 years old and taken early retirement, I’m still slim, tall white male, keep relatively fit but still suffering low bp and pulse mainly in the mornings. I rise fine at 7 am but by 9 am I am ready to lie down again. I cannot take breakfast now nor a hot drink as it sends me down within 30 mins. I had not realised a link to glaucoma which I was diagnosed with in 2005. The puff test was ok but I am told the daily Xalatan eye drops work by lowering the pressure in the eyeball. So I’m wondering if they also exascerbate the low bp too. I never had many feinting spells in my life previously just occassionally. Any views on the link between anti Glaucoma medication and low blood pressure ?
58 Meredith wrote:
I am only nineteen years old and I had those EXACT same reactions to both. After having my cavity filled, I fainted at the clerks desk, and then shortly threw up after. This past year, I also went to the eye doctors to get my anual check up and they put those numbing drops in so they could test for glaucoma.
I have no fear of things getting near my eyes, since i do wear contacts everyday, and I am very used to putting them in and taking them out. I was fine through out the entire test but after about a minute I started to get hot like i normally do when I faint, but that time, instead of just fainting, I seized also.
I have had blood tests of every sort, as well as blood pressure and sugar tests. I still cant seem to find anything wrong with me…
59 John Antonides wrote:
I take Alphagan for glaucoma for the past several years. I start feeling totally washed out about three hours after applying the drop. During the past four years or so I passed out five times at around eleven in the morning. I usually end up at the hospital where everything is checked out including blood pressure etc and all seems perfect.
After four or five hours I feel fine and am sent home.
The last time I fainted was at church where a nurse took my pulse immediately and told me later that she had been unable to find a pulse for at least two minutes.
I am now applying the drops at noon so that I can feel well in the morning and rest most of the afternoon.
I need two of these drops a day. The second one I apply before bedtime and it seems to have done its evil work by morning. No eye doctor or family doctor will believe me when I mention my experience with Alphagan. Is there anyone out there who thinks I may be right?
60 Maryann T wrote:
A follow up note: I read about a guy who went to Canada to get Lasik and passed out from the numbing drops. They gave him a shot of Atropine and it resolved the problem so he could proceed with the surgery.
The dye drops these days also have the numbing agent in them. It’s not the dye that causes the reaction, it’s the anesthetic.
This vaso vagal reaction has nothing to do with being strong or weak…it’s a nervous system reaction that cannot entirely be controlled. It is NOT psychological and it’s not about being afraid to have one’s eyes touched. Don’t let your eye doc. make you feel bad about this reaction. It’s not your fault.
61 Maryann T wrote:
I tried to complain to the FDA that there’s no warning on eye numbing drops so that doctors will be aware of this possible reaction, but without a specific lot # of medication that I had the reaction to, they wouldn’t even take the complaint!
Then, I complained to the drug company that makes the numbing drops. They blew me off, too. I’m not a big proponent of lawsuits, but I think the only way this will change is if someone who got hurt passing out form the drops sues the doctor and the drug company. (Dana from Mar 6, 2010 post: I about cried when I read your story! If that happened to me, I’d be talking to a lawyer!)
62 Jessica wrote:
This exact same thing happened to me today! I am 25 and have been wearing contacts for 14 years. Until today, my eye doctor had always used the air puff test to check for glaucoma. Well today they used the fluorescent yellow numbing drops, which did not bother me or make me anxious at all since I am used to using eye drops and contacts. Well, about 3 minutes after the test, I felt extremely dizzy and hot. I was sweating profusely, and the technician had me lay back in the exam chair. She was really sweet, and even fanned me with a folder for about 5 minutes. We tried to continue the exam, but I had to excuse myself to the bathroom and recover for about 10 minutes. This has NEVER happened to me before. Like I said, I have been wearing contacts and getting my eyes checked for 14 years, and never get nervous about an eye exam. There is definitely something in those drops that sets off this reaction in some people, and I am actually kind of relieved that so many other people have experienced this.
63 ian roberts wrote:
Ref. to #59 by John Antonides. I too am struggling to find the triggers to the sick morning feeling. I take my glaucomo drops Xalatan before sleep so its difficult to beleive they may cause a problem some 12 hours later, but who knows. Maybe we should stop the eye drops for a month and see iff there’s an improvement. It seems there may be a link, with all this discussion on eye drops and low blood pressure. How to get an expert opinion is the question?
64 Joanne wrote:
Like many of previous posts my son has had a similar experience. Two years ago at age 21 he went for his annual eye exam and just as we were leaving he collapsed. It was very scary as it looked as if he was having a seizure. He made strange noises and his eyes were open but he was totally unresponsive. It lasted for about 4 minutes. Then today he went to Lasik to be tested for laser surgery but this time it happened while he was in the chair. It lasted about the same length of time but unfortunately this time he lost control of his bowels.
He was told that he can still go ahead with the surgery but they will probably give him a strong sedative. I would like to know if anyone with this condition has heard of getting laser surgery and it being successful.
Thanks!
65 ian roberts wrote:
Folks, we are all asking questions, but who will give the answers? Whats the point of continued discussion if it is without further progress? Help! Is there a doctor in the house???