Whats happening in my eye to cause flashing light?
The inside of the eye, behind the pupil, is filled with a clear, vitreous jelly. Normally this jelly is attached to the inside lining of the eye, called the retina. Because the jelly is clear we don’t notice it; however, for various reasons the consistency of the jelly may begin to change and start to pull on the retina. This traction on the retina, which is painless, sends a sensation of light to the brain that we see as flashers. People typically describe these as non-colored sparkles of light in one corner of the field of vision, usually affecting one eye. When are flashers benign? When the vitreous jelly inside the eye tugs on the retina causing flashers, the preferred outcome is that the vitreous lets go or detaches from the retina. When this occurs, people often notice a floater in the eye. What are floaters? Floaters are made of dense pieces of vitreous, clusters of glial cells that support the retina’s health, or blood cells. These tiny bits of matter float in the vitreous jell
