They say the eyes are the windows to the soul, which means they’re very telling when it comes to your personality and emotions. As it turns out, the eyes can clue us in on a little bit more than what mood we’re in at the moment — they can give us warning signs about some serious (and not-so-serious) health issues.
Ever wondered what’s going on when you notice a lump on your eyelid of a little bit of a blur in vision? Check out these seven things that your eyes are trying to tell you when they exhibit these signs.
1. Redness
This hemorrhage should heal on its own in a few days, just be careful around that eye until the bruise has gone away. If the bruise persists for more than week, see your eye doctor.
Widespread redness is most likely associated with allergies, especially if the eyes are itchy and dry, too. If this redness is consistent and has not gone away in 10 days, call your doctor for a prescription.
2. Discharge
The truth behind your eye discharge can usually be riddled out depending on what other symptoms come along with it. For instance, a watery eye discharge generally means that the eye has been irritated somehow, most likely by an allergen like dust.
However, if the discharge is a white or yellow color, comes with a crustiness on the lids, itchiness, and a bloodshot appearance, this is most likely a viral infection like pink eye. Viruses like this are VERY infectious, so make sure to be wary of who you’re coming into contact with and get on some antibiotics ASAP.
Noticing blurriness, loss of vision, severe pain, or light sensitivity? This is probably a more severe (but still easily treatable) eye infection that you should take right to your optometrist.
3. Twitch
If the twitch is continuous for more than a week or if other parts of your face start twitching, bring this to your doctor.
4. Drooping
If you’re noticing your vision is becoming hindered, not by your eyesight but by a blockage in front of your eyes, this could be your eyelids drooping. This is something that happens as we age when our eyelids become thinner and lose their collagen; this is called ptosis or blepharoptosis.
Ptosis should not occur if you’re younger. If it is, take the condition to your doctor. In severe cases, the drooping eyelid can cover all or part of the pupil and interfere with vision in one or both eyes.
5. Yellowness
Yellowness may also be connected with the state of a gallbladder or bile ducts, which can interfere with digestive health. If you notice this yellowing, bring it to your doctor straight away.
6. Bulging
Some of us have bigger eyes, myself included. But there’s a difference between having large eyes and having eyes that bulge. Bulging is when our eyes seem to expand outside of our lids, or at least to a larger size than they usually are.
This can be a symptom of thyroid (or Graves) eye disease, which means your thyroid is overactive. Difficulties closing the eyes is another symptom of a malfunctioning thyroid; this only occurs in 30% of cases, so if you notice this symptom, call your doctor immediately.
7. Lumps
However, the odds are that this is a harmless thing called a “stye.” Styes are a result of your oil glands on the eyes getting clogged, infecting your eyelash follicles.
To ease the pain, place a warm, use a moist compress on the most tender part of the bump five or six times a day. You can also wash your eyelashes once a day with a few drops of baby shampoo and hot water. If nothing is working, call your doctor to see if you need an antibiotic, steroid ointment, or even surgery to drain the lesion.
Do you have any questions about symptoms you’ve notice on or around your eye? Share them in the comments section below!