Close-up of an eye with a purple iris and thick, dark lashes.
Jeffry Ricker, Ph.D. and I wrote an article on Charles Bonnet Syndrome (CBS) to bring awareness to this fascinating ophthalmologic condition.
Special acknowledgement goes to Vanessa Saunders, PhD, Dr. Rebecca A. Fein, and Killian Kleffner, PhD for serving as external reviewers and editors. Thank you, #AFlockofScientists, LLC.
This article was originally written for the December 2021 issue of ForeSight, a newsletter distributed by the Arizona Council of the Blind.
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Title: My Staircase Became a Forest—What is Happening to Me? Charles Bonnet Syndrome and Hallucinations in the Blind
As he rose from the sofa and began to walk across the living room to the stairs, the 63-year-old man noticed that he was surrounded by a forest of bushes and small trees. The man, who was completely blind, knew that the plants were not really there, but he still found them difficult to ignore. He navigated through the dense foliage and made his way to the bottom of the stairs. Looking up, he saw that his way was blocked by more plants growing to the top. (Personal narrative)
This man’s experience represents some of the characteristics of Charles Bonnet syndrome (CBS). One of the most important features is the presence of visual hallucinations (perceptions in the absence of sensory input) in people who are visually impaired or who have a sudden change in vision. Medical experts have found that the visual deficits are often the result of diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, glaucoma, or cataracts.
CBS is not the result of a mental health condition. But CBS can result from damage at any point in the pathway from the eyes to the visual areas of the brain. People with CBS typically have full or some partial insight into the unreal nature of the hallucinations.
In this article, we answer the following questions. What do we know about CBS? Who is most likely to experience CBS hallucinations? Are the hallucinations disturbing or distracting? Can the symptoms be reduced?
To learn more about CBS, please read the entire article at https://flockofscientists.wixsite.com/mysite/post/my-staircase-became-a-forest-what-is-happening-to-me-charles-bonnet-syndrome-and-hallucinations-in
#CharlesBonnetSyndrome #CBS #VisionLoss #Ophthalmology #VisualHallucinations