'My Eyes Feel Funny': Google Searches for Symptoms Spike After Eclipse

A total solar eclipse wowed viewers across the United States on Monday (Aug. 21), but for many, this amazement was followed by worry about whether the eclipse had damaged their eyes or caused other symptoms.

Shortly after the celestial event, Google searches for terms such as "solar eclipse headache," "eyes hurt" and "seeing spots" all increased, according to Mashable.

Google searches for the term "eyes feel funny" also soared after the eclipse.

Fortunately, experts say that if your eyes felt a little strange after the eclipse, it's not necessarily a reason to worry. It could be that you have dry eyes from keeping your eyes open too long, according to Dr. Vincent Jerome Giovinazzo, director of ophthalmology at Staten Island University Hospital in New York City. Giovinazzo told Live Science that he has already seen several patients who said their eyes felt funny after watching Monday's eclipse, and they all had dry eyes.

If you did damage your eyes from looking at the eclipse, it would not be something you would feel. Rather, it would be something you would see. Symptoms of "solar retinopathy" — or damage to the eye's retina that can occur from looking at the sun — are visual. (The retinas have no nerve fibers, so you cannot feel damage in this area.) These symptoms include blurriness or blind spots in your vision, or a dark or dim spot in your central vision.


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