Migraine and Visual Arts
| Author: Klaus Podoll | 13. May 2007 |
| Edited by: Klaus Podoll |
E
E., Normal vision, 2005.
E., Metamorphopsia in left half-field of vision, 2005.
"I am a female aged 57 and began having migraines with aura late last year. I have not had a painful migraine headache. Above are two photos, #1 an actual view, #2 my attempt to recreate what I experienced earlier this month. I had previously experienced the bright, flashing zigzag effects of migraine aura perhaps six or seven times during the period from November 2004 to April 2005. I saw a neurologist. I was unaware of any other types of aura until May 7.
The recreation (#2) represents my experience on May 7, 2005. It seemed as if my right eye saw the landscape realistically, but my left eye perceived a distorted view that seemed to be surging rapidly toward me [i.e. metamorphopsia in left half-field of vision]. There was a sensation of pressure on the eye from within. Then the left eyeball seemed to be on a stalk protruding from my face, turning to the left and right of its own accord [i.e. body image disturbance]. When I tried to describe what was happening to me, I told the people I was with 'Something isn't right and I'm going somewhere else.' I repeated that again to another friend by way of explanation as I left. I had trouble keeping my balance as I walked [i.e. ataxia], with the feeling that the landscape was out of synch with reality and the sensation of motion. This was accompanied by a feeling of fear that I was experiencing a stroke. Nausea followed, then later extreme exhaustion.
After a day in the local hospital's emergency room I was assured that this was another form of migraine aura. I began to learn more through research on the internet. This website, Migraine-Aura, has been most helpful. Through this search in the last week I formed the impression (which you describe as a misapprehension) that the 'Alice in Wonderland Syndrome' would apply to the sort of visual distortion or hallucination that I experienced. I had come to believe it was synonymous with metamorphopsia. However, perhaps the latter portion of the experience (protruding eye) could be labeled AIWS? [Yes, the latter portion of the experiences features a variety of body image disturbance as obligatory core symptom of the AIWS, occurring in succession with metamorphopsia as a facultative symptom of AIWS.] In any case, thank you for the extensive information presented on the website. I would have liked to read accounts [pending] from people who have had the type of visual distortion that I did."
(E., Emails to Klaus Podoll, May 15-16, 2005; additions in square brackets by Klaus Podoll)
E., Migraine aura dream image, 2005. "This is my attempt to render the dream which contained facial metamorphopsia. I am not familiar with creating animations so I couldn't show the actual transformation, but it was quick-- its pace could be likened to a pupil dilating. The woman in the dream is unknown to me." © 2005 E.
"This is my memory of a migraine aura dream, which occurred last week, 6 days after my first experience of metamorphopsia and other symptoms of the Alice in Wonderland syndrome (AIWS) in the awake state:
May 13, 2005: I awoke from a dream in which I was looking at a woman's face. I seemed to move to a position below her, and looked up at her face. Her right nostril enlarged and changed shape to a pointed oval. I knew in the dream that I was dreaming and that this was an aura and was jolted awake.
I think that I awoke early in the morning, perhaps 6:00 a.m. or so. I remember the dream image vividly, as though it were a photo or a film. I don't recall other symptoms upon awakening, and have never had this particular dream before, nor do I remember having other migraine-related dreams.
I can only imagine that since this is so much on my mind since my AIWS experience on May 7, 2005, the insight simply popped up in the dream as a form of running commentary. Perhaps since it is so new to me it's hard to avoid thinking about it often. In my dream, the surprise of that realization (that I was dreaming, and it was an aura) abruptly woke me. I had been looking at the website and the art there. Perhaps that is the reason I identified it as migraine aura. The dream image was realistic, photographically so, and not fragmented or distorted in any way, except for the nostril, rounded at the bottom but pointed at the top."
(E., Email to Klaus Podoll, May 16, 2005)
top
MIGRAINE CLASSIFICATION
|
MIGRAINE HEADACHE
|
MIGRAINE AURA
|
MIGRAINE ART
About Us |
Contact |
IMPRINT |
Sitemap
Copyright © 2006 Migraine Aura Foundation, All rights reserved.
Thanks to: RAFFELT MEDIENDESIGN and toms-projekte.de | webmaster@migraine-aura.org
We subscribe to the HONcode principles. Verify here.
NEW BOOK: Klaus Podoll & Derek Robinson, Migraine Art - The Migraine Experience from Within