Vision Problems While Traveling in Malaysia
OMG. Guess what.
I’ve barely been off the pills and the headaches for a week… and boom. The universe already comes knocking with the next surprise.
Seriously. How even?!
This morning I woke up, and since it’s Sunday, I stayed lazy in bed watching a movie. Killing Them Softly.
But something felt weird. Not the film, but my vision.
The right side of my sight just… stopped showing up.
Like a digital stretch filter had grabbed my eyeball and went “yeet.”
You might already know this: I’ve got a macula edema in my right eye.
It’s basically a tiny blocked blood vessel, which causes fluid to build up behind my retina.
How do I explain that?
It’s like my right eye is a funhouse mirror.
When I look at a grid, the center square gets squished.
I can see everything, but I can’t focus — no sharpness, no detail. Just vibes.
Sometimes I see sunspots.
They usually vanish after a few minutes.
But the whole half-blurry movie thing? That was new.
I figured I’d just go back to sleep.
When I woke up again, it was gone.
I went for a walk, had breakfast, had lunch. Nothing special.
In the afternoon I went to my cool new workspace — Light Capture.
Ordered a latte, opened my laptop, worked a bit.
Around five, I ordered traditional Malaysian rice, chicken, and fresh sambal.
And right after eating — it happened.
Sunspots again. Flashing.
At first I thought my right eye just wanted some attention.
But then it got worse.
Like a zigzag light show.
And this time… in both eyes.
Super annoying.
It got to the point where I literally couldn’t read my screen anymore.
So yeah. Thanks, universe. Another delightful surprise.
So there I am.
Sitting in a vintage café. Behind my laptop.
While my vision is basically packing its bags.
What do you even do at that point?
No clue. I wasn’t panicking, but I was thinking:
How am I supposed to solve this?
Would I collapse if I stood up? Would I faint mid-step?
Between the flashes and zigzag waves, I noticed the café life just kept buzzing.
Of course no one noticed anything.
And I wasn’t about to ask for help or make a scene.
I wouldn’t even know how to ask for help.
Or if I could help myself at all.
So I asked Janet for advice.
Struggled to read through some possible causes.
TIA. Stroke.
But my smile still worked. My arms felt fine. I could follow everything around me.
So I ruled that out.
Janet told me to stop looking at my screen.
To rest. Close my eyes.
Which is kind of weird to do in a café, no? Just… close your eyes like a glitchy monk in public.
Among the possible causes, one stood out: ocular migraine.
Or visual migraine.
Never had one before, but it made sense.
Supposedly goes away after about 30 minutes.
So I decided to risk it and head back to the hostel.
That meant crossing several streets.
And KL traffic is no joke.
So yeah, that was gonna be fun.
But sitting there wasn’t helping either — my sight wasn’t magically clearing up.
I told myself I know the way pretty well.
So even with minimal vision, I’d probably make it.
As long as it didn’t get worse mid-crossing.
I stood up, paid, and somehow… that went fine.
No one noticed a thing. I think.
I walked outside, crossed the first street. Also fine.
My vision now felt like someone had turned up the sharpness filter waaay too far.
But at least I could still see where I was walking.
By the time I reached the hostel, the flashing and zigzags were gone.
Maybe because I started moving? Who knows.
By the time I reached my bedroom, the 4K effect was almost completely gone too.
When I finally laid down on my bed —
My vision? Back to normal. Of course.
So yeah, maybe it was an ocular migraine.
Which apparently can be followed by a regular migraine. Or a pounding headache.
Never had that before either.
But yep — the trippy vision did make room for a dull, throbbing yay-you-survived headache.
So. That’s cute.
Again — thank you, universe.
What’s next on the menu for tomorrow? 😝
