Double vision

[MikeC]

Can anybody explain this, and tell me what to do about it?

I get double vision. This not the effect of seeing two images, one from
each eye. If I look with either the left or right eye individually, I see
two clear images, one a bit above the other. Reading normal print at normal
reading distance, the vertical separation between the two images is such
that the tops of the line of print coincides with the bottom of the ghost
image. If I look at a single 'o', it looks a lot like an '8'. If I was
looking at an upper-case 'O', the bottom of the ghost image would go roughly
through the middle of the real image. The ghost image is not quite as black
as the real image, but both images are quite sharp, with a clear,
white-space separation between them. My left and right eyes are not exactly
the same - the vertical separation is fractionally different, but they are
really very close. I have noticed that the problem is related to my sleep
pattern, and if I have slept for longer (I like lying in a bit at the
weekends), it is always much worse, and usually lasts most of the day. If I
am slightly sleep-deprived, my vision is pretty good, though I wear
off-the-peg reading glasses. All a part of being in my early 60's, I guess!

I had an eye test recently (I haven't bought the glasses yet), but I don't
think the otician believed me - or thought I was misinterpreting what I was
seeing, but I'm quite sure of what I see. Astigmatism causes blurring or
stretching of a point, either vertically or horizontally (or at an angle),
but yesterday, I had powered off my PC, and there were two small white
specks, vertically one above the other against the black screen. They were
about the size of a pin-head, and triangular in shape, and looked identical,
and for a while, I truly wasn't sure whether there were two spots, or
whether it was one spot, and my optical problem. When I tilted my head, the
angle between the spots tilted with it, so I realised that there was, in
fact, a single spot. I am interested (as a layman) in science in general,
and in my earlier years, I took a particular interest in optics. I don't
claim any expertise, but I understand the basics of how the eye focusses
light, and how glasses correct for defects. I must confess, though, that I
don't understand the condition that I have, unless my biological lenses are
'8'-shaped, rather than 0-shaped.

Any thoughts? Do other people get this?

Thanks,
MikeC.

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