While these visual hallucinations can cause feelings of insecurity and fear, once you understand that your hallucinations are not a symptom of mental illness, you may feel less affected by the sudden appearance and disappearance of the unexpected images. The images that appear can range from abstract patterns, shapes and colors, to detailed images of animals, objects, people, or cartoon characters.

Research shows that CBS most often occurs in those with visual acuity between 20/120 and 20/400. The visual images appear and disappear throughout the day, and differ in frequency from person to person- sometimes occurring every day, a few times per week, or several times per month. These hallucinations are strictly visual, without any accompanying sounds or sensations and are unrelated to mental illness or psychiatric problems. When low vision occurs suddenly, it can lead to a neurological reaction that causes the brain to create illusionary images, also called “visual hallucinations”. Charles Bonnet Syndrome affects up to 40 percent of people with low vision.Ĭharles Bonnet Syndrome (CBS) typically develops in the weeks and months following an incident that has caused a significant deterioration of sight.

Charles bonnet syndrome