What should you know about eye and light sensitivity?

Light sensitivity means ordinary light feels uncomfortable or painful, so you may squint, close your eyes, or prefer a darker room. It can occur during a migraine, with conjunctivitis, after eye irritation, or when the eye surface is inflamed. Headache, nausea, watery eyes, redness, discharge, or blurred vision provide useful clues, but light sensitivity alone cannot identify the cause.

Meningitis can include light sensitivity with symptoms such as severe headache, fever, vomiting, a stiff neck, confusion, or a new rash. That combination needs urgent medical attention.

Reduce glare, use comfortable indoor lighting, and wear sunglasses outdoors without keeping the room dark all day. Rest your eyes, take screen breaks, and avoid rubbing them. Cool compresses may ease surface irritation. Keep hands and towels clean if redness or discharge is present, and do not share eye cosmetics or contact lenses. Use medicines only as advised for your symptoms.

Seek urgent care for sudden or severe eye pain, vision loss or marked blurring, an injury, chemical exposure, or light sensitivity with fever, stiff neck, confusion, or a severe headache. Arrange prompt assessment for a painful red eye, new discharge, or symptoms in a contact-lens wearer. A clinician can decide whether the problem is primarily ocular, neurological, or infectious.

Ask whether your pattern fits migraine or an eye condition, whether you should pause contact lenses, and which warning signs should bring you back urgently. Ask how to manage light exposure while the cause is being treated.