Almost everyone has experienced a twitching eye at one point or another, but few of us are aware of the underlying health issues that can trigger the uncomfortable sensation.
After all, the human body is a complex machine. It can take a lot of investigation to figure out why it reacts the way it does.
For example, headaches are often caused by totally unexpected triggers, like the environment or your emotional state. The same logic holds true for the rest of your body.
If you have a twitching eye, there are a range of factors inside and outside of your body that could be at fault.
In order to figure out the root cause, you have to think through everything from your emotional state to other physiological symptoms.
Doing a "survey" of your body can help give you some clues about the source of your twitch.
Scroll through below to learn more about twitching eyes and what causes them.
What Is An Eye Twitch?
An eye twitch is a small involuntary movement that affects just one eyelid.
It can impact either the upper or lower lid, but just affects one eye at a time.
An eye twitch can feel like a tremor or shaking in the eyelid, and it could cause the eye to close involuntarily on one side.
These twitches are generally painless and harmless, but can be distracting.
What Causes Eye Twitches? #1: Stress And Exhaustion
Both stress and exhaustion can lead to twitching in your eyes. Often, this is the simply result of muscle exhaustion.
If you've been keeping your eyes open for hours on end (possibly past your bedtime) your eyelid muscles will start to weaken and fibrillate.
This sensation will feel like a slight shiver, and often impacts your upper eyelid, which is responsible for fighting gravity.
If you're stressed-out and anxious in addition to being overtired, you may also experience occasional rushes of adrenaline that cause your eyelid to twitch.
#2: Caffeine
Coffee is delicious, and in small doses, it's actually very good for you.
However, if you take in too much coffee, you may start to notice unwanted side effects.
The caffeine in coffee, some teas, energy drinks, and soda boosts your energy by tricking your body into ignoring chemical signals for sleepiness. In the process, it produces adrenaline.
In small doses, this natural adrenaline just makes you peppy, but too much can make the small muscles in your eye jump involuntarily.
#3: Overindulging
Lots of people like to indulge in the occasional cigarette or stiff drink.
Strictly speaking, it's healthier to not have either of these habits at all.
More realistically, however, it's better to just cut back as much as you can, especially if you're starting to notice eye twitching.
Nicotine, the active chemical in cigarettes, acts as a stimulant on your heart, and as a relaxant on your skeletal muscles, which include the eyelids. That combination leads to muscle twitching throughout the body, and may be especially impactful for the delicate eyelid muscles.
Alcohol, meanwhile, is a depressant that weakens and relaxes all of your muscles, which can contribute to muscle exhaustion in your eyelids.
Try tapering off on your indulgences for a month or so and see if the twitching stops.
#4: Eye Infection
If your eyelid starts twitching, it may be a sign that you have an infection, like conjunctivitis, in one of your eyes.
Eye infections tend to cause the eye to get reddened, inflamed, and very itchy. The itchiness and irritation can also impact the area around the eye, including the eyelid.
If your eye starts to spasm slightly and also feels itchy or irritated, go to the doctor and get checked for eye infections.
#5: Foreign Object
There's no mystery here: if you get a foreign object stuck in your eye, your body is going to do everything in its power to expel it.
In other words, if you get an eyelash or a piece of grit in your eye, you're likely to experience a few automatic symptoms.
Your eye will start to water and itch, and your eyelid may also twitch if the object is lodged underneath the lid.
If this happens, resist the impulse to rub. Flush out your eye with clean, distilled water or sanitary saline solution to try to remove the object. The twitching should stop once your eye is clear.
#6: Tic Disorder
In some cases, eye twitching may be a symptom of a tic disorder.
The most famous tic disorder is Tourette's disease, but there are lots of other tic disorders that are much more common, and often much more mild.
People who experience tics perform involuntary movement with their body and/or voice.
A person with a tic disorder will almost always experience an eye twitch alongside other body movements, not as a single symptom.
#7: Dystonia
Dystonia is a severe movement disorder in which muscles contract involuntarily.
This condition can range from mild to extremely severe and impacts about 250,000 people in the United States.
The specific type of dystonia that impacts the eyes is called blepharospasm. This condition usually starts with uncontrollable blinking or winking in one or both eyes.
Eventually, it can progress to an inability to open the eyes. This condition requires medical treatment from a doctor.
#8: Myelin Disorder
There are a vast range of conditions that fall under the umbrella of myelin disorders, but the most famous is multiple sclerosis.
Myelin conditions are diseases that impact the bodies myelin sheath, which transmits nerve impulses throughout the body.
People with this condition might experience involuntary twitches in their eyes, as well as in other extremities, because they have intermittent control over their muscles.
However, if you only have eye twitching, it's very unlikely to be a symptom of a neurodegenerative disease.
Do you ever get eye twitches? What's your favorite way to treat them?
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