My sister from California was telling me today that one time in her teens she got out of bed in the dark, took one step and slammed into the wall. When she went out the door to go to school everything was backward. The woods, usually to her left as she went out, were on the right, while the river that before was to the right, was now on the left. Doors, windows, streets, roads, buildings were all reversed.

Has anyone ever heard of this, known anyone who experienced this or is my sister just a typical Californian?

Catty

Sounds like she hit herself hard enough to change the direction of her brain functions. (can you do that?) The right controls you left and vice versa including your eyes. Maybe her sight synapses/control part of the brain got switched around when she slammed into the wall, which could cause everything to look backwards. It might not be, but it could be a possibility...

How long did it last?

Hi Dixie:

In exploring this topic further, my sister says it has lasted off and on all her life, that she'll be driving along the street and suddenly everything will switch, so that what she sees is a mirror image of what she normally sees. I have a suspicion that this may be an ocular problem - any thoughts?

Catty

My sister says she believes it happened just before she got out of bed and that is what caused to slam into the wall. She believes it has something to do with magnitite. ??

Catty

...and the Doctors explained this as????? (please tell me she has seen a Doctor about it!!)

I'm not sure she saw a doctor in her youth, in those days (she's 74 or 5) they didn't take kids to the doctor unless they were near death. At least my parents didn't, they couldn't afford it. After she grew up it slacked off and only happens now rarely. I forgot to ask her if she'd seen a doctor in adulthood. But I will.

Catty

Catty, this has happened to me a few times, and it has also happened to my sister. When it happens to me, I have a heavy feeling in my head. It seems to happen when I'm really focused on something. Sorta like your eyes and mind are focusing on different things. I never thought about mentioning it to the doctor because it doesn't happen often, and there's years between it happening. The first time it happened, I was a teenager. It's weird though because everything is in total reverse.

I didn't hit my head or walk into anything, and the weirdest thing that happened to my sister and I was that we both got shocked by the same bolt of lightening when we were little. That knocked us out for a few seconds.

Wow, honi, that is weird. You must have been horribly frightened. What a strange thing the brain is!

Catty

What is being described sounds like Optical Transposition and can be either up/down or left/right. Don't know anything about it except that the brain is processing images that are seen and then switching the left side with the right side...or the top with the bottom. What really amazes me is that after such an occurance none of these people have gone to a neurologist. Personally, if I experienced it for even a second I'd be making a call for the first appointment I could get. Honi, what if this ever happened while you were out driving? I want you to take care of yourself.
I can't imagine how scary this must be for those who experience it but it's not something to be taken lightly.

Thank you Georgia! At last we have a name for it and can research it on the net. Bless you!

Catty

Now don't go thanking me so quickly Catty...afraid you won't find much about it on the internet. I've already looked. The most information I found linked it to Dementia or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But yes, you do have a name so you can research it the old fashion way.
P.S. You can also research Visual Disorientation which is similiar.