•Dr Priscilia Imade
We are continuing our discussion on the relationship between eye and mental health. This month of June is dedicated to creating awareness on how mental health can affect eye health.
The eyes are often described as the windows to the soul, but they are also windows to a person’s inner emotional state.
Visual impairment or chronic eye diseases can significantly affect a person’s quality of life, self-esteem and mental well-being. At the same time, mental health disorders like anxiety and depression can manifest through or worsen ocular symptoms, creating a complex cycle that requires an integrated care approach.
LINK BETWEEN EYE AND MENTAL HEALTH
When people lose vision whether gradually due to glaucoma or suddenly through trauma or disease, they often experience emotional distress, anxiety, depression and social withdrawal.
The World Health Organisation notes that people with vision loss are at a significantly higher risk of depression, particularly in developing countries where support systems are weak or absent.
Unfortunately, in many clinical settings, eye care is treated as purely physical. Patients are examined for refractive errors, eye pressure or cataracts but their emotional responses to vision challenges are rarely addressed.
Similarly, mental health assessments often overlook how poor vision contributes to psychological distress, academic decline, work stress and even increased risk of accidents.
WHEN THE MIND AFFECTS THE EYES
The relationship between mental and eye health is bi-directional.
Just as eye problems can lead to emotional disturbances, mental health conditions can influence how the eyes function. For example:
• Anxiety can cause light sensitivity, eye twitching and blurred vision.
• Depression may lead to neglect of eye care routines or missed clinic visits.
• Medications used in mental health treatment often have visual side effects, such as dry eyes or visual disturbances.
Children and young adults, particularly those in high-stress digital environments, may exhibit symptoms of digital eye strain that go hand-in-hand with mental fatigue and burnout but these are often misdiagnosed or ignored.
NEED FOR INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT
To truly heal the whole person, eye health and mental health must be managed together. This involves:
• Screening for mental health during eye examinations, especially in patients with chronic eye disease or vision loss.
• Educating patients about the emotional impact of visual disorders and offering referrals for psychological support.
• Encouraging collaboration between optometrists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and primary care providers.
• Designing public health campaigns that show vision loss not just as a physical disability, but as a mental and emotional challenge that can be overcome with the right support.
ACTION CALL
In Nigeria, where stigma around mental health remains high and eye care is underutilised, the need for this integrative approach is urgent. Many people live with untreated eye diseases and silently suffer the emotional consequences. Vision loss leads to unemployment, shame, isolation and too often, depression.
Healing the whole person means we must advocate for a national model that bridges eye care with emotional and mental health services. It also means building clinics, schools and communities where vision screenings come with compassion and where mental health is seen as essential to sight.
Finally, eye health and mental health are two sides of the same coin. One cannot be fully addressed without the other.
As we move towards more holistic and patient-centered care, we must recognise that healing the eyes without healing the heart and mind is an incomplete prescription. Let us aim to see the person, not just the pupil.
*Dr Priscilia Imade is CEO, Modern Eye Clinic, Lagos.
E-mail: moderneyecliniclagos@gmail.com
Another edition of the column returns on Monday in The Frontier.
