Nystagmus
Skysister
This is a topic which in all honesty, you will probably find very little commonality with on this bulleting board.
I know all about the difficulties of nystagmus, becaus I have it myself. It is ABSOLUTELY not connected to astigmatism - this is a refractive error, caused by a conical shape of the eyeball.
When did you notice your nystagmus - has it always been present, or did it come on at a later age. There are two basic types - early onset, usually from the baby stage, or late onset.
There are also a number of causes - do you know what the cause of yours is? If not, I strongly suggest you are examined by a neurologist. This is the crux: nystagmus is a NEUROLOGICAL problem, secondary to a visual one, although it obviously effects the vision.
I have a pilots licence, (and funnily enough, worked for a number of years as cabin crew). The airline never picked up on it; indeed, there was no medical to go through, just a questionnaire, BUT the CAA sure as hell did, when I was in the process of getting my class 2. It took a long time to get, and involved numerous specialist reports, and a lot of cost.
This was for a class 2 - I cannot get a class 1 because of this problem.
As I say, get it checked out. With me, without going into too much detail, the cause is a deformity of the brainstem.
On another note, why are contact lenses not an option for you? In some cases, contacts can actually IMPROVE nystagmus. Nobody quite knows how, but it is believed to be due to a feedback mechanism taking place. Give them a try.
Whatever you do, best of luck. You are very much in the minority with this condition, but you are not alone!
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