Retired Woman Plagued by Alien Visions After Eye Surgery

In November 2025, a 59-year-old woman named Alison Henthorne from Bedfordshire, UK, began experiencing a series of disturbing hallucinations following two major eye operations to repair a detached retina. Shortly after returning home from the hospital, Alison started witnessing unsettling images of alien faces, demons, and various animals throughout her daily routine.

Despite knowing the visions were not real, Alison grew increasingly worried that she was "going crazy" until her own research uncovered information about Charles Bonnet syndrome. This uncommon condition is not an indication of mental illness or dementia, but rather occurs when the brain generates images to make up for reduced vision.

"I had an operation on my eye and then I started to notice creatures everywhere," Alison explained. "I'd see strange creatures with purple eyes - then I'd see another one floating around near me. I'd even see something that looked like a spaceship, firing out laser beams in the garden one night."

Alison's experience highlights the profound impact that vision loss can have on a person's mental well-being. While Charles Bonnet syndrome may be an unsettling condition, it is a natural response of the brain to compensate for diminished eyesight, and not a sign of any deeper underlying issue.