This woman can’t keep her eye on the ball. As a matter of fact, she can’t open her eyes for days at a time.
Natalie Adler, 21, of Melbourne, Australia, has been a victim of an unusual routine for four years. Her eyes involuntarily close for three days at time, then open for a few days, then shut again. Doctors believe she is the only person in the world with this strange condition.
"I go to bed and I can open my eyes, and then when I wake up the next day I can’t," Adler said. "Nobody knows why."
Doctors have performed hundreds of tests since her problem first appeared while she was still in high school. "I woke one Sunday and my eyes were swollen. It was the day before an English exam," she said. "I just never got better. My eyes started closing intermittently, really randomly, but within a few weeks they were closing for three days."
Doctors believe swelling from a recurring sinus staph infection is closing her eyes, but they are clueless as how to cure her. During "closed-eye days," Adler’s eyes are completely shut except for a small slit in her left eye. On "open-eye days," her eyes function normally, though the left eyelid often droops. Adler fits as much activity as she can into good days. "On my 18th birthday, my eyes were closed, but on my 21st they were open, so I had a party," Adler said.