These “floaters” are not just bothersome. They can be signs of potential retinal disease. Floaters, those tiny specks that drift across your field of vision, are usually harmless and often disappear or become less noticeable on their own.

Most eye floaters are caused by age-related changes that occur as the jelly-like substance (vitreous) inside your eyes becomes more liquid. Microscopic fibers within the vitreous tend to clump and can cast tiny shadows on your retina. The shadows you see are called floaters.

What are these spots? There is a gel-like substance that is between the retina and the lens called vitreous. These spots or strands are tiny clumps of materials within your vitreous. These floaters occur when there is an excess build-up of collagen in the vitreous.

You might not have symptoms in the early stages of diabetic retinopathy. As the condition progresses, you might develop: Spots or dark strings floating in your vision (floaters) Blurred vision.

In later stages of the disease, blood vessels in the retina start to bleed into the vitreous (gel-like fluid in the center of the eye). If this happens, you may see dark, floating spots or streaks that look like cobwebs. Sometimes, the spots clear up on their own — but it’s important to get treatment right away.

Will eye floaters go away over time? For many people, eye floaters do not necessarily go away over time, but they do become less noticeable. They slowly sink within your vitreous and eventually settle at the bottom of your eye. Once this happens, you won’t notice them and will think they have gone away.

If you frequently experience stress you might wonder, can stress cause eye floaters? The simple answer is, stress alone is not responsible for eye floaters appearing. Eye floaters are caused by deterioration of the vitreous humor which often happens as people age.

There comes a certain point where you should seek medical advice about your floaters, and it’s usually when multiple symptoms are combined. If you have floaters with blurred vision, eye pain, dark shadows across your vision, or if the floaters appear after an eye injury, you should see a doctor.

It usually takes about a month, but sometimes it can take up to six months. Floaters will gradually get smaller and less noticeable as the weeks and months go by, but usually they never disappear completely.