I started a new job last week at a fab shop, its different than im used to. I was a sales rep for an industrial supply company selling bandsaws and bandsaw blades. now im operating the same saws i used to sell. Anyways last night i had to do alittle bit of welding, got done work at 230 this morning, got on the computer checkin out the club after a bit my eyes started really bothering me. About 3 hours went by and i couldnt stand to keep them open. I went to the hospital, the doc told me i had pretty bad "welding flash". I guess its like a sunburn on the eye balls. He put drops in my eyes to numb the pain ( at this point it was impossible for me to open them half way for 1 second).
He gave me a prescription for a pain kille. Now Im not really good with taking medication, a couple tylenol gives me a buzz. The phamasist (sp) told me it was strong medicine, and that i could take 1-2 pills, well the pain was pretty bad so i took 2 1/2. Boy am i ever feelin it, my eyes arent hurting thats for sure, actually i feel kinda light and since i started typing this i think my buzz has increased quit a bit. it feels weird. Wow i have to stop typing now cuz i could probley me here typing for hours. lol i found a stoned emoticon

welding flash...yep it sucks...sandpaper on the eyes?

Ya it does feel like sand paper in the eyes but the doc said i didnt have anything in them.
I take it you have experienced this as well.

Me too. From the welder and lasers at work (that'* a bit scarier).

Couple days will be much better, stoner.

Agreed. I did that, too, when I was a welder. It'* is like a sunburn, but most of the pain comes from the burned retina. You don't even have to be looking at a welding light to get it. As long as it'* in your peripheral, it'll do damage.

Ya I thought i'd be alright by just turning my eyes away from the weld, well i guess that makes it twice that iv been wrong in my life.

HEY!!! Who put that extra line in my quote?!?! I didn't say that!!! Will, did you?? :P

As a master welder with 17 tickets im interested to know how you got flashed? (heh)
I havnt been (expt a spark here, spark there...) in the last 12years... It depends on your eyesight, I use a #9 whenever I do any welding. Arc welding which I do is 10 Times brighter then the sun from here... I would presume that you were doing MIG? sence from the way you sounded you never have done any of that before. MIG has to be the easyest because you got a gun and a trigger... how hard could it be?
Fabrication shop work is neat... Ive been working in for the last few weeks, but they dont nearly pay as good as offsite work.

I didn't burn myself!!! I was setting up at my work table when I first started and the guy at the next table didn't set up the weld screen between our workstations!!! I've done MIG, stick, offsite, in-shop, you name it. You assume?

don't stare at the light... Its easy to look at it cuz it doesnt burn untill later..
I got some nasty UV burns on my neck because of other people welding beside me... Its best to have a screen, but just wear tinted safty glasses and you should be O-K working around others.. aslong as there to the side and not infront...