I don't know what this is, but if it's the same as "popeye" I had the same problem with my female polymnus numerous times. If it's something different, just disregard.
She got this problem because at night when the lights went out or in the morning she would get light shock. She would just freak out trying to jump out of the tank. In the process she would occasionally hit her eye on something. She would lay on her side breathing very heavily or lie still like she was dead. When I got up the following day, she looked fine as though nothing had ever happened... unless of course she hurt her eye in the process. I took this shot one night during one of these episodes. Despite her appearance, her color looked totally normal the folowing day.
The following day she looked like this.
Usually popeye is caused by an injury. You can add some epsom salt to the tank and that seems like it might help a little. But in time it generally heals on it's own. I don't know if this is common with these fish, but I felt terrible that I could not find the source of this problem. The male never had these issues.
She eventually jumped. Her mate jumped about six months later. I had that fish for about three years. A year later, I still miss them.
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