Medical Issue - Frustrated and Frightened

[susiestar]

As if I didn't have enough health issues, now I have one that really frightens me. The one sense I don't think I can cope without is sight. I have bad eyesight and astigmatism, and that isn't a big deal. But lately my eyes don't always focus after I blink. The world is fine one second and the next? I blink and everything is blurry. Sometimes it goes away in a few minutes, sometimes it lasts for hours. The first time or two I thought it was dehydration but that doesn't seem to be the cause. The doctor's reaction? "Huh. That's weird."

So now I have another issue that I need a referral to yet another specialist over. I cannot make it happen so the doctor can see it. I can't predict it, or how long it will last.

I have almost quit driving unless the kids absolutely must go somewhere or be picked up while husband is teaching. He is out of town three days a week teaching, and while he can take the university bus quite easily, it usually means that I either have to pick him up or he has to walk home. While it is relatively safe, and it isn't super far, it is still a lot after a long day, Know what I mean??

I hate being afraid to drive, and I hate having to pull over and park and call husband or my parents or Wiz to come and get me if I am driving and get blurry. Eye drops for dry eyes and for allergy eyes don't help at all. They do sting like crazy though. I am using some of the gel eye drops at night in the hopes that if it is the eye getting too dry that this will help. I bought the kind that give you many individually packaged doses rather than a bottle, because I don't think I can handle an infection on top of this.

Have any of you heard of anything like this? Any ideas/suggestions? You know it isn't good when you get a confused look from the doctor, Know what I mean?? It seems to be about the only reaction I get anymore, and it is exasperating.

I have stopped driving every time I was out and this happened, and I have refused to go to things or called to get help getting thank you home from something. It isn't easy to ask, but we cannot afford for me to wreck the car and even more I couldn't live with myself if I hurt someone, esp one of my kids who was in the car with me. It is tempting to try to push through and drive with the blurriness, but I am just too scared I will hurt someone.

I hate feeling like my body is betraying me one more time. It hoovers.

 

[DammitJanet]

Could it be the start of glaucoma? Ask for a pressure test. That is the only thing I can think of. When they are in there they can see the back of your eye and look at the nerves. I have to get my pressure tested every year or two, which reminds me I am overdue. No one knows why my pressure is up because we dont think I have glaucoma but the nerves in one eye are different than in the other.

 

[mom_to_3]

Dry eyes will give you blurry vision. I had graves eye disease and one of the symptoms of that is severe dry eyes. I've used the eye gels and the drops. The best advice I could give you until you can see an opthamologist, is to use a preservative free eye drop and to use it several times throughout the day. From what I understand, even an optomotrist can see the dry eyes so you might even want to start there. HTH

 

[HaoZi]

I understand your fear. I'm such a visual person myself and have some kind of viral eye infection right now that I'm dealing with. It hasn't impaired my vision but it could have if I had let it go longer and kept wearing my contacts instead of going to doctor. I put it off too long as it was because I thought it was allergies or a reaction to a new makeup or something. I had cornea and iris inflammation by then. Now I have some cornea scarring and go back on the 26th to see if I can even wear contacts again or if I will be in my glasses forever now (hate hate HATE wearing glasses).

 

[DDD]

I'm sorry Susie. No medical advice here. on the other hand in your signature J is now fifteen and a easy child. Any chance she can get her restricted license so she could take over the driving for you? Hugs DDD

 

[Methuselah]

Hi Susie,

Have you checked your blood sugar? High blood sugars can blur your vision.

 

[Hound dog]

High blood sugar, dry eyes, glaucoma.

You've tried the dry eye deal and it doesn't appear to have helped. A trip to the eye doctor for an exam usually means getting the glaucoma exam as well. If yours doesn't do it as matter of course, then find one that does. Your fam doctor would have to, and should have checked your blood sugar............. Don't you just love it when they say "oh that's weird" and proceed to do nothing to investigate? ugh

I've had this happen on very rare occasion.........and yes once or twice while driving. I've assumed it was blood sugar and watched that. Now I dunno if it was or not but I only have it happen very rarely so who knows. Glaucoma is also in the family. But Mom has had very successful treatment for it so far and done very well. And so far I test neg for it.

Do what you need to do to get it checked out and find the cause. (cuz there is one) I know and understand about the driving part. Had to pull over once and wait for it to pass. ugh

Hugs

 

[susiestar]

Thanks, all. I will monitor blood sugar and have the glaucoma test re-done. It was done about six mos ago and all looked fine. I haven't had any other symptoms of blood sugar problems, but that isn't always something you can feel.

As an FYI for any of you who have eye issues now or will in the future, their are several brands that package the drops in many individual dose units. They are each sterile, and after you use them you throw the little ampule away. This keeps your drops from going bad. I used to never pay attention to how long a bottle had been open as long as the expiration date hadn't been passed. Then I did a little research for a friend and learned that eyedrops that are not kept refrigerated go bad super fast, and that even drops you refrigerate go bad in 14days. By "go bad" I mean they develop a large amount of bacteria and can permanently damage your eyes.

So I urge you ALL to use the individual dose drops even if they are more expensive. Saving the amt of money that is the price difference between the bottle and the indiv drops is being penny wise and pound foolish. The indiv doses are handy because they don't need refrigeration and you can safely use a dose on a spouse or kid with-o risking infection for either of you.

Jessie cannot get her license. She has seizures and it isn't safe or legal. If we can get a doctor to get them under control, then she MIGHT be able to. It depends on the doctor and on the Dept. Of Public Safety. Sorry my sig was out of date, I forgot to change it when the kids had bdays!

 

[svengandhi]

Have your eyes checked for cataracts. I have the beginnings of them but they are not ripe yet. I occasionally experience symptoms which sound similar to yours. Also get checked for macular degeneration. Like you, I have suffered from poor vision. I had LASIK in 2001 and again in 2006 and it was the best decision I ever made. I am also so afraid of losing my sight.

 

[TerryJ2]

Great ideas here. I know you can't wait for the a.m. to make your appointment.
I'm sending hugs and support.

 

[JJJ]

I had a similar issue and the doctor did a OCI (?) scan of my retina. I had fluid on my retina. How to cure it....decrease my stress


I was very scared too but it has gotten much better.

 

[InsaneCdn]

Mine get blurry when my oil glands on my eyelids get "gunked up". It is oil, not water, that keeps the eyes from drying out. Drops will re-hydrate them, but it doens't solve the problem. I've tried several different things, but don't have a really good solution yet.

 

[susiestar]

IC, have you tried eyelid scrubs? You can do your own or buy a special cleaner to do it. The first step with either way is to wash your hands well. Then you either use the pads that come soaked in the cleanser or take a few drops of baby shampoo and use this to scrub the eyelash area. I have had blepharitis which is when the oil glands and/or hair follicles get plugged up and swollen. It is usually caused by what amounts to dandruff in your eyelashes, or that is how the eye doctor explained it when I had it when Wiz was little. You have to open your eyes to scrub the eyelid, and then you rinse it. I usually used saline solution to rinse the soap off because it was much easier on my eyes. Do NOT use Johnson' and Johnson's baby soap - it will burn like fire. The Baby Magic brand doesn't burn, but that no more tears stuff is evil.

I haven't had problems from blepharitis in years, but J just had it for the first time and that is why I remembered it. The cleanser pads that you buy (come in a jar like stridex pads, lol) do not burn at all, but they are ten bucks for thirty pads, which is expensive.

 

[Steely]

I think the Dr was being lazy. There are so many things this could be. I had this in one eye, and it turned out it was fine. Sometimes the gel in the eye is not substantial enough (cannot remember the exact name) and it can cause blurriness or floaters. Mine went away.
I would have thought Dr would also have done a glaucoma test or looked for cataracts. There are SO many things - none of which scream to me impending blindness. I think the Dr was just not into solving it in the moment.
I am sure it will be ok - let us know how it goes tomorrow! Good Luck!

 

[InsaneCdn]

The only thing that has helped at all is hot-water eye soaks. Tap water as hot as you can stand it, on a facecloth (run water into a basin) - lean over basin and compress the hot facecloth into the closed eyes until it starts to cool - wring out facecloth and repeat. Ideally, 5 minutes twice a day. This increases blood-flow through the eyelids, which opens "everything" up, not just the oil gland pores - and changes the viscosity of the oil.

 

[TerryJ2]

How to cure it....decrease my stress

Oh, yeah ...

 

[Star*]

GET THEEEEEEEEEE to an opthamologist that is an eye surgeon NOW. (NOT an optometrist) There are so many diseases of the eye, and medical issues with you......DF is going blind and has had one corrective surgery that helped tremendously. This is nothing to play with. And I'm not sending you books in braile.