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Original poster

Should I be worried about strange eye symptoms - contact lens wearer, blacking out a bit?

56 replies

loveyouradvice · 20/08/2019 23:06

I have been having strange symptoms for last 3 hours. Just wondering if I should be worried - or get a good night's sleep and see how I am in the morning?

My left eye's vision becomes obscured after I blink by what looks like a black ink splodge, which then recedes until I blink again. I am a contact lens wearer who swims every day; so may have got water in my eye.

At its worse it covers about 40% of my vision and recedes to almost nothing.

OP posts:
thoroclock · 20/08/2019 23:49

Go now. I've had retinal tears and each time they were picked up the optician faxed the hospital immediately to say I was on my way.
Don't leave it, if it detaches completely they can't reattach.

EyeDrops · 20/08/2019 23:54

Go now!! Taxi or lift if possible.

MiniMum97 · 20/08/2019 23:57

Don't leave it. Don't risk your sight.

Tonnerre · 21/08/2019 00:26

now need to decide whether to go to moor fields a & e now or after i have slept

Go NOW. When this happened to my brother the GP told him it couldn't wait overnight, and he was right.

AlexaAmbidextra · 21/08/2019 00:57

OP. There is no point going to Moorfields now. If it is a detached retina they will diagnose it in the Emergency Department and tell you to come back at 8.30 in the morning. They don’t do surgery for this at night. I know as I’ve been there with a detached retina.

RacheyCat · 21/08/2019 02:44

@Gottoloveabagel there is some putting it back, tbf. I had a detached retina that crossed my macula, and they did put it back. It was pretty unpleasant surgery and I don't have perfect vision, but there are invasive ways of putting it back, especially if you're seen quickly.

OP. Go to A&E. Someone said upthread that they don't have specialist equipment like the opticians - this is nonsense. They will send you off to the specialist eye department as needed. They called a surgeon out from another county on a Sunday evening to do my final diagnosis. They won't mess around if it's your retina. Don't waste time.

RacheyCat · 21/08/2019 02:45

*That should say less invasive! There are many ways to re-attach a retina.

RacheyCat · 21/08/2019 02:47

@AlexaAmbidextra but they may give advice in the meantime, after diagnosis. I was told to lie on one side of my body as much as possible, to stop it peeling away any more than it had.

SimplySteveRedux · 21/08/2019 04:31

Its a possible sign of retinal detachment, google where your nearest emergency eye unit is and go there, dont go to the opticians they will send you to hospital as they cant do any thing

A lot of emergency eye departments have a list of local opticians to do retinal scans the same day, if something abnormal is found you're pushed up the list to see a consultant the same day, with extremely prompt surgery if required.

SleepWarrior · 21/08/2019 04:41

What did you decide to do? Hope you're busy getting seen!

AlexaAmbidextra · 21/08/2019 05:36

but they may give advice in the meantime, after diagnosis. I was told to lie on one side of my body as much as possible, to stop it peeling away any more than it had.

They told me that my local consultant shouldn’t have advised me to go to Moorfields that evening as nothing would be done until the next morning. They gave me no advice, just told me to return at 8.30 the next day.

QOD · 21/08/2019 06:23

How are you?

Atropa · 21/08/2019 06:55

@Ninjasan You make it sound far too easy. I used to have an ID card in my country of birth and it was cheap and easy to get. Around €70 iirc.

When I applied for PR a year ago (having lived in the UK for well over a decade, always paid tax etc.) the document to be completed was 80 pages long, required proof of all tenancy agreements, bank statements, tax documents and so much more far beyond the 5 years such documents are advised to be kept for. Luckily I keep paperwork longer, but it was still a big hassle. I then paid for pictures, processing, postage, copies.. to receive a 1940s-style card back.

To gain citizenship you then provide the exact same documents again, even though they should be on file already. Plus proof you speak sufficient English (fair enough) and a citizenship test with irrelevant questions and which most British people would fail. I paid around £2,000 for this, all in and one of my colleagues ended up with an over 10k bill.

Now my child can either go through the same (how does this even work for minors when the parent didn't have the 1k per child at the time) or we go through the more complicated, but vastly cheaper, adoption route.

I also have to renounce my old citizenship.

It really isn't that simple and I fear for what happens to my DC if the adoption doesn't go through in time.

Atropa · 21/08/2019 06:55

Are wrong thread, sorry.

SouthernLands · 21/08/2019 06:56

To the PP who wears lenses while swimming, please reconsider, it is really risky. You can buy prescription goggles - either speak to your optician or look at Amazon.

It's not risky according to my optician, as long as your sensible. In fact, he was the one who suggested daily disposables for it and the two I've had since then don't see a problem either. You need to prevent water getting trapped between the lens and eye, so as long as you're insistent about wearing goggles all of the time (showers, slides etc), teaching DC not to splash you in the face nor touch your goggles AND you remove the lenses as soon as you're out of the pool, then it's ok.

sueelleker · 21/08/2019 07:02

My optician sent my to the Eye Hospital, and they wouldn't even let me go home to collect my nightwear. I had to stay in until they could fit me in for the operation. No-one would send you home with a retinal detachment.

OldGrinch · 21/08/2019 07:07

Are you OK OP?

Jiggeriepokerie · 21/08/2019 08:40

SouthernLands

It's not risky according to my optician, as long as your sensible. In fact, he was the one who suggested daily disposables for it and the two I've had since then don't see a problem either. You need to prevent water getting trapped between the lens and eye, so as long as you're insistent about wearing goggles all of the time (showers, slides etc), teaching DC not to splash you in the face nor touch your goggles AND you remove the lenses as soon as you're out of the pool, then it's ok.

You'd re-think your optician's advice if you could see the amount of drugs I was using for 6 months + after getting water under my lens. I was lucky not to lose the sight in my left eye completely, just a little bit from the scarring.

Gottoloveabagel · 21/08/2019 10:22

@Jiggeriepokerie do you wear dailies? These were the only ones my optician said I could swim in as long as I took them out straight after being in the pool.

This said I'm a rubbish swimmer and rarely get my head in the water, never if I can help it!!!!

Schuyler · 21/08/2019 10:30

Moorfields are fantastic, I hope you’re there now! They diagnosed my rare condition and improved my quality of life so much. I thought my problem wasn’t that important but they thought differently and I ended up being assessed and treated quickly.

Jiggeriepokerie · 21/08/2019 10:36

gottoloveabagel

Yep dailies here.

Bugs in water (showers, pools) can be nasty so please be really careful. It's not a fun experience when things go wrong!

Mabelface · 21/08/2019 10:55

As you get older the vitreous jelly at the back of your eye can break down and pull on blood vessels causing a bleed. Worst case scenario is retinal detachment, so you do need to be seen very soon. Do you have a local eye hospital? If you do, they should have their own A&E. Don't drive though, a someone said and take sunglasses as your eyes will be sensitive to light after the drops. I had this several years ago. Was left with a small floater that my brain has learned to ignore most of the time.

clairefrasier · 21/08/2019 11:29

OP, if you are near London go to Moorfields eye hospital A&E ASAP.

AlexaAmbidextra · 21/08/2019 14:26

No-one would send you home with a retinal detachment.

Well yes, Moorfields would because they do and they did!

Earlgreyandcake · 21/08/2019 22:52

Any update?