[panic].....ignored my health and went for eye check....have had an eye infection that was left and now caused perminant damage...[sad]

[Psychomum5]

I went for an eye test today. I am waiting for CBT to kick off for my driving phobic issues and I know that I have an astigmatism in my right eye, so wanted to ensure that y vision wasn;t going to cause issues for my driving IYGWIM.

anyhoo......I toddle off and have all those different tests at the beginning before you even have your vision tested, and to start with I have different pressures in my eyes.....

I then go into the room and he starts looking into my eyes with a special doogamywhatsit (??) and then goes hmm, arr, hmm a few times (me getting panicking by this stage).

he then sayd about this 'optomap' test that they also did, and says that altho it is an extra £20, he thinks I need it as he has seen something concerning him.....

well.......I say ok, he then turns to the PC to show me my eyes. I see the left first, and he goes thro things with me, pointing out that I have allergies as my eye veins are enlarged (I do!!) and that I have had some trauma causing an episode with blood pressure as he can see that (the car accident....wow....he is better than a psychic)...and then goes and shows me my iris.....all lovely and black.

he then shows me my right eye, much the same as my left until we get to my iris. I have not a nice happy black one, but a black one with pretty white spots.....

I have had it seems an episode of iritis (which altho dormant has not been treated as I had no idea I had had it and so could recur...). now, I remember last november having a day where I had almost no vision from my right eye.......BUT....I thought it to do with all the medication I was on after my car accident (strong stuff....volterol, pure codeine, morphine...) so ignored it.

seems that then was the probable infection, and as I ignored it it has caused damage!

I also have astigmatism in both eyes, and contrasting difficulties....I need glasses full time to the sum of £226 for the glasses plus £50 already today....

am so feeling bad tho for ignoring my eyes to this detrimental affect. I pick up on everything else to do with the kiddies and DH yet for me.....nope....I'll live/cope/manage etc!

oh will someone please care....

Will it help if I tell you my new glasses are costing £400?

Sorry you have permanent damage, but if it was only one day of any symptoms, I think lots of us would have ignored it if it got better on its own.

jas - show her your internet glasses That'll def cheer her up!!!

So easy for us to ignore stuff (esp if symptoms are only for a day)

Hi Psychomum-Sorry you have had bad news .
Iritis is an inflammation, rather than an infrction. I have had it quite a few times as part of an autoimmune condition. It can, I think, be triggered by trauma so was possibly to do with the accident. Or do you have any auotimmune conditions with which it could be associated?
It is usually quite a painful condition, so I am surprised you did not feel it-perhaps the painkillers you were on masked it? They usually treat it with drops until it settles down (although the first time I had it I left it late to get it looked at-I did not realise what it was-and had to have an injection into my eye. Ouch!

Agree with Dream. I think we've all been guilty of ignoring our own health or taking the view of, "I'll leave it another day and if it's not better THEN I'll ask someone about it."
So easily done, don't beat yourself up about it. At least it's been found now and you'll know if it ever crops up again to go and get treatment straight away. Sad for you though; must have been a horrible shock.

infection even

(I have been sympathetic on the phone btw )

What was the chap's qualifications??

I so distrust the tests done at the shops and wouold get a second opinion...

tiggi.....he did say in fact in can be associated with auto immune stuff.....I am to go get checked I think as it now may mean that all the accident agro (am still needing physio and am in pain daily with hips and neck and legs etc) that isn't just that.....altho a trigger could be the accidents.

argh....

flame.....yup...she did care

Believe me, seeing the internet glasses really would cheer you up... there is a reason people try em on in shops

Can you ask you GP for a referral to a specialist (e.g.Morrfield Eye Hospital?). If there's permanent damage I'd get a second opinion on treatment and NOT from someone trying to sell me glasses.

I feel for you, I am ridiculously short sighted (about minus 10) and my glasses are also v v expensive .

moorfields

Really sorry to hear that (although will admit to a side-reaction of "urk! haven't had my eyes tested for five years..." and an urge to book an appointment quickly)

I went to a special optomotrist man.....recommended by DD2's school as she is dyslexic and they refer to this man to check their eyes too.

now, DD2 has needed glasses since she was 5 (long sighted) and we used to go to specsavers.

this new place threw up that the prescription she had was too weak, PLUS, she has a lazy eye and weak muscles....specsvaers missed it all, and we had been to specsavers just 4wks before too!!!!

I then got all the others checked, and lo, they all have issues missed too down to two not needed any glasses, DD2 also having too weak a script, and also that DD3 suffers migraines and so needs tinted lenses!

sooooooooooooooooo

I went too as specsaver noted ONE astignatism (right eye) and that I was short sighted....but the glasses I got made me suffer bad headaches

now, I have NO short sighted issues (reason for headaches) and BOTH eyes have astigmatisms!!!

me think someone was wrong before

I think I will however go to docs and ask for a referral to the eye hospital (one nearby at bournemouth hosp)....tis always good to have a second opinion!

I am not putting the internet glasses on here to be laughed at (again) I deleted the pic, and will not put them on to take another one.
If I get to meet you in rl again, I will show you then.

Pyschomum-it would be worth getting it checked out along with your aches and pains. My first attack of iritis was investigated and my (previously undiagnosed) back pain was discovered to be caused by Ankylosing Spondylitis.
Specsavers were useless for me too btw. I could not see properly with the glasses they gave me last year. They did a retest and had to change their first prescription. I then had to go back numerous times as they kept making mistakes with the glasses (did not put on the coating I had paid for on; broke the lenses during fitting ) and even after all that they do not seem to fit properly!

meanie

tiggy....this man has been very good so far, so much better than specsavers!

and yes, he also said that other word.....spondylitis.

am now feeling a little WRT by back/neck/legs etc as the hysio and specialists concerned with the accident have said that they don;t understand why I am still suffering so much.

oh, don;tdreamit.....we have to meet up again NOW!!!

I would ask fo a referral to a rheumatologist if I were you pyschomum-they will organise the necessary tests. I had to have body scans/blood tests and so on.

I think I might.

more issues!!!

tut, I DON'T have TIME to be ill!

Certainly might be worth having your bloods done to look for markers of RA and other autoimmune stuff (gp can do that) - especially as sometimes iritis can be associated with RA and other autoimmune conditions.

Don't beat yourself up about missing the eye stuff though - unless you had eye worries already most people would prob wait a day or so before seeing doc. A referral to eye hospital is good idea - your optician should write to gp about diagnoses. (my gp was furious when dolland and atchison didn't write to her about my cataracts and sent me to a decent optician to get them to send her a letter so she could write to eye consultant!)