Eyesight issues

[silver]

I mostly came here to vent, but also would like to know how others cope with poor eyesight.

Silver Daughter has poor eyesight. She has a -10 prescription with astigmatism. She has worn glasses since she was 5 and contacts since she was 12. She has tolerated the contacts until this last year. She said she was having double vision and struggling to see in her classes. Her prescription had worsened. The doctor tried to put her in stronger, toric contacts, but she can't tolerate them. He tried her in every brand he had available in her prescription. Trying these different contacts irritated her corneas to the point where she cannot wear contacts at all now and is having to let her corneas heal. Because of the irritation to her corneas, they can't get a good readin on her prescription for glasses so they just tried to get somewhere close, so she can't even see well with her glasses.

So, we went to a doctor to see what options might be available to her surgically. His answer was nothing available, especially at her age. Maybe in a couple years there might be new technology out there.

Her frustration level with this is high. I'm worried how she will cope in collage next year, without being able to see well.

Please share your experiences and suggestions.

[Blueberry]

All I can offer is sympathy:(

Here's hoping her corneas will heal quickly and she'll be able to get a solid read on her scrip before collage. Out of curiosity, can she wear hard lenses? I seem to have developed an allergy to my contacts too:(

[silver]

She's never tried hard lens, but has very dry eyes, and I assumed that was why the doc never suggested them. thanks for your sympathy!

[Veronica]

I had ulcers on my corneas back in 2003. I was over wearing my contacts. I don't remember how long it took them to heal, maybe a month or two. Once her corneas heal they will be able to at least get her in a decent glasses prescription.

I had Bell's Palsy my senior year in college (yes there is a point to this) I had to give an oral presentation in my French class with half my face paralyzed. I think I got the pity A. :D Teachers/professors usually have some compassion. If she talks to them about her problem, they may have some ideas on how to help her out until her prescription gets corrected.

Veronica

[jobob]

A few years ago I went to the Stanford Eye Center to get an evaluation for LASIK.

The doctor there, Dr. Manche, is supposed to be very good, and actually does a lot of repair work on LASIK screw-ups.

I ended up being turned down by him as a LASIK candidate - I have bumpy corneas and he said that while he wouldn't advise I had the LASIK procedure, I could probably find a lot of other places that would take me. (Since I was only going to go through with it if I were an absolutely perfect candidate, I didn't pursue it further. I use daily-wear contact lenses and they work fine for me.)

But, I did hear about a procedure that he was working on using an intraocular contact lens (ICL) where a lens is placed under the eye flap, similar to what is done for cataract patients. Back when I spoke to him he was conducting clinical trials on that procedure, but ironically my eyesight wasn't bad enough to be considered for the trial (mine is -6.5/-7.0 and the lowest for the trial was -8.0)

I don't know where they are nowadays with that - it's only given a passing mention on the website - but in case you're interested, the Stanford Eye Center's website is at http://ophthalmology.stanford.edu/laser/index.html

Perhaps they could hook you up with eye clinics closer to where you live.

[bmccasland]

I wear semi-rigid gas permeable B&L lenses. My opthamologist put me in them several years ago, and multiple moves later no optomotrist has ever tried to talk me into anything different. I have astigmitisim in both eyes (and a very cranky cat in my lap), horrible vision. Have worn glasses / corrective lenses since I was in 5th grade. There was a point that I managed to stratch my eyes, and get conjunctivitis - took me over a year to talk the Dr. into letting me have contacts again. BUT I see better with contacts, and now glasses will not completely correct my vision. I know it's hard for a child, but sometimes you have to knuckle down, accept the fact that you can only wear a certain type of contact for a certain period of time, then take them out, and accept the fact that you can't see as well with your glasses. It sucks.

Maybe surgery is an option. Have you checked with Lion's Club for the Blind? Am grasping at straws here - a few months ago had a similar discussion of options for the child of a colleague with severe vision problems. Seems there are referrals to some better or more specialized Drs through Lion's Club. Just a stray thought.

[msincredible]

She's never tried hard lens, but has very dry eyes, and I assumed that was why the doc never suggested them. thanks for your sympathy!

Gas permeable lenses are actually better for dry eyes than soft ones.

[Blueberry]

She's never tried hard lens, but has very dry eyes, and I assumed that was why the doc never suggested them. thanks for your sympathy!

msincredible is right - ask about hard lenses. I'm planning to next time I see my eye doc - I knew someone from work (who was otherwise not a very nice person) who had tried soft contacts multiple times. His eyes were so dry he couldn't wear them. He tried hard lenses, and was still thrilled last time I saw him.

Just another thought:)

CA

[Cataboo]

My younger brother has vision issues, so I'll just let you know some of the things that we've done... And, seriously - Silver daughter'll be fine, it just might be a little bit traumatic getting there.

Silver daughter's eyes will probably recover quickly because corneas do heal quickly - if she does have dry eyes, that's probably slowing down the healing of the cornea, so try using eye drops. Refresh sells a couple - celluvisc is a thicker one that you don't have to use so often, but it does leave your eyes blurry and it does a very good job. There's also a thinner one that I can't remember the name of that doesn't blur as much, but doesn't last as long. (My brother's opthamologist recommended these for his eyes - he uses the celluvisc at night while sleeping, and the other drops during the day.) If the dry eyes damaging the cornea are contributing to the poor vision, there's other options for that, like a partial tarsorrhaphy (which is not really so noticable and not disfiguring).

There are I don't know where you're located - but find a low vision clinic. Johns Hopkins' Wilmer eye clinic has a low vision clinic, where they will basically take you through the different technologies that are available and try to sort out what works best for the patient. They're usually really helpful.

You can also check out the local services from the country - there is the national library for the blind and visually impaired which is a free lending library which has vast quantities of books on tape or cd, or in large print, or in braille. IF she qualifies, possibly she can get some of her text books through them.

Definitely any college or university has to help any student with some sort of a "disability" (required by law) they can photocopy handouts larger so they're easier to read, providing class notes, whatever - contact the university and see what they offer. Get her a digital recorder, so she can just record her classes, and listen to them again later. she can type them up or whatever. Many professors offer their notes/slides on powerpoint or in pdf format via blackboard (it's a website that the universities use )... With those files, she can blow things up as large as she needs to see them.... Which brings us to her computer. My brother uses a 32" LCD tv as his computer monitor, so the text is big, he can increase the contrast... Often reading things on a black background with white text is easier on the eyes than white on black. He also uses some magnification software that's freeware that he loves, but microsoft windows does have a magnifier built in, in the accessibility folder. Also if you buy a fancy microsoft mouse, they come with a magnifier that's activated using a button on the left side of the mouse. If she's surfing the internet, if you're in internet explorer or firefox, you can increase the size of the font using ctrl + and decrease it using ctrl -.

Ott-lites work really well for people with low vision, they make things much easier to read. They're closer to the frequencies/wavelength of natural sunlight, so your eyes don't fatigue as much when you use them.

So there are some simple things that you can do to help her - buy her a big screen tv to use as a monitor (I think she won't mind too much), get her a bunch of ott-lites, and just adjust the computer settings. Voice recorders are great.

[badger]

a family friend of mine has a childhood friend who grew up wearing coke-bottle glasses. I remember seeing him with glasses that made his irises look about the size of eggs.

He's a very intelligent fellow and made a fortune in some sort of geophysics invention (too complicated for me to figure out what exactly it does).

Because his eyesight was too bad for laser, and he has oodles of money, he opted for the contact lens implant. I believe he sees pretty much 20/20 now and is climbing Everest and K2 because he can.

Technology is developing in leaps and bounds, hopefully before long there will be a solution for your daughter's sight problems. But in the event they don't, life shouldn't be limited because of her disability. I swim with a lady who's been blind since birth and she's accomplished so much, from competing and winning a bronze medal in paralympics to earning a Master's degree in Social Work.

[NbyNW]

Lots of good suggestions re using technology to help in the classroom.

Just wanted to add that most new computers also have speech functions, where you can highlight a block of text and the computer will read them to you. On a Mac, it's under System Preferences > Speech. On newer PCs I believe Vista has a similar feature somewhere in the Control Panel.

Do the doctors have an explanation for the double vision? I don't know much about these things, but it seems that the causes can vary. For example, my father experienced double vision a few years ago and they diagnosed him with Graves' disease -- essentially an overactive thyroid. It took some tweaking of meds, but they eventually got it under control.

Good luck!

[OakLeaf]

I don't have anything useful to add, just my wishes that her corneas heal fast and that you find a solution that lets her see better. Hugs to all.

[Mr. Bloom]

Johns Hopkins' Wilmer eye clinic has a low vision clinic, where they will basically take you through the different technologies that are available and try to sort out what works best for the patient. They're usually really helpful.


Thanks for that name/experience.

It's been our experience that we need to leave SW Indiana to get the best medical care...

Besides Johns Hopkins, are there any other Regional or National Centers for Excellence in opthamology?

Edited to add:
I found a list: http://www.glaucoma.org/treating/ophthalmology_t.php

Johns Hopkins is #1, but there's a top 10 program in St. Louis which is close...

[indysteel]

She's never tried hard lens, but has very dry eyes, and I assumed that was why the doc never suggested them. thanks for your sympathy!

Actually, it's just the opposite. Gas permeable (hard) lenses let more air reach the eye than soft and generally correct vision better, too. I've actually gone through what your daughter is experiencing. I was wearing a pair of ill-fitting gas perms and scratched my cornea. My vision is in the -1100 range so dealing with glasses while it healed was a nightmare. It took a while to sort out, but I haven't had any problems since and have stuck with the gas perms. You might talk to your doctor about switching to them. While I was at IU, I starting going to the Optometry school for my eyes. They were FAR better than my regular doc. I go to the Optometry School in Indy now, too. I doubt I would have gotten the same level of care elsewhere. They spend far more time with me than a regular doc might.

Good luck, Silvers.

[Crankin]

Well, my eyes are not as bad as your daughter's, but I am fairly nearsighted and I have a very bad astigmatism in my left eye. Now, I am also farsighted.
I dealt with the situation by wearing a prescription in my soft lenses that leaves me with less than 20/20 vision in my left eye. It's maybe 20/30? All I know is that I can pass the eye test at the RMV. I tried torics many times and as soon as I put them in my eyes, there was huge trouble, irritation, necessitating me to wear my glasses for a while.
I choose to wear reading glasses over my contacts for the near vision, as I don't qualify for any other solution. Problems like this are frustrating, but I second the opinion to go to a medical center in a big city.

[Mr. Bloom]

While I was at IU, I starting going to the Optometry school for my eyes.

Now that's an idea that Silver will seriously consider because YOU suggested it:D

[Cataboo]

There is a lot of help out there for people with low vision or disabilities - just often the problem is getting plugged into the system or knowing who to ask or where to start. A low vision clinic or contacting your state or county programs is a place to start.... If she's still in high school, call the school system... Public schools are required to provide for children with issues, and they usually have a fairly good program and know where to point you. The lions clubs do a fair amount for low vision/disabled people, so they're another potential contact. The low vision clinic at Hopkins is supported by the Lions clubs and named after them. I know Maryland state runs a low vision drivers education type class on the weekend to help people with low vision that are still qualified to drive drive more safely.

Most people will say that you get better health care going to a teaching facility as a hospital/medical center. Johns Hopkins is number one in most and it's a teaching facility.

There's drawbacks - you don't want to get stuck with the unsupervised first year resident in June right after they start... But they are supposed to be getting proper supervision.

It's useful in that a resident is typically going to give you a far more thorough exam than someone who's been a doctor for years - yes, they are sort of just practicing, but they're also paying close attention and catch things that other doctors might not.

And if you've got an interesting medical history, you end up being show and tell for all the residents in the area, because, yes, they will flock to respectfully gawk at you.... But you also tend to learn and understand a bit more, because when the supervising doctor sees you, they're going to point out things and explain things to the residents... which has the added bonus of keeping you a bit better informed.

And definitely - always get 2nd or 3rd opinions on things like this - because her eyesight is so important to her daily life and some doctors are really going to offer you what they're comfortable with or what they know how to do.... The average opthamologist basically just sees people who need help with their prescription or glaucoma, anything more complicated they probably refer on... So you want to get to the referred on state, to someone that sees lots of people with vision problems and has a bigger quiver to help them.

[Aquila]

I'm a college prof, and I'd like to second Catriona's suggestions for talking to her college instructors and especially to the office of student development (or whatever they call the office where she'll be going). We try to make appropriate accomodations, and I think it's a big help to students. The technology we have available is amazing these days.

Wish her the best, please.

[indysteel]

Now that's an idea that Silver will seriously consider because YOU suggested it:D

I would strongly urge you to take her there. The problem I found with private doctors in that they often take the easiest route to solving a problem. They almost always start with soft contacts, even though they may not be the best option.

My experience, I think was pretty typical. My eye doctor put me into soft, toric lenses when I was 13 or so. By the time I got to IU at age 19, my eyes were a mess. I hated the torics. They never stayed in place and my eyes were ALWAYS dry. The docs at the optometry school immediately recognized that I was not a good candidate for toric lenses in that the shape of my eye would not hold them into place. They also noted that my eyes were particularly dry. Based on that, they put me into GPs, which I wore incident free for the next 9 or so years.

The only problem I experienced was from a pair of of GPs that were just a bit too steep for my eyes. They were causing my eye to swell and then scrap against my lid when I slept. That's what led to the scratched cornea. Like your daughter, it took a few months for my eye to heal and for my eyesight to stabilize such that they could get me into a new set of contacts. That was about 9 years ago, and I haven't had any other problems since.

The optometry school in Indianapolis has been exceedingly patient and diligent in treating me. They don't really have a profit motive so spending hours with me is not an issue. They seem to understand GP lenses much better, too. While I've had multiple interns over the years, at my request, one doctor has stuck with me and he knows my case history very well. I cannot say enough about them. And did I mention that they're a lot cheaper than a private doctor?

Given what I know (which is admittedly little) about your doctor's history, I see no reason why she won't be able to get a proper prescription prior to going to college. Her cornea should heal in a month or two. With the right pair of gas permeable lenses, she will likely see better than 20/20. From there, she really needs to keep her glasses prescription up-to-date (in case she ever had any other problem that prevents her from wearing her glasses) and to go to the eye doctor for a checkup once a year. Her eyesight will likely continue to change and worsen--if it's anything like mine.

By the way, a lot of people are under the impression that GP lenses aren't as comfortable as soft. That has absolutely not been my experience. Any contact will make your eyes feel dry and tired if you wear them all day and night and/or work at a computer all the time. It's important to use rewetting drops and to take them out so that your eyes can rest. Also, you absolutely cannot sleep in GPs. They can be a bit fussy if you get something in your eye, but it's easy to deal with. I've lost only one lens in 20 years of wearing them (ironically during a bike ride when I tried to wipe some sweat out of my eyes). All and all, I'd say they're very user friendly.

So, don't despair......

[msincredible]

By the way, a lot of people are under the impression that GP lenses aren't as comfortable as soft. That has absolutely not been my experience. Any contact will make your eyes feel dry and tired if you wear them all day and night and/or work at a computer all the time. It's important to use rewetting drops and to take them out so that your eyes can rest. Also, you absolutely cannot sleep in GPs. They can be a bit fussy if you get something in your eye, but it's easy to deal with. I've lost only one lens in 20 years of wearing them (ironically during a bike ride when I tried to wipe some sweat out of my eyes). All and all, I'd say they're very user friendly.

I completely agree.

I started with GP lenses, wore them for 20 years.

When I was getting ready for Lasik surgery, my optometrist had to temporarily switch me to soft lenses for three months. I found I really much preferred the GP lenses, and even glasses, to the soft lenses. I would not choose to use soft lenses again.

In the 20 years I've lost one pair (in a pool, being stupid) and one other single lens, wiping my eye as well.

[tulip]

I have only one good eye, and I'm very, very careful about protecting the vision that I have.

Is there a good reason, other than vanity, that she cannot wear glasses? If vision is at stake, there is no reason to risk further damage by wearing contacts.

I go to the Duke Eye Center, but I used to go to the Wilmer Eye Center at Johns Hopkins. Both are the best in the country, if not the world. Duke is closer to me now, so that's why I switched.

I wear glasses. I do not wear contacts because I just cannot risk injury to my good eye. I have six pairs of really cool glasses, including two pairs of prescription sunglasses. By all accounts, I am no less cool or beautiful because I wear glasses ;). In fact, I think I give the impression of being smarter (as well as gorgeous) with my glasses on :rolleyes:. I even have some titanium rimless glasses that I call my glamour glasses for events that call for glamour. Not so many such events, but still, they are nice to have.

I lost vision in my eye when I was a senior in high school, so I've been dealing with this for a while.

Please, Silvers, consider glasses. If Silver Daughter's eyes are at risk of being injured, glasses are really the only alternative, and they are a good alternative. They also protect they eyes from things like bouncing pebbles and stray branches.

[Grog]

Is there a good reason, other than vanity, that she cannot wear glasses? If vision is at stake, there is no reason to risk further damage by wearing contacts.

I'm with you in really wanting to protect my eyes (although I still have both).

I don't know what your prescription is. Mine is pretty bad, but not quite as bad as Silver Daughter (mine is more like -7.5). However, unless I wear really big glasses, my field of vision is really impaired if I wear glasses compared to wearing contact lenses. I need to turn my head down all the time (to know what's on my plate when I eat, for example) and nearly trip on stairs many times. Maybe I'm a bit impaired in other ways :D And glasses that are big enough to cover more of my field of vision are quite heavy, even if they are of the "thin" type.

In fact, sometimes I'd like to wear my glasses - I also find that I look classy and smart in them - but it's not worth the risk (tripping) for me.

I can understand that she'd hope for a solution to her contact problem... (Hopefully the others' advice will help here.)

[Mr. Bloom]

Is there a good reason, other than vanity, that she cannot wear glasses? If vision is at stake, there is no reason to risk further damage by wearing contacts.


In my opinion, while there may be other factors, it's mostly vanity. She's a -10...and that's bullet proof glass in thickness!

But then, I've never been an 18 year old girl...so I can't fully understand her perspective.

I can't wear contacts due to allergies and dry eyes...and I never saw clearly with them. I refuse surgery because I'm corrected to 20/15...and unless surgery could get me there...I'd be worse off.

[soprano]

I'm a lurker, but thought I'd weigh in since it sounds like your daughter and I share similar vision. My current prescription is -10 in my left eye, and -11.5 in the right eye, with a fun prismatic correction (for double vision/diplopia) that really boggles my friends when they look through my lenses ;) So yep, I've got the dorky "coke-bottle" lenses.

I wore contacts for many years and really liked them. However, last year I developed double vision, accompanied by serious headaches, so I needed to switch to glasses. (According to my optometrist, you cannot correct for diplopia with contacts.) My headaches cleared up instantly and I was amazed at how sharp my vision suddenly was. I'm slowly making peace with my glasses. I hate having them on my face, I hate the amount of distortion I have to deal with, and the loss of peripheral vision was scary at first, particularly because I ride through some heavy traffic areas on a daily basis. My mirror was suddenly useless, which was particularly troublesome. After about 8 or 10 weeks, however, I somehow got better at making things out through the lens distortion and even outside of my lenses, and I feel much safer both on my bike and when I need to drive. I'm back to relying on my mirror, and my overall depth perception has greatly improved (with contacts my depth perception was generally unreliable).

A -10 correction really isn't all that severe and to my knowledge is not in the low-vision range. I have never, ever needed to ask for help at school. If she's having lots of trouble with schoolwork, definitely get her a second opinion and see about some better lenses, because improperly made lenses are hell. I have zero trouble reading the computer screen or seeing projection images, and believe it or not I make lace as a hobby. My husband and I purchased a larger TV a few years ago with my vision in mind, but at 32" it's still smaller than what most of our friends have. I *need* good light for reading, lacemaking and other close work, but that's nothing that a really good task lamp couldn't fix. (BTW I do much better with halogen than Ott-Lites or other "full-spectrum" compact florescents. It's a really individual thing.)

I second the recommendation for the IU optometry school; my husband used to go there. Be prepared to shell out for some good glasses lenses, because you will get what you pay for. My current lens prescription ran me $220 *without* new frames. This year I want some new, more fashionable frames (mine are a bit outdated, but cash was short last summer) and plan to spend between $400-$600. Every optometrist and optician I've ever been to has automatically put me in high-index lenses (the thinnest ones) which cut down on the weight and coke-bottle effect, but it's good to check. Even though it's more expensive, get the lenses at the eye doctor's office and not the mall store. The folks who grind the lenses for the mall shops aren't used to dealing with high-strength prescriptions and can really screw it up.

You've probably already done it and I don't want to scare you, but just to make sure that you're aware: Severe myopia can be a "red flag" for other medical conditions, even if it has developed very slowly and the eyes are otherwise healthy. Make sure that her regular doctor knows about it.