| OldGreyBob
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The bad news in that eye doctor has determined that I may have borderline glaucoma. My Mother almost went blind because of glaucoma so it runs in the family.
The good news is that the eye doctor said that only with the new tests they could have detected it and that it is in the the very treatable very early stage. So I am using Travatan Z and it seems to be working!
The price we pay for being old. |
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Tue Aug 28, 2007 2:32 am |
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| tyin'aknot
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I'm so sorry to learn of your vision problems. I understand. I've worn glasses since the first grade. My maternal grandmother had both glacoma and macular degeneration (the more severe kind - would that be wet or dry?) Anyway, Grandma lost her vision in the center of her eyes first, and then from the edges, so she saw the world like looking through donuts for a few years. Then, everything went black.
Going blind SCARES me, especially since I also have diabetes in my family on my father's side. So, I'm doing SB to try and lose weight and hold off diabetes as long as possible, etc.
The doctors told my grandmother, in the beginning stages, that the supplements/vitamens on the market that are touted for helping prevent/reverse vision loss need to be taken for YEARS before they actually help. My mom is in her mid-60s, and she's taking them. I'm 37, and I'm considering taking them now so that I woudl have a few decades jump-start.
Isn't this sad we have to think about these things? |
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Tue Aug 28, 2007 11:40 pm |
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| Jadzia
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OldGreyBob - Sorry you have it, but I'm glad for you that it was found early enough (and even more that the treatment seems to be working !)
It is, but then again, if you can make something to help prevent it, maybe it's for the better... Maybe you could see an eye doctor to know if you are really at risk and if some new technology/medecine can help prevent it.
Both my parents had rheumatoid arthritis. I know I'm at risk (I may be lucky : at my age, they both already started to have trouble with it), but there's absolutely nothing I can do to avoid it. Same thing with SLA (Lou Gherig's disease) : it runs in my father's family (one of the very few ones being affected by the hereditary type). I could undergo some test to know if I'm likely to develop it (there's actually an research team investigating my family), but what would be the point ? There's no cure for that... |
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Tue Aug 28, 2007 11:51 pm |
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| OldGreyBob
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| I had the feeling that glaucoma would happen soon. It runs in the family, I have Graves Disease (atypical), and I am a type-2 Diabetic (borderline). The eye doctor said she feels that with the proper medication, that it should never be a problem. And the best news is that the medication, Travatan Z, is strongly indicated for people with Graves Disease. |
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Wed Aug 29, 2007 7:31 pm |
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| tanella
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Hi Bob,
I was diagnosed with glaucoma when I was 28. 28! I couldn't believe it! I looked around myself in the waiting room and thought "I do not belong here..." Alas, it seems that I do. I have some other eye conditions, and am followed very closely by a team of eye people, which I guess is why they caught it so early.
I'm also on the Travatan, and have had very good results with it. The best thing is that I get constant compliments on my eyelashes. One of the side effects is that it can cause your eyelashes to come in thicker, darker and longer. Everyone tells me I should sell it on the blackmarket for cosmetic use :lol: Have to look at the bright side, right?
tyin'aknot, I've also been advised to start taking the eye vitamins. I started when I was 26 or so. So, starting early may not be such a bad idea if you've got the family history. My main eye doc is a very big proponent of them.
Anyway, just thought I'd jump in and say--don't feel like you have an old person's disease, young people get glaucoma too! |
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Thu Aug 30, 2007 1:34 pm |
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| jlw44
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| How timely. I also was told that I have high eye pressure and am at risk for glaucoma. They consider me young for this, 54, but it does run in the family as well. I have to be rechecked in 6 months, but I read on line that coffee can cause increased pressure, and I downed three cups of black coffee less than an hour before my appointment. I'm wondering if that contributed to the higher pressure. I will be sure to abstain before my next exam to see if it makes any difference. He said high pressure is only one marker and I'll be doing the field of vision test next time, which came out ok the last time I had it about a year ago. I had a high pressure reading once before about 4 years ago, and having a morning appt I'm wondering if I had done the same then, because it improved the next test. He made me come back in a month at that point. Going blind scares me more than anything, almost, and my doctor assured me that catching it early and treating it should be no problem. He mentioned the drops and possibly laser surgery as two options although he thinks I'm a bit away from them at this point. But you can be sure I'll be back regularly. |
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Fri Sep 21, 2007 1:48 pm |
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| packerprincess
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| OGB - Hope the medication is working for you. I know you want to see that beautiful grand-daughter of yours! It's a good thing you have a good eye doctor who caught it early! |
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Mon Sep 24, 2007 9:27 pm |
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| mots
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and he'll be growing beautiful eyelashes...blink blink.... :wink:
Best! mots |
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Sat Oct 20, 2007 12:09 am |
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| OldGreyBob
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| She more beautiful than I could have hoped for! (Sorry no recent photos but maybe later.) Yes the meds appear to be working on the eyes and also seems to have helped stablizing my bllod pressure. (A known side effect.) |
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Mon Oct 22, 2007 8:34 pm |
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| frustratedieter
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I'm pre-diabetic, insulin resistant and newly on SB. About a year ago I had a routine eye exam and the opthamologist told me that the pressure in my eyes was somewhat elevated and he then stated he'd like to keep an eye on them. So I've been going back every 6 months (go again next month) to re-check them. So far glaucoma hasn't been diagnosed. He said if it goes to that, drops are what he prescribes to treat them. I'm 63, the youngest in my family and my much older siblings don't seem to think anyone else has had glaucoma in the family. I wonder if there's a correlation between type 2 diabetes and glaucome??!!!
To the person who stated that ALS (Lou Gehrigs) is in his family...ALS is a form of Muscular Dystrophy (think Jerry's Kids---it's not Multiple Sclerosis which many people confuse it with). Anyway M.D. is a genetic disease and can be passed on down the gene pool. My SIL has a form of M.D. (of where there are 30-something varieties). |
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Mon Mar 10, 2008 11:39 pm |
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