Have I mentioned that getting older is not for the feint of heart? Of course I have. In this day and age, 58 isn't exactly ancient, but things come up more than they used to!
For the last couple of days, I've had a little irritation under my upper eye lid on the right eye lid - not painful, but felt like an eyelash was up there or something. No other symptoms besides the irritation. This morning it dawned on me to irrigate my eye which helped, but I'd made an appointment to get it checked, so went anyway.
Since it was a "medical" visit, the doc didn't do a full eye exam, but said she'd check the eye, it's pressure, and then see if she could see what was causing the irritation. Turns out both eyes look great - very healthy, and my vision is the same as it was at my prior visit, but the pressure is up in both (unrelated to the irritation, which she said was nothing). It used to be 16 over 2 years ago, now it's 25. She said that given the healthy appearance of all the eye tissue, nerves, etc - she seriously doubts it's glaucoma changes, but that has to be ruled out. Yes, I'd like that please. If there are no indications of glaucoma, then it's simply ocular hypertension and treated with drops.
So Friday I go for a pressure recheck in the morning, then next Wednesday I'll have "glaucoma screening" which includes a visual field test and something else - both of which I've had before.
I'm not really worried, because either of the options are entirely treatable, but it's a harbinger of the passage of time in this body'o'mine. I did ask if any of it was related to weight, high blood pressure, Type 2 etc..., and she assured me that it isn't.
I'm grateful that I had the eye irritation that got me to the eye doctor (a year overdue since I don't wear lenses), because I could easily have bumbled along another year before deciding to get my eyes checked! Having excellent vision, which I do, apparently does not mean other things aren't going on. And of course that holds true for the rest of the body. Here is another item for my 'scared straight' list!
And I had a great on plan day yesterday with tons of walking. And after the eye doc visit, I'm not feeling all that hungry! Boy, that won't last!
I'm right here beside you in this choir.
ReplyDeleteHell's bells, indeed!!! And isn't it interesting that you asked if it was related to weight...sadly, I think we tend to blame ourselves (and our diet failings) first when it comes to any health issue.
ReplyDeleteOkay, let me get this straight... are you saying you don't need reading glasses at your (very advanced) age?!
ReplyDeletePlease keep us posted. My dad had glaucoma so I get checked annually. My mom was diagnosed with something last year called exfoliation glaucoma. She takes drops for it. The kind that make her eyelashes all long and pretty:) And maybe some other medication too.
Yes, sadly, things can change with time, but I am also surprised that you may not need reading glasses!! If you don't, I'm very impressed!
ReplyDeleteKeep us posted on what's happening, but I'm with Shelly. We do tend to blame our weight and our diet when health issues pop up. The truth is that I have plenty of thin friends who have more health issues than I do, including higher cholesterol, triglycerides, cancer, blood pressure, etc. But I also understand that I need to lose this weight.
You don't have to wear glasses! That is awesome, my vision started taking a nose dive around age 45.
ReplyDeleteOh I tend to blame my yo yo dieting and bad genes for everything that goes wrong with this aging body of mine.
Yep, being diabetic too I am really good about getting my eyes checked every year for neuropathy - it really scares me, but so far my eyes are normal, well, even though I am blind as a bat!
ReplyDeleteHappy Friday Leslie!
So true getting older is no fun! I am new to your blog and followed. I wanted to say "hi". I also blog about my weight loss journey.
ReplyDeleteThis isn't good...haven't heard from you in a week...I need an update woman! :)
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