The Eye Test - 7/14/07

I took my Mother to see the eye specialist yesterday. She's been complaining over the last 6 months or so that her vision has gotten much worse. It turns out, she was right. She has 5 things working against her eye sight at the present time:

1. She has large, benign pituitary tumors in her brain that have pressed on her optic nerve in the past causing it to partially atrophy. She had some of the tumor removed in 1996, but what had to remain has grown back. These may be pressing on the nerve again.

2. She has minor age related macular degeneration.

3. She has cataracts in both eyes. Not just regular cataracts but what they call powdery which are more difficult to remove. It could take 2 surgeries per eye.

4. She may have a kind of glaucoma which does not cause the pressure in the eyes to raise because her optic nerve looks like someone with glaucoma looks.

5. The cardiologist put her on a drug called Amiaderone to control irregular heartbeat, but that can be toxic to the optic nerve. The ophthalmologist is going to call the cardiologist and talk to him about the necessity for this drug.

No one is sure which of these is the culprit in the sudden loss of vision. They've put her on eye drops for the possible glaucoma and suggest that she go ahead and have the cataracts removed. The doctor said if her vision improves after the surgery it will clear up (no pun intended here)some of the confusion about what her problem is. She is 83 and in generally good health. Vision is really a quality of life issue for her so I suspect that we'll be doing the surgery at least in one eye to see if there is improvement.

Does anyone else see this trend in my life as medical companion to the sick?

I had no trouble finding the place yesterday. It was really only two turns off Rte. 26. I had anticipated being lost but thankfully that did not happen.

Since I spent the day with my Mom yesterday (I got her groceries after we got back home from the doctor's), I get to spend Saturday at home which is unusual. I decided I'll tackle cleaning the bathrooms, after I attend to reading and writing blogs and answering e-mails. Hopefully there will still be a few hours left in the day to do something else.

I hope you have an enjoyable Saturday. Don't let it be all about catching up on errands and housework from the week. Let it be about indulging yourself in your passions whether that be art, or music, or passion for that matter. Be your best, happiest you you can be today.

p.s. If you do not see a number 12 in the picture, you might need an eye check up of your own.