Eyes and changes and NHS

[grufflybear]

I don't want this to be a rant but I am still baffled sometimes by the odd lack of response I get from NHS people.... before diagnosis as T2 and among other symptoms, my eyesight was often very unfocused, I found it difficult to read and do my work, I thought my prescription needed changing but my sight was changing quite fast so I waited. Well now I have discovered reading here that this type of change, as distinct from long term retinopathy, is a well known symptom and effect of diabetes. Not only that but as my blood sugar has been becoming more under control these sight changes reverse and spectacle prescriptions may also change. In my case my eyes have changed back and my specs now seem to be ok and I can see clearly again to do close work. So what is my beef... well I wear vari-focals so I wear them all the time, so anybody looking at me can see I wear specs and as a diabetic might have concerns about eyesight... I have sat down and talked a good number of times to doctors, nurses and brought up my concerns about changing eyesight on a number of occassions and not one of them, not one !!!!!!!! gave me a scrap of information or explanation of these type of changes. Yes they have me now about to attend retinopathy screening and that is good but why oh why oh why did they not discuss the focusing and blurred vision which was such an issue... all I got was a blank look and the information that I was entitled to a free eyetest. Do they think we are too stupid to understand or something ????

So once again I have learned so much more from fellow diabetics on this forum... how on earth do newly dignosed diabetics manage if they don't pursue information for themselves...

there you are dear friends thank you for reading my verbage... end of Mr Ranting for the moment and thank goodness for you guys out there in internet-land

 

[trophywench]

It's a piece of 'old' knowledge that they don't seem to teach people these days Mr Gruffly, God knows why!

Same as pre-diagnosis palpitations when your BG has been off the rails for a while. Dead scary that one, cos when you is wondering what the heck's going on, you kinda assume you might have heart trouble ..... I spose they could happen post-DX too if you were really off the rails, but I dunno ....

Anyway just two things where they've thrown the babby out with the bath-water .....

 

[Robster65]

You've discovered the biggest flaw in the proposed NHS reforms, which will include devolving diabetes care mostly to GPs.

A lot of them know very little and what they do know is probably a few decades out of date, or worse still, based on anecdotal evidence from their youth.

Some are very good. Some nurses take the trouble to keep up to date.

Some are dangerous.

Rob

 

[Vicsetter]

Bear in mind that age has a big effect on deteriorating eyesight. I can't say that I have noticed or attributed diabetes to my eyesight getting worse, it's just old age, it also has an effect on joints/muscles etc. Circulation and hardening/narrowing arteries can also effect you and may be a pre-cursor to T2 diabetes or a result of (who knows which comes first).

 

[trophywench]

Well Vic, I was 22 when I was DX and my eyesight had been getting worse by the day, same as my thirst etc - having to peer at stuff, everything blurred even though I didn't wear glasses at that time - then once I went onto insulin the eyesight got even worse such that I had to have 2 months off work! Couldn't focus at all to read, see telly, knit, do me buttons up - ridiculous! and boring. Was told to give it 6 months before I had an eye test - in fact I left it longer cos my eyes were fine for a few years after, then it was just reading glasses, then about another 15 years before I needed 'seeing' glasses too.

Not saying this happens to everyone, and yes I'll second age makes anything worse LOL but the diabetic changes were certainly rather different to 'normal' eyesight deterioration in my case.

 

[Vicsetter]

Well Vic, I was 22 when I was DX and my eyesight had been getting worse by the day, same as my thirst etc - having to peer at stuff, everything blurred even though I didn't wear glasses at that time - then once I went onto insulin the eyesight got even worse such that I had to have 2 months off work! Couldn't focus at all to read, see telly, knit, do me buttons up - ridiculous! and boring. Was told to give it 6 months before I had an eye test - in fact I left it longer cos my eyes were fine for a few years after, then it was just reading glasses, then about another 15 years before I needed 'seeing' glasses too.

Not saying this happens to everyone, and yes I'll second age makes anything worse LOL but the diabetic changes were certainly rather different to 'normal' eyesight deterioration in my case.

I was really commenting on grufflybear who is a T2 and the majority of T2's are diagnosed much later in life than 22. In general T2 diabetes tends to be a more gradual decline at an age where other factors like smoking, drinking etc are likely to be starting to have an effect. I would have expected that the optician that prescribed the varifocals would have examined the eyes and pointed out any problems, nowadays they do retinal scans as well, I presume the optician was informed of the diabetes!

As usual if you have real concerns over your health you need to put these to your GP and ask for an eye referral. I don't think GPs tend to be too good at eyes or teeth as these are left to the eye specialists and dentists.

A good explanation of eye problems caused by diabetes is here:http://www.rnib.org.uk/eyehealth/eyeconditions/eyeconditionsdn/Pages/diabetes.aspx

 

[grufflybear]

WIth ref to age, yes I am a few weeks off being 55 so one of the reasons I didn't worry too much about seeming to need new specs was that it was a few years since previous eye test and I am in "later middle age" so quite typical for a T2 diagnosis. The blurring was odd and seemed to be different to just needing stronger reading prescription, I had reached the point of other symptoms like a raging thirst which I just couldn't quench and weight loss when I wasn't trying. But the blurring and struggle I was having to see to read etc seems to have settled now and my specs which are still the old prescription are "working" again. Having diabetes seems to be a condition which asks us to learn a lot and I am more than willing to take info on board and act on it, perhaps the NHS just can't cope but we cannot wait for it to catch up.

 

[Vicsetter]

One of the problems you may have noticed is that Diabetes seems to affect us in different ways, so what one person thinks is the problem may not apply. Some can eat some foods without affect whilst others spike on the same food. My Gp is very good (probably because she had to nurse her father with his diabete) but others are not so lucky. She doesn't seem bothered by the fact that I research the subject and in fact rushed out and bought the Dr Bernstein book when I mentioned it, so she is interested in keeping up with the subject.

Have you had a retinal scan yet, I would think it was worth asking for (or going to an optician who will do one)

BTW welcome to the grumpy old persons club.

 

[RachelT]

Funny, my eyesight suddenely went from normal to having to wearing glasses in the year after my diagnosis. My retinal scan came back ok though. Basically i went for an eye test, my first in at least 20 years, a couple of weeks after diagnosis. The shocking deterioraton in my eyesight was what got me to seek medical help in the first place, i literally woke up one morning and couldn't focus on stuff more than a couple of feet away. After a was admitted to hospital and put on an insulin sliding scale my eyes went back to normal quite quickly, and although my optitian said i was a little short sighted she didn't recommend glasses. Then last year i went for a check up like a good little diabetic (lol...as if) and i got lumbered with glasses. At first i was kind of upset, or disapointed anyway, but then i found a pair of "brainy specs" so that was ok.
My granddad hates them, i'm not quite sure why, i guess he doesn't like brainy (looking) women!

Rachel

 

[Blythespirit]

Just prior to me being diagnosed I too suffered blurred vision. I was 46 at the time and noticed my eyesight 'go' in about an hour! It improved dramatically as soon as I got my levels under control. When my levels went haywire earlier this year my eyes went blurry again but are back to near normal now. If it was normal age related deterioration it wouldn't improve with my levels.

It's not the same as normal short/long sightedness. Glasses don't help much. It's more like there's a film of grease over the eye, or trying to peer through a steamed up window. You try to blink or rub it away but it wont clear.

On diagnosis I mentioned it to my GP who told me to get my eyes tested, which I did, and this resulted in my paying for new reading glasses which I didn't need at all withing a few weeks. For this reason I always recommend anyone newly diagnosed wait til their levels are settled before getting their eyes tested. My check up was due earlier this year but as my levels were still out of range and my eyes were still ot right I'm waiting til after my HbA1c next Thursday before I book.

The docs should really take this into consideration and advise people as I know a lot of people experience the same thing. Not just Type 2's either. It's yet another mystical varient we have to deal with, but forewarned is forearmed. XXXXX

 

[trophywench]

What I said before Faith - years ago you were always warned about that on DX .... Grrrrrrrrr

D'you know - also years ago, and only just thought about this - unless you were already seeing an optician, you had to go to your GP first and get a slip of some sort before you could book an optician's appt - that was so Dr GP could make sure you hadn't got anything else medical causing it, before he sent you there.

You do wonder, don't you? (if some of the old ways were better ..... )

 

[Blythespirit]

My mum was diagnosed a good 20 years before me and got much better care in the early days....consultant, dietician, eye clinic, podiatrist and DSN appointments within weeks of diagnosis. No testing strips though. She never had those and never understood what her levels should be. I think in those days people tended to just trust the doctors knew what they were doing and did as they were told. Maybe that's why some docs don't like us knowing so much, it makes them look bad. Lol. XXXXX