This Is My Story

This is my story...

Seeing Life in a Whole New Way is the premier blog for those:

Living life Blind
Living with Low Vision/Vision Loss
Has a loved one living with blindness or Low Vision

The purpose of this blog is to educate those who are dealing with visual impairments at some level and their family members, friends, co-workers and others who can lend support.  

Here's my story:

Hello, my name is Lauren and I am living with low vision.  In September 2002, I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes - having a blood sugar level of 345 - and been fighting ever since.  Fortunately, this is a day and age where T2D is manageable, preventable and even reversible through nutrition, meds and exercise.  

I remember going to my first eye exam and what was shown to me was pretty scary.  The ophthalmologist (the eye specialist) revealed to me that in the back of eye were all these capillaries, and one of them had a dark spot - that was a blood vessel that was about to "pop".  I was told that this is progressive and that with careful monitoring and strict control (ha!) the blood vessel could shrink. But if this goes uncontrolled, the vessel could burst, causing visual impairment, even blindness.  

Fast forward - July 2012:  Nearly 10 years to the time I was first diagnosed, I was about to go to bed.  I noticed a few little black dots floating before my left eye, but shrugged it off as gnats - but gnats don't fly at night.  The next day as I was about to take a shower, I saw the little black dots again and then it hit me that something was not right.    I immediately went to my doctor for an eye exam and sure enough that blood vessel that was found ten years earlier had finally exploded.  I was then given a referral to go see a specialist across town.  As anyone could imagine, I was terrified.  As time when by, the black dots grew larger to where it was interfering with my daily life.  After procrastinating and hesitating, a friend had urged me to just drop everything - including me fear, pride and apprehension and just so admit myself to ER and see the eye specialist ASAP.  

Once I was admitted, examined and had seen the specialist, I was told that I had Diabetic Retinopathy where the retina was torn on two.  The doctor showed me the X-ray and I was totally freaked out! This was a really crazy time in my life as I was living between places, working between freelance gigs and on top of that, my dad was very ill.  The added stress had exacerbated the progression of the eye disease.   

Fast forward 2017:  Currently I am under the care of an awesome ophthalmology team at The Inland Eye Institute in Colton, CA.  Since March 2015, I've had a total of six(6) eye surgeries - 4 vitrectomies for the Retinopathy and 2 Cataract procedures and at least an injection in each eye every 6 to 8 weeks to save my vision.  The right eye has had more damage although it all started with the left eye (more about that in a later submission). I have been declared legally blind by the ophthalmologist who is a top retinal specialist - highly recommended by USC Medical.  My peripheral vision in my left eye is practically gone, my right eye there are sometimes wavy lines; my vision is 20/70 in the left eye and 20/400 in my right eye. I may never be able to drive again, but thankfully there's Uber and Lyft - plus in California I'm not so sure if I want to anyway!

But all in all God is good and each morning I am truly grateful to be able to open up the two greatest gifts - my eyes and having a measure of vision.  This is what it's like to walk by faith and not by sight!