Happy Friday everyone! I feel like I’m a little behind in providing an update on my retinopathy situation but here it goes.

Last week I had done what is called an intravitreal injection of a medication called Lucentis. From what I understand, the medicine works to stop the growth of the blood vessels in the eye which in turn stops those vessels from leaking. I was pretty anxious at just the thought of having the doctor administer a needle in my eye. I mean it sounds kind of scary doesn’t it? But I survived without any issues. It wasn’t painful believe it or not but in all honesty, wasn’t too pleasant. And maybe I’m just a big baby but so be it! I think with the eye being one of the most sensitive parts of the body in my opinion, any treatment in the area is going to be pretty uncomfortable. The whole procedure took about only 10 minutes. Quite a few numbing drops were inserted into my eye, along with some kind of numbing ointment applied with a Q tip. They used a speculum which is a device to keep the eye open. And then I was asked to look down and to the right and the doctor injected the medication right in. It’s a really unusual feeling to have all of this fluid rushing to your field of vision and I didn’t like it at all. My orders were to apply antibiotic drops four times between that day & the next but I didn’t have to restrict any activities or anything. I was told I may have some discomfort for 24 hours and to keep a watch for any real pain, redness or difference in vision. That night and the next day my eye felt like there was something sharp in it that I couldn’t rub or get out. Quite sore. It was also tearing a lot with sensitivity to light. The following two days were a bit better but still felt like there was something in it and I had periods of cloudiness. Now, 9 days later, my eye is pretty much back to normal. Thank goodness.

I have a follow up appointment in about 5 weeks to see how my eye responded to the treatment. I’m praying that it worked and that I won’t need another any time soon. Apparently it’s possible to need multiple treatments. I cannot even imagine. I know that some PWD have had more intense treatments for retinopathy and my heart goes out to them. I also hope by monitoring the health of my eyes on a regular basis, I will be able to treat anything before it becomes severe. If there is anything I’ve learned from this experience it is that routine examinations are critical.

I hope the weather improves for everyone, safety and calm remains for us where terror alerts have been issued and take a moment on Sunday to remember those whose lives were lost on 9/11.