And I was doing so
well.
well.
It's been what, six
weeks?, since I started taking the 6MP immune suppressant ex-chemo-drug, and
it's been going pretty well. As ever, still taking it pretty easy (um.. well,
except for a weekend of dashing madly around London trying to see everything)...
so no lacrosse or sailing. In fact, one choir rehearsal a week is proving a
sufficient challenge right at the moment. But I've been putting on
weight! I haven't done that since I was...um... I dunno, fifteen?
Maybe? And in the last month I've put on about 7 kilos, which is unheard of.
Admittedly, I've been pretty tired, and felt slightly queasy, which may or may
not be normal - but it's still better than the alternative. So I've been pretty
happy.
weeks?, since I started taking the 6MP immune suppressant ex-chemo-drug, and
it's been going pretty well. As ever, still taking it pretty easy (um.. well,
except for a weekend of dashing madly around London trying to see everything)...
so no lacrosse or sailing. In fact, one choir rehearsal a week is proving a
sufficient challenge right at the moment. But I've been putting on
weight! I haven't done that since I was...um... I dunno, fifteen?
Maybe? And in the last month I've put on about 7 kilos, which is unheard of.
Admittedly, I've been pretty tired, and felt slightly queasy, which may or may
not be normal - but it's still better than the alternative. So I've been pretty
happy.
Until last Saturday,
that is. Last Saturday my left eye started to feel slightly sore, as if I'd been
wearing a contact lens for too long. Over the weekend it got gradually worse,
until yesterday I could stand it no more, and took myself off to the eye
hospital, where it turns out I have Iritis. Yup, it's not a made-up word ("I
have eye-itis?!"), it's a real illness. Personally, I always thought the iris
was the name for the hole in your eye, and I was wondering how that could be
inflamed - but that's just me showing my ignorance. Apparently iritis is often
linked to ulcerative colitis - your eye gets very red and irritated (just like
leaving a contact lense in for a couple of days too many), and bright lights
hurt.
that is. Last Saturday my left eye started to feel slightly sore, as if I'd been
wearing a contact lens for too long. Over the weekend it got gradually worse,
until yesterday I could stand it no more, and took myself off to the eye
hospital, where it turns out I have Iritis. Yup, it's not a made-up word ("I
have eye-itis?!"), it's a real illness. Personally, I always thought the iris
was the name for the hole in your eye, and I was wondering how that could be
inflamed - but that's just me showing my ignorance. Apparently iritis is often
linked to ulcerative colitis - your eye gets very red and irritated (just like
leaving a contact lense in for a couple of days too many), and bright lights
hurt.
So anyway, now I
have two sets of eye drops and an ointment to stick in as well (not as bad as
I'd thought), and my pupils are two different sizes. And it sounds like I'll be
that way for a couple of weeks. Really not sure if I should be driving (probably
not).
have two sets of eye drops and an ointment to stick in as well (not as bad as
I'd thought), and my pupils are two different sizes. And it sounds like I'll be
that way for a couple of weeks. Really not sure if I should be driving (probably
not).
Having eye problems
does make you wonder about what would happen if you lost an eye, or worse. I did
get quite despondent; engineering and design are pretty visual careers, and right now I'm
having difficulty focusing on anything closer than about a foot away which makes
detail work doubly hard. But then, Gordon Banks managed to still be a
professional goalkeeper with only one eye, and if you can do that then pretty
much anything is possible, right?
does make you wonder about what would happen if you lost an eye, or worse. I did
get quite despondent; engineering and design are pretty visual careers, and right now I'm
having difficulty focusing on anything closer than about a foot away which makes
detail work doubly hard. But then, Gordon Banks managed to still be a
professional goalkeeper with only one eye, and if you can do that then pretty
much anything is possible, right?
3 comments:
Greetings, Matt
I have had chronic iritis for 2-1/2 years. Long story. I’m involved with online support groups
(http://p083.ezboard.com/buveitissupportmeei and www.iritis.org), which
helps a lot, but not many people have my particular problem (idiopathic,
iris fused to lens), and I have begun searching the internet for blogs by
people who have had this and how they are coping, how they got it into
remission, if they did. I wonder how long you had iritis, if you went on immodulation drugs after trying other methods, if you have gotten the iritis into remission. It’s a long shot, but
thought I’d throw it out there. This disease is very uncomfortable and
frightening (already have cataract and constantly watching for glaucoma,
especially as fused iris can cause it) and I think you can relate to my
COMPLETE ANXIETY. I am looking for stories of hope and how people cope with this. Perhaps you were one of the lucky ones, and it was just a brief episode.
Regards,
Sheila
Hi there. I have been dealing with chronic iritis for over 10 years now. I can remember the first time when I was 21 (I am now 36). The pain in my left eye was so unbearable that I ended up in the emergency room at 4am and the doctors had NO idea what was strong and suggested that I might need surgery because my vision had gone from 20/20 to 20/60. So I had an appointment the next day to see an eye specialist who determined that I indeed had iritis. He dilated my pupils and gave me steroid pills and drops in hopes that it would ease the pain. I ended up getting iritis in the right eye as well and for the first time realized what a gift it truly is to have the ability to see. I could not stand light and it felt as though there was constant glass in my eyes. Another eye specialist decided to give me a needle in my eye. I assumed he would freeze my pupil but no, he just told me to look down and jammed it in my eye. I am very lucky I am not a jumpy person so I hanged on to the chair and he told me I was a brave girl to which I replied " I had no choice". Anyways, I have been poked and prodded and have had blood work done and it turns out I am one of the lucky 5% that will get iritis throughout my entire life and will eventually need glasses because my vision will diminish. I just have to stay positive and I just try to deal with the flare ups and be thankful that it is not as severe as it was in the beginning and that the pain does goes away after a few days with each flare up. Hope you guys hang in there. It sucks but that's life=) Take care!!
Having eye problems does make you wonder about what would happen if you lost an eye, or worse.
I was just diagnosed with iritis. I fear I'm at the begining of a UC flare that has been in complete remission for over 2 years now!!
I scuba dive and do underwater vid for a living!
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