Diplopia, Fatigue and Anxiety

Posted by angelflorida @angelflorida, Jul 3, 2023

I would like someone to help me describe to my doctor what I am going through and hopefully find some answers. I am in my 50s and my left eye had a congenital cataract when I was born. All they could do then was to remove the lens (as I was told) and they left a white-looking growth remain in my left eye. It became amblyopic, no central vision developed only some peripheral vision with is very blurry. The white matter that remained in my eye provided a block from the eye seeing anything but what was in the periphery (towards the ear).

Fast foward to my 18th birthday, my now deseased mom took me to a doctor who did a YAG laser treatment on my bad let eye and proceeded to burn away the white matter in the eye, leaving am opening that in his estimation might help me see something [a very bad decision which I not greatly regret allowing]. In the ensuing years, I have gradually developed diplopia because the left eye, due to the YAG, has developed some awareness of vision in the off-left-center.

Now in my 50s, I am in so much distress because of the visual confusion caused by my left eye. I have tried to cover it up with a patch, but accustomed to the input of light entering my left I struggle to see with my good right eye. I am on anxiety/ depression medication because of the distress that has mounted over this through the years. My optometrists thinks I should be able to ignore the visual insult of my left eye, but this is not possible for me. Now my vision is fatigued 24/7 and I feel so tired and run down. The onset of hyperopia has not helped either. I have also become a bit farsighted in my good eye. So, between the bluriness and the intratible diplopia, I deal with chronic fatigue in the back of my head, neck and shoulders.

I need help and there is none so far that has provided meaningful direction. I am ashamed to admit that as weakened as I feel, I need someone to hold my hand because I am so beat. Can you provide some guidance to me?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Eye Conditions Support Group.

Please sign in or register to post a reply.