Have you ever had blurred vision and did it go away?

[ButtterflyLady]

I have blurred vision today since waking up (a few hours ago). I am trying to tell myself to stay calm, it will go away etc, but to be honest, I am freaking out.

If I call a doctor I am willing to bet they will just say wait and see.

The first thing they ask when I have a new symptom is - have you started taking any new medications? And I have, I started Olanzapine (for depression) a few weeks ago. I stopped it yesterday and went back to a different med because of the crazy side effects. Olanzapine can cause blurred vision. But then so can a lot of things.

I just can't be bothered dealing with doctors today unless there is something they can actually do for me. So I wanted to vent here instead. Thanks for listening.

 

[Daibell]

Hi. many of us had blurred vision at diagnosis due to excess blodd sugar. Do you use a meter? If so what is your blood sugar level? If it's in the teens or above then you must seek advice from your GP and reduce your carb intake. If you don't have a meter and have been diagnosed with diabetes then it would be very useful for you to obtain one to understand your sugar levels.

 

[Elc1112]

I often do if my sugars are high or if they have been a bit unstable. It usually goes away pretty quickly though. As the previous poster suggests. Test your sugar levels. If they are ok and the blurry vision continues then definitely get it checked out. It's not worth taking the risk with your eyes. Take care. Em

 

[ButtterflyLady]

Thanks for the replies. Yes I have a meter and have been testing - the numbers are fine at the moment, thankfully. I'm also really watching the carbs at the moment just to be extra careful.

The blurring improved over the day but is still an issue. It's Sunday so, on Monday I will make an appointment to see my optometrist. I think he will know more about this than my GP. I think computer use has got something to do with it. Looking at a screen for hours on end is a strain on the eyes. If my eyes are not at their optimum health due to sugar levels, then straining them with the computer isn't a good idea. In my experience, optometrists know a lot about this stuff.

 

[ButtterflyLady]

I saw my optometrist today. Good news is that the blurring has mostly gone away for now, and on testing nothing stands out that might cause alarm at the moment. Bad news is that its still a mystery what caused it and until we know that, we worry that it could come back.

So I'm having a second eye assessment done to look at some possible eyesight issues that aren't diabetes related. I will also write down all my meds etc and they will see if it could have been the med changes. One possibility is psychological stress causing vision changes, which you know, it just might be. I'm a firm believer that if you have enough stress for enough years, it starts showing in your physical health in all sorts of ways.

Diabetes may well be connected to stress IMHO - in that managing stress as best you can is part of optimal diabetes management. It's an illness that is more than just sugar levels.

 

[Sid Bonkers]

Hi CatLady, its common to get blurred vision and changes in eye sight after getting blood glucose levels under control/reduced, after a period of running high ie. before diagnosis when the pressure increases behind the eye and basically squeezes it out of shape, as this happens very slowly most people dont notice the slow deterioration of their eye sight. After diagnosis if bg levels are reduced quickly the sudden release in pressure causes the vision to return to normal and when this happens quickly we notice it, it presents as blurred vision usually our medium to long vision is affected, I had to wear +1.5 reading glasses to drive for the first four to six weeks after getting my bg levels under control so that I could see proberly.

I was told not to have my eyes tested for at least six to eight weeks after diagnosis to let my vision stabilise as any prescription given when the eyes are blurry would be useless once the eyes have returned to normal.

I did show background retinopothy at my first scan, however this disappeared at the second scan and subsequent scans have all been clear as well, thankfully.

So if you have recently got your levels under control or reduced them significantly dont worry if you have blurred vision it should return to normal after six or so weeks at the reduced bg level.

 

[ladybird64]

Interesting issue CatLady, I'm glad to hear that things seem to have returned to normal for you, I hope it continues to stay that way. x

I had my eyes tested just after diagnosis, knew my long distance vision was not good but never wore the glasses. After testing, I ened up with varifocals, for both distance and reading and it was a help. Over the past couple of months I have noticed that something doesn't seem quite "right" with my vision, especially with close up, I too have had the blurry sensation with letters.
It's quite diofficult to explain, but is very noticeable when I am looking down to read and then look back up..just out of focus.

I think I need to get my vision retested, I'm fairly sure it isn't related to my bg's as they were never that high to start with but I have been under a lot of stress for quite a while..hmm. Retinopathy scan was fine back in..whenever it was I had it done!

Perhaps we can compare notes on the stress issue catLady! :wink:

 

[Phillip.ashworth10]

Hi. many of us had blurred vision at diagnosis due to excess blodd sugar. Do you use a meter? If so what is your blood sugar level? If it's in the teens or above then you must seek advice from your GP and reduce your carb intake. If you don't have a meter and have been diagnosed with diabetes then it would be very useful for you to obtain one to understand your sugar levels.

Yes but doctor told me not to check sugar levels

 

[adrian207]

Yes but doctor told me not to check sugar levels

I have just seen the doctor today and I took with me 4 weeks worth of BS level records. She didn't even want to see them and actually told me it wasn't necessary because they will do that every 3 months when I have a blood test. How can you tell what food is acceptable that doesn't raise the BS too high if you can't test yourself. I've got a monitor and I get free strips on prescription so I'll continue to monitor.

 

[Phillip.ashworth10]

Yes but doctor told me not to check sugar levels

I have just seen the doctor today and I took with me 4 weeks worth of BS level records. She didn't even want to see them and actually told me it wasn't necessary because they will do that every 3 months when I have a blood test. How can you tell what food is acceptable that doesn't raise the BS too high if you can't test yourself. I've got a monitor and I get free strips on prescription so I'll continue to monitor.

cant get my on prescription

 

[jack412]

cant get my on prescription

probably not, there is a budget crisis on, and the dr may refer back to the nurse normally, if you are on a hypo inducing med you can get them.

it might be best to start your own thread and ask lots of questions on it

a lot here buy the SD codefree meter.. has the cheapest strips and that's what costs over a year
http://www.homehealth-uk.com/medical/blood_glucose_monitor_testing.htm
if you buy extra boxes of strips there is a discount code ..5 packs 264086

 

[adrian207]

probably not, there is a budget crisis on, and the dr may refer back to the nurse normally, if you are on a hypo inducing med you can get them.

it might be best to start your own thread and ask lots of questions on it

a lot here buy the SD codefree meter.. has the cheapest strips and that's what costs over a year
http://www.homehealth-uk.com/medical/blood_glucose_monitor_testing.htm
if you buy extra boxes of strips there is a discount code ..5 packs 264086

Can I take it that there is a best before date on these strips? That means if you buy in bulk that you would have to test regularly making sure to use up all the strips.
So 5 pkts of 50/pkt =250. You use 5 a day x 7 days =35. 250 divided by 35 = 7 with 5 spare ones. So 7 weeks worth. More if you don't use 5 a day.

 

[jack412]

Can I take it that there is a best before date on these strips? That means if you buy in bulk that you would have to test regularly making sure to use up all the strips.
So 5 pkts of 50/pkt =250. You use 5 a day x 7 days =35. 250 divided by 35 = 7 with 5 spare ones. So 7 weeks worth. More if you don't use 5 a day.

I think strips start off with 18mths expiry or I'm getting very new stock, I want about 12 mths left

anyone know?

 

[adrian207]

I think strips start off with 18mths expiry or I'm getting very new stock, I want about 12 mths left

anyone know?

I've just looked at my box and the use by date is 31/03/2016..yes 2016. Mine are for the Accu-Chek Aviva.

 

[smigger62]

Hi CatLady, its common to get blurred vision and changes in eye sight after getting blood glucose levels under control/reduced, after a period of running high ie. before diagnosis when the pressure increases behind the eye and basically squeezes it out of shape, as this happens very slowly most people dont notice the slow deterioration of their eye sight. After diagnosis if bg levels are reduced quickly the sudden release in pressure causes the vision to return to normal and when this happens quickly we notice it, it presents as blurred vision usually our medium to long vision is affected, I had to wear +1.5 reading glasses to drive for the first four to six weeks after getting my bg levels under control so that I could see proberly.

I was told not to have my eyes tested for at least six to eight weeks after diagnosis to let my vision stabilise as any prescription given when the eyes are blurry would be useless once the eyes have returned to normal.

I did show background retinopothy at my first scan, however this disappeared at the second scan and subsequent scans have all been clear as well, thankfully.

So if you have recently got your levels under control or reduced them significantly dont worry if you have blurred vision it should return to normal after six or so weeks at the reduced bg level.

o is there a level my sugars should be Safely at for type 2..I have had it for years but not really helped myself. ..thanks