blurry eyes

ragman

Member
Messages
11
i am newly diagnosed type 2 , i saw a stand in doctor about my blurry eyes and he said my eyesight will return to normal when my diabetes gets under control , i saw another doctor this morning and he advised me to go to the optician , i do wear glasses and only six months ago had an eye test and new glasses , will my eyes return to what they were or will they stay like this and i will have to buy new glasses ????
 

anniep

Well-Known Member
Messages
561
It is very possibly the diabetes as high BG can cause blurred vision. BUT it is not worth taking any chances with your eyesight so go and get it checked out by the optician anyway.
 

Skid

Member
Messages
12
High blood glucose levels have caused your blurry vision, it will correct itself when your blood glucose returns to normal. DO NOT get a new pair of glasses while your eyesight is still blurry as they will damage your eyes.

When I was diagnosed with type 1 everything beyond 6 inches away was a blur, now 2 months later, my vision has returned to normal.

When I asked my Diabetic Nurse about it, she told me to wait 6 months before having an eyetest.
 

anniep

Well-Known Member
Messages
561
Opticians do more than test for glasses they do all sorts of other checks on your eyes, I know opticians who have been able to pick up all sorts of conditions.

A visit to the optician is about more than your glasses prescrition, so go to the optician after all you do not have to take new glasses yet if you don't want to.
 

Alanem

Active Member
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43
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I went through exactly the same experience and it cleared itself but a lot later I have been told by the optician I have the beginings of cataracts. The experts have yet to decide whether this is related to diabetes. I don't know how old you are and this might not apply to you but I think that this is a good tip for others. One of the signs of cataracts is that you feel as though you have dirty glasses and constantly want to clean them.
Alan
 

ragman

Member
Messages
11
thanks for the replies , i am 64 years old , i am going for an eye test on monday at the opticians , will see what they say ,
 

anniep

Well-Known Member
Messages
561
Good that you are going, your problem may well be your diabetes, but opticians are part of hte medical team that you need and things like cataracts are one of the reasons the doc's say to get your eyes checked out just in case.
 

ragman

Member
Messages
11
i have been to the opticians and my eye sight has changed a lot since april , my eyes are now a lot stronger so my spectacles are not much use , optician gave me a choise of either having new glasses , or waiting a month to see if my eyes change again , i decided to put up with it for another month as bi focal glasses are not cheap , cant keep changing every few months ,
 

Snodger

Well-Known Member
Messages
787
I think you've made the right decision. Your eyes are very likely to change again, as others have said. About a month after diagnosis my eyes went really bad (extra blurry) and took about another month or maybe two to settle back down. In the end I didn't need to change my prescription at all, they went back to the way they had been before.
 

anniep

Well-Known Member
Messages
561
You can always buy temporary reading glasses, my local discount shops always have them in. My last pair cost 2.50, they are not high fashion but at least I can read in bed. And you want to be really extravagant I have seen them in the supermarket for £9.99.
 

Angeldust

Well-Known Member
Messages
103
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
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Yes...DO NOT TAKE ANY CHANCES,
I was told this by an idiot doctor who wouldn't listen to me and I was almost blind at the age of 23....
Any chance you can be referred to an opthamologist??

Don't panic, I'm not trying to scare you, there's every chance it could be temporary blurring due to glucose fluctuations but with something this important take no risks.
 

jaykay

Well-Known Member
Messages
439
My diabetic friend told me a story about a newly diagnosed friend of hers. It was last Christmas and because she thought she ought to be 'good', she gave up alcohol and drank orange juice instead! :shock: She went to the doctors a week later with blurry vision and he explained that her 'good diet' was responsible. It took a month or so for her vision to clear but it did and she's been fine since.
 

Dippy3103

Well-Known Member
Messages
325
I went for an eye test shortly after I was diagnosed. The optician advised me to hang fire on new glasses untill my bg had stabalised just in case it had caused minor changes to my vision. Am glad I did because I didn't need new glasses.
 

wizardinblack

Member
Messages
18
I'm a type 1 and my eyes have always been fine but about a year ago I was having blurry eyes every now and again, they go fine then some days I can't read anything more than a metre or so away, so i went to my optician and he said pretty much the same thing. Diabetes can make your eye sight go abit funny when your bms are high and there would be no point in spending alot of money on glasses as it will eventually right itself. I personally couldnt put up with the blur when they did go funny, so got some cheap glasses. There fine most of the time now but it's good to have something there to wear when it does happen haha especially if you drive!!
 

MaidMarion

Newbie
Messages
3
Hiya Ragman, I only joined today, and this is my first ever reply, but I had this exact blurring symptom (as well as others). However, when the newsreader on t.v. had no hair or features, just a pink blob for a face, it was really scary!!! I was on holiday in Ireland, and it took me to find a doctor, who diagnosed the Type 2 Diabetes. He explained that my body has been storing the glucose it couldn't get rid of, in all the cells in my body, until eventually the only place left is in the cells in the eyes. However, this then causes the lens in your eye to distort to accomodate the fuller cells. Once I had been on Metformin for a few days, and was getting rid of the glucose build up, my vision returned to normal, and has been fine ever since. I was also advised to drink AT LEAST1 litre of water a day, to help keep my liver and kidneys flushed through. I was at the age where most people start to notice a slight deterioration in reading vision, and purchase the £1 reading glasses which have been fine. At my first annual diabetic eye test , the optician checked the glasses out too, and said they were perfectly alright, and only wished he was allowed to sell them himself! Good luck with your outcome. :D
 

ragman

Member
Messages
11
thanks for all the supportive posts and tips , my eyes are getting better now i am getting control of my blood sugars , i was getting really scared as no one seemed to know the answers , until i came on here , i have started driving again after being advised to stop by a doctor in hospital , yet my own gp when i asked him for a sick note told me to just get on with it , yet in my job he knows i have to drive ,