I didn’t get type 1 until I was 30 (2002) and saw an eye doc for the first time since junior high (!) when I was 33 (2005). All was fine. Wheh. Well, I moved to Germany last year and everything got turned upsidedown and delayed and so I’m just today seeing an eye doc again, two years after that first and only post-diagnosis exam. This is my first exam in Germany, too, so the language barrier will be… uh… fun.
I’m actually freaked out. The eye doc now scares me about as much as the dentist. And I have some questions for others out there because it seems almost like retinopathy is a given at some point. It always seems that even the long-timers who say they have “no complications” end up commenting that they have had “two little eye surgeries”. (That’s a complication to me.) Does anyone NOT get eye probs? Does anyone get them right off the bat? I would really like to know…
1. Have you had any retinopathy or other diabetes-related eye problem?
IF YES, how long had you had diabetes when this was discovered?
Again, IF YES, how was your control in the few years prior?
I hopefully don’t have any probs. Eeek. Will find out in 3 hours. I’ve had T1 for almost 6 yrs and a1c’s have always been under 7.
I was dx’ed in 1970, being 11 month old. my eyes were checked once a year (background) for bleedings. in 1992 I was hospitalized for learning the ICT. they also did an eye check. they found small blood vessels that weren’t supposed to be there, so I had a laser therapy. so far I had over 900 laser shots per eye, my nighvision got a little worse and I have to have the eyes checked every 3 month.
I wasn’t taking good care of my T1 when I was a kid, that caused the problems 20 years later. I know a few “long timers” that never had a problem, but they were taking better care. When I was a kid I had a1c’s in the 10-11% area. that screwed it up. now I gotta pay the bill.
After 31 years of T1 I still have absolutely NO sign of any eye problems. My Ophthalmologist is always pleasantly surprised after she examines me. It’s not inevitable, but it is a very common complication. Maybe I’ll have some in another 10 or 20 years, but I’m hoping not.
Well, the appointment is over and I have no signs of any problems. Yay! So that’s at least 6 years without an issue. And I guess I’m the first person on either side of my family to hit 35 (36 in two months) without needing glasses. The doc said I’m ever so slightly far-sighted, but not enough to need glasses. Well, at least I got something good out of our gene pile, lol.
hello,
i have had diabetes for 16 years now. in my 14th year i started having eye problems and so saw a specialist. since then i have had over 30 laser surgeries, 10 avastin injections, 2 cataract surguries and will soon be having a surgery to remove blodd from my eye that refuses to leave. it has been the longest 2 years of my life. However, I know that the only person to blaim is myself. I had VERY poor control while I was a teenager and I am pretty sure that is why I am having these problems. I know that it is not the end of the world and take it day by day. Try not to be too freaked out, these things happen. We just have to be thankful for what we do have. Take Care.
I’ve been Type 2 for at least 11 years (dx 96 but was probably diabetic for a while but didn’t know it) and went back to an ophthalmologist last month (after about 5 years!) who told me he saw no signs of retinopathy! I feel like I’ve dodged a bullet with this one, since I’ve been in pretty bad control (while my last A1c was 5.6, 18 months ago it was 10.7). I’m working really hard to make sure I keep it that way.
Tell me about your experience with the doctors in Germany. I’m in the process of arranging a year there while I finish my PhD – and I’m trying to arrange a job there afterward, and I’m curious how the medical system works for diabetics.
