Adventures in Dilating

When I stepped into the waiting room, I knew it was going to be an adventure. There looked to be only half a dozen available seats in the large oval room. There were chairs lining the Pepto colored walls and two rows of chairs in the middle of the oval back to back. Sort of the “Mushpot” area in the middle of the room.

I walked up to the counter and signed in. The lady behind the counter with way too much eye make up on shot me a glance, almost as if I was annoying her. I just entered the last bit of info, 4:22 check in time, and found a seat.

Ah, a seat right by the door with a buffer seat between me and the stranger near by. This is prime real estate in a crowded waiting room. I sit down, fold my arms, and wait to be tortured.

“George Simons?” says Eye Make-up Girl (ugh, it’s Simmons. Two M’s people!)

So I go up to the counter pay my co-payment and turn around to see that a mom and her kid walked in and took my seat. Great. The only spots available were in the middle of the room. GREAT!

So there I sit. Right in the middle of the room. If I look up, I am either staring at the backside of a patient at the counter OR I am face to face with EMG. “Please call me next. The drops are not as bad as this.” I whisper under my breath.

While I am sitting there I hear EMG answering phone calls and making appointments for people later in the week and some next week. I remember back to when I called EMG and asked for an appointment.

**in sitcom fashion the scene becomes blurry and I go back in time for a moment***

“We have an appointment available on the 29th of January. Would that work?” EMG says.

“January? But it is November. You have nothing available until next year?”

“That’s it.”

“… okay I will take it.”

“George Simons?” (ugh)

**Flashback sequence has ended**

I spring up and dash to the meet the Ophthalmologist at the door. I remembered her from last year. Then the next chapter of the nightmare begins.

“So how is your blood sugar? Are you stable?”

“Well, it is better then before. I mean, it is a constant struggle.”

“I understand.” She said. “So, what we are going to do is put some drops in your eyes to dilate them so I can look inside and see if the diabetes has affected your eyes.”

“Right,” I said “just like last year.”

“Well, you will have to have this test every year until you are off medication or considered a ‘non-diabetic.”

Did she really just say that? Anyway, I make a mental note to mention that here and I continue on.

She puts 2 drops in each eye and then starts typing in some stuff into her computer. Wow, it is not so bad. Maybe they got new drops. Molasses free drops or something. That was not nearly as bad as I remember.

Then she says, “Oh I need to put one more drop in.”

She must have found them. But these drops were “extra spicy” because the stung like hell!

I sat there trying to blink while she continued to type info into the computer.

“The last time you were here I see that we showed you the video about how Diabetes affects the eyes. I am going to show you a video about LASIK surgery. We offer that here in our office and I am sure you are curious about it since you wear glasses.” She double clicks. “I’ll be back when you are dilated.”

I am thankful because I did not have to go into the waiting room BUT she is putting a video on her computer screen for me to watch when I CANNOT SEE!!!

Seconds into this video and I am completely grossed out. I cannot see it but hearing the host describe the cutting and folding of the eye totally freaked me out! The best part was at the very end of the movie I hear, “most people are good candidates for LASIK except for some pregnant woman and diabetics.” Nice.

She comes back in and does the exam. I do know where you can purchase lights that harbor the intensity of 1000 suns but apparently ophthalmologists know. Oh my goodness, I swear that cannot be good for your eyes.

She said that she saw several spots where the blood vessels are bleeding but that is to be expected. It is nothing to be alarmed about (I am alarmed anyway). She said that there is one that is close to the center of my retina and that she would like me back in 6 months to have it looked at. She goes on to say that if this particular spot was more to the side she would not even worry about it.

I am worried anyway. Should I be? OC please tell me what I should do. I am nervous. Can I trust this person after the other things she did? I hate not feeling confident with my health care.

So that was it. I come back in 6 months for another adventure. Looks like Karma got me for saying it was the worst day of the year. Now I get two.

Jinxes suck.

You Tube Tuesday #5

Tomorrow I will post about my adventure at the Ophthalmologists office.

Today I give you another kitty video but this one blew me away. I have NEVER seen a cat like this before.

Check it out.

Could anything be worse?

Maybe being trapped at a Michael Bolton concert? I dunno.

For me, this is always the WORST DAY OF THE YEAR.

Annual Eye Exam Day.

I remember back to the first time I had this done and how the Ophthalmologist put 8 drops in each eye to get my eyes to dilate. No other doctor has ever had to use that many so I am convinced that my first Ophthalmologist must not have liked me.

I feel a rant coming on…

Seriously folks, how can it help the doctor to see if Diabetes has affected my eyes when the eye drops are made of molasses? At least that is what it feels like. Or, I would describe it as drops that make your eyes 10 times their normal size and your poor little lids try their darndest to get over them. Like I need any more stretch marks. Loverly.

I hate having to sit in the waiting room watching the world blur up even worse then it already does without my glasses. Picking up magazines trying to identify what or who is on the cover of Time from 1988 since the newer issues have not made it out from the break room to the common folk.

I hate this day so much.

Deep down I know that this is for the best. I know that without this procedure there is a possibility that the “D” will wreak havoc on my eyes without me noticing it physically until it is too late.

Hell, maybe it has.

Maybe that is what I hate the most. The idea that this afternoon I may find out that becoming a B.A.D. a year ago was just too little too late. The thought of it sickens me. I am terrified of going blind, losing my toes, needing to be on dialysis. All of that stuff that is possibly in my future. At least that is what every brochure I have ever seen always said.

Tomorrow is always the best day of the year for me.

Here’s to tomorrow.

Master P Has My Back!

Literally.

I have decided to try a new site on my back. Well as far around my side and I can twist (without dancing of course). And something very strange happened. My BG has been very VERY good.

Now, I can honestly say that I have not changed my eating habits or really anything else that would attribute except for this site change. Could a site in a very good spot make this big of a difference? It makes me wonder if I have a lot of scar tissue in my stomach or something that is causing bad absorption.

Either way I am enjoying the great BG’s and the AWESOME *Postprandial BG’s! I had been running high for so long. It is nice to actually have a few Hypo’s (I know that sounds awful but I think you all know what I mean).

Do any of you find that this is an issue? All those years taking shots only in my stomach, I wonder if I ruined the real estate. That would be a shame since it has increased in size recently. That is a lot of potential land to lose! LOL

*Postprandial BG = After mealtime Blood Glucose

You Tube Tuesday #4

A friend of mine swears that this exercise fad helped her lose 30 pounds.

I must confess that I did try it once. It is hard to do any of this program without laughing or continually making sure no one is watching. I think this was the only time in my life I have ever been embarrassed while being completely alone.

*EDIT 1/25/07 - The original clip I posted was taken down. I found another one. I had to have something for you all to see!