Hi All
I’m not only new to forums but also to MS. I had my first epsiode in July last year with total numbness which affected my whole body. An MRI scan confirmed that it was MS. At the time because my symptoms were only sensory I was given a good prognosis and told that everything would resume to normal within the next couple of weeks/months and because of my age (35) and gender (female) the prognosis looked positive. However I waited 6 months and although most of my sensory functions came back my right hand still remained numb (I think it’s there for good now). Anyway to cut a long story short 8 months on and I have had another relapse - Sensory again only this time it’s just my right side and the tips of my fingers on my left hand. It started 3 weeks ago and I have received good support from my MS nurse and I am waiting for a Specialist appointment to discus DMD. Anyway that’s enough of the background info what I really would like your help and advice on is a problem I am having with my vision. It started a couple of weeks ago whilst everything was begininng to recover normally (apart from my hand but enough said on that), I began to develop a loss of hearing (which I suspected was caused by a cold infection). Anyway on Tuesday of this week I was driving home from work and noticed that my eyesight was considerably distorted and I was having trouble focusing, so much that I couldn’t make out if how many cars were in front of me as there appeared to be more than one car (it was a country road and daylight). I found that the only way to see clearly was to close one eye. I visited the GP on Thursday and told him about my ear - a viral infection that will have to clear on its own and asked if it was somehow affecting my eyesight, he told me he didn’t think so and to get my eyes tested, which I did the very same day. I told the optician I had MS and about my symptoms. She did a very thorough exam and found that my left distance vision had deteriorated since my previous test 2 years ago ( I also have an astigmatism in this eye). I passed all the other tests including the peripheral vision test) and she could not find any other problems - she even took photos inside my eyes and the nerves were all healthy. However because my left eye SPH has changed from +2.25 to +1.25 she has told me that she is referring me to an eye specialist through my GP and to hold back on getting lenses with the prescription she has given me. So after this long winded blog (not sure if that’s the technical term) I was wondering if anyone has any advice on:
- Can visual problems in MS only occur when driving? 2. Is it normal to be referred to an eye specialist with only a slight change after 2 Years? 3. Do you think this is just a normal distance vision thing that will be corrected by getting a new prescription? I am tempted to just order them online because I can’t drive without any corrective lenses and it will take ages for an eye hospital appointment. Any help or if anyone has any similar experience I would value your input. Katsxx