What's In Sight?

If you're like me, approaching your 30s brought up questions about the future: What's the next step in my career? Do I have enough in savings to think about buying a house? Are my feelings going to change about starting a family? How many days in a row can I get away with microwave popcorn for lunch?

One question I wasn't expecting to ask: How much longer before I become legally blind?

In February 2014, I was working on a spreadsheet when suddenly the lines were no longer straight. I initially thought maybe my computer or monitor was malfunctioning before I noticed the same could be said about the blinds on the window in my office. As much as I love theme parks, fun house mirrors have never had much appeal for me, and I was on the phone with my eye doctor immediately to make an appointment. Two weeks and 3 doctors visits later (note to readers: if you feel like something is wrong with your health - KEEP PUSHING your doctors, especially if their first suggestion is something along the lines of "sit closer to your computer;" [and nope, I no longer see that doctor]), I was given a diagnosis of myopic macular degeneration, a lot of papers and a needle in the eye.  You have no idea how many times I regretted saying "Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle...." poem as a child. 

In trying to learn more about my condition, which I'd never heard of before being told it was now a part of my life, I came across very little information online. There is a related disease called age-related macular degeneration, which is one of the leading causes of vision loss in people over 50, but most websites I found only gave the briefest mention of myopic macular degeneration, acknowledging that it exists and has symptoms similar to AMD, but is caused by severe myopia. Or I was directed to clinical research results, of which I understood about three sentences. Not exactly the best way to become well-informed about what was ahead. Forty-something appointments and 20 or so injections later, I won't say that I'm an expert on the subject, but I do know a lot more than I did at 28 - and thank goodness I can say that about subjects other than my health as well.

Enter this blog. I haven't created it solely to exist as a resource for my fellow myopic degenerates, although I'm really hoping people find useful information here if they or someone they know has been recently diagnosed. This website is also motivation for me to follow through on some of my goals to visit, read and watch as much as possible while my central vision allows me to do so; and any accommodations I may need to make to continue to enjoy those things along the way.