||| MIDNIGHT MUTTERINGS by JACKIE BATES |||
Last week I was having a little trouble with my vision. Reading at night was difficult, but not impossible. Print was less clear and my reading was slower and quite a bit less rewarding. Eventually not worth the struggle. And that’s saying a lot given how important reading is to me. (As it is for most of us.)
Soon things got worse, vision-wise, though I couldn’t seem to figure out exactly what my problem was. Then I went for a walk on the beach when the moon was full. Actually both moons were full. One above the other, totally separated by a good distance. The one above slightly paler and somewhat more ragged across the edges.
Finally my brain kicked in: Ah, double vision (diplopia). In my case, vertical diplopia.
Then the fun part: I went straight to the internet and looked at head shots of journalists and politicians I don’t admire. I won’t name names here, but it was enormously rewarding to see these people with four eyes. Less rewarding was the reflection in the mirror of my own four eyes. Closing one eye made us all return to the normal two eyes, and made print better too. Still it’s hard to keep an eye closed for long periods of time, and reading is still laborious if clearer. Also, less amusing is that double vision that occurs only when both eyes are open (binocular diplopia) can have more serious causes than monocular, though I didn’t know about that part yet.
So, with my son driving, I was off to Seattle to see my long term ophthalmologist, whose appointments are booked out for months, but who kindly agreed to see me that day. Turns out that double vision can be a symptom of some fairly icky conditions, which I hadn’t known about in my pre-double vision days.
My engineer father who lived to be 96, commented in his later years that he had become a continual maintenance problem. So I suppose that includes unexpected double vision as I try to settle into my own old age.
The ophthalmologist asked me lots of questions and did a complicated, lengthy exam, followed by several lab tests. All but one of which have been completed and yielded favorable results. The last of the test results should come in soon, so I am hopeful that I’m not looking at anything icky. And I am grateful for the quick attention.
Meanwhile, my double vision seems to come and go, and I am hopeful that it will just go. And stay away. If not, when I run into you I might squint at you and/or close one eye. Probably, I won’t be winking at you, but just trying to see how you look with only two of your possible eyes. Or maybe I’ll have found an eye patch, although that would have been a lot easier around Halloween than in Spring. Spring feels good even with four eyes. And that’s something in uncertain times.
From both of me to both of you, Jackie, prescription glasses really can help. Been there, doing that.