Like most people with diabetes, I see an ophthalmologist (essentially an eye health specialist) once a year. This is because diabetes can affect vision and overall eye wellness, so an ophthalmologist will look for things like cataracts, glaucoma, and macular degeneration within my eyes to make sure they’re healthy.
These appointments have all followed a similar pattern for me in the last couple dozen years that I’ve had diabetes. I’m brought into an exam room, my vision is tested with an eye chart, and then my eyes are dilated and examined with extremely bright lights. And I’ve been very fortunate to hear the same verdict from the ophthalmologist year after year: There’s no evidence of diabetes in my eyes, which translates to my eyes look healthy and normal.
This lack of diagnosis has always reassured me, and this year it was no exception. The only thing that actually changed for me was that it dawned on me that this appointment really means a lot to me. It was relatively quick, completely painless, and, dare I say, pleasant because of my doctor’s deep personal connection to diabetes (her son is around my age and also has T1D). She truly gets what it’s like, and didn’t make a big deal whatsoever when my Dexcom interrupted our appointment with a high alarm.
I’ve come to realize that even though it’s a blip on the radar compared to all the other doctors and healthcare specialists I see throughout the year, it’s still significant to me because I don’t take my vision for granted. Sure, I can’t see much without the aid of my contacts or glasses, but I can still see without pain, blurriness, or any other general eye discomfort. That makes me lucky and also motivates me to continue doing all the right things for my eyes, such as replacing my contact lenses on schedule and taking care to use high-quality cosmetic products. I can’t say that those two factors alone have contributed to my eye health (in fact, I can say with certainty that it’s my diabetes management more than anything else), but even so…I recognize that eye health is not to be taken lightly.
I care about eye care, and I definitely see the connection that doing my best for my ‘betes benefits it, my eyes, and well…all of me.
Hugging the Cactus 
I tell you, for years, the doctor told me you can just come once per year. I said nope, twice. Last time in, he said well, RIck, from now on, you need to see me twice per year. I was crestfallen. I felt like a failure. But then he said remember, you have had diabetes for 48 years. Relax, it’s minor; you might get 48 more years.
I said every six months? It sounds like I need to do three.
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