StemCell Therapy

STATEN ISLAND, My wife Joan has diabetes. It evidences itself upon her in many ways. There are various forms of opathies involved, that affect your limbs and eyes. Joan uses her eyes a lot for her work as a photo editor. So, when she started experiencing some problems lately, we took several visits to her eye doctor. No pun intended, but those visits were eye openers.

Her doctors first suggestion was to get better lighting. An LED lamp we bought on New Dorp Lane had a semi-hefty price tag. The event that got me going was, when she needed eye salve for an infection, the price originally quoted was $247. For a very tiny tube of ointment.

The next day, because Joan and the pharmacist kept asking questions, the price dropped to $12. Several people I know have similar stories. The threat of Big Pharma is no fairy tale meant to scare little kids. The pharmaceutical companies in the USA prey on the weak, the older and the sick to make their nut. Louis Black often asks when health care became a for profit industry. Good question.

During one of our visits, I spied an eye chart that had various facts printed at various font sizes, to test peoples acuity. The facts alone made me want to tear my eyes out!

(1) Tobacco use increases the rick of macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of blindness in people 65 and older, more than cataracts and glaucoma.

Macular degeneration is caused by the deterioration of the central portion of the retina, which controls the eyes ability to focus, which affects driving, reading, seeing details.

(2) An annual eye exam is recommended for all people 65 and over as well as for those people with diabetes.

TAKE A STEP BACK

Hered be a good place to pause and discuss diabetic retinopathy.

It causes weakened blood vessels in the eye to leak, bleed and become blocked. If untreated, it can lead to blindness. Early detection, treatment via diet, exercise, laser and, in extreme cases, surgery is indicated. The cause is usually the peaks and valleys in blood sugar levels that people with diabetes often experience. So, as well as not having a working pancreas, people with diabetes can expect loss of feeling in their hands and feet (which sometimes means you can injure yourself and not feel it, leading to further complications) and, in some cases, loss or sight, partially or totally.

People with diabetes have to be resilient, courageous and brave. An occasional kickboxing class might also come in handy!

(3) In the next 30 years, the number of people over 65 with vision impairments will double. We have more baby boomers on Staten Island than on any other borough. And the first one ya to do that OK. line on me gets a shot in the eye on the house!

Seriously, is this not enough to make you run screaming into a hallway? Frequent readers of this column know I heartily endorse preventive medicine, because its much better to get treatment before a crisis occurs than after. Many people are afraid of visiting doctors too often because of the expense or because theyre afraid that a doctor will find something they dont want to know about.

Question: Who would you rather have find something.your spouse or a highly trained professional that will actually be able to do something about whatever it is that they find?

Im thinking now of that scene in This is 40 where Paul Rudd asks Leslie Mann to check out what he thinks might be an anal fissure. A strategically placed mirror avoids embarrassment during this scene and focuses solely on the laugh.

LENDING SUPPORT

But, seriously, as much as we love our spouses, unless were medically trained, theres little we can do for them but to go with them to appointments and hold their hand, be a second pair of ears and eyes, and just be there for moral support, in general.

Oh, and taking them to the Hylan Diner afterwards. They make really good omelettes! (Sorry, Victoria Priola! I know thats YOUR beat!)

And when things get rough, we have to stand by each other even more. Joan and I have seen our share of health crises..broken limbs, pneumonia, comas, anxiety attacksevery time you come through something together, youre stronger because of it. Too many in a row and you may weaken. It helps to take time out every once in awhile. Take a day trip, or visit somewhere for five days. Have things you do together and things you do separately. Date nights rule. And, when the kids are out of the house, you can use all that time you spent cleaning their rooms, washing their laundry and picking up their coffee cups for..uh.other activities.

LETS SEE A SMILE

We should never take each other for granted. Because, you just dont know. So, live every day, laugh every day, tell your significant other you love them at least once a day. Make sure they know they have an ally in this world that wont disappear when the going gets tough.

After all, thats what you need as well!

Hold those grey heads up!

Follow this link:
The Old Guy: Loving support for a partner with health concerns - SILive.com

This entry was posted on February 23, 2020 at 7:53 am and is filed under Eye Sight & Vision. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |