Many of us put our trust and faith into our doctors who treat us. We usually trust in their education, affect, intelligence, background, and many other things that we as individuals judge for the good of our needs Sometimes we check backgrounds, and education, and many of us have a criteria that is necessary for our own personal needs, or the needs of our loved ones. We all have our own agenda to make a decision for a doctor to treat us.
I was married to a well known doctor for years, until he was shot. I am keenly aware of how and what people judge good medical care by.
Four years ago, I had been seeing a well known opthamologist for my eye needs. He was a very kind, soft spoken gentleman. I had been seeing him for over eight years.
I had been complaining of minor complaints. My eyes to me and to most of us are our souls, and give us the privilege of seeing. We all take for granite that privilege.
On December l, 4 years ago, I had gotten up, and was getting dressed. My bathroom has two steps.
I knew I was falling, knew where I might land, couldn’t stop, new very well, not to hit my head, but my shoulder. This process was going on in the few seconds it took me to fall. I did not loose my balance, or falter, i just fell, and could not stop.
instead of hitting my shoulder which I was keenly aware of going for, I hit the left side of my head. My husband was upstairs showering. I immediately got up and rain up the stairs, to show my husband that I was bleeding on my left side.
He was going to his doctor, a dear friend of mine, that morning, and I went along. I guess I was more concerned about the bleeding of my arm. My head which I hit hard, did not hurt. At my friends office, he was chagrined, and immediately told me to watch out for all kinds of symptoms for concussion. i did during the day and the next, and then I began to feel dizzy and sleepy and fatigued. My left side of my head hurt. my friend suggested I see my Ophthalmologist, which I did the next day.
He didn’t say anything about a concussion. I had assumed that I had done all the testing an ophthalmologist does. I guess now in retrospect, and after many famous physicians later, he hadn’t, I needed a change for RX for my eyes. I got the glasses and could not see out of them. His attitude was no big deal about the fall, and he gave me something mild for dizziness.
The medication did not work. My own private doctor, and a professor at USC, saw me, and insisted I see a neuro opthamologist. He was a specialist in brain injury.
After an MRI, and CT scan, and a visit to the neuro, I was diagnosed with a TBI, (traumatic brain Injury).
Why am I writing this?
I am writing this because the primary opthamologist, and one of the few in town, missed that I had Glaucoma, and had lost 50% of my eyesight from nerve damage. Through a field of Vision Test, and a few other tests from another opthamologist, I was left with this.
I am writing this because the fall should have never happened,, if I knew that I had an eye problem. I have since had hand bars placed everywhere in my house.
July 23/18
I continue on this journey with a concussion. Life plays tricks, sometimes not so good. The concussion issues have settled down to migraine headache frequency, and headaches, fatigue, and the rest. What can you do? You can move on, and exercise and make your body stronger, and work on balance, so you do not fall after a concussion, learn to accept, (hard to do) , and move on and deal with it…….More later on Illness……..Which follows all of us, some more than others. We do not need the accidental ones like I suffered…..Best advice…..Watch where you are going, and be aware.
