[Andy_nut]

X, I am sure you are right and the fact I have got to this stage means I know I need to make sure I manage myself better. I have a review in 6 weeks and now that I know how straight forward the treatment is I am not worried about making sure I keep on top of it, if I need further laser treatment then so be it, I won't be as scared.

It was easy to put it off while I was scared of what might happen, sometimes it is very hard when you are given advice and guidance from people without having experienced it yourself. Now I can say "been there, done that" I know it is not easy for others but worth making sure things are right.

I have a 10 month old daughter and I want to see her grow up so I will be making every effort to manage this properly.

I have seen the damage done to the eye already so fingers crossed the laser guy did the work that will stop things getting naturally worse while I do the work to manage my figures.

Onwards and upwards

[parrotletzoo]

Andy, If someone hasn't already told you this, after laser surgery don't be surprised if your vision in the eye lasered gets blurrier for a few months. It will get better. When I had laser no one told me and I was all "laser didn't work this sucks cat booty!" and then one day I realized that the fog had cleared and I wasn't so disappointed. Later my eye doctor told me that was normal. Could have used that information in the beginning!

good luck, i'm glad the procedure went well, hoping the rest goes well too.

[Andy_nut]

I do have a little fuzzyness, but not sure if that is just a dirty contact lens

Cheers
Andy

[xMenace]

You will find some unpleasant changes. Things are not as sharp as before. Your depth perception is not as good. Some have trouble driving at night. I drove to Boston shortly afterwards and those six lanes on I95 at night were brutal. I find they don't bother me nearly as much anymore. I don't know what spors you play, but I had trouble catching baseballs, especially high flies. I could see the ball, but I couldn't easily tell where it would land or how far away it was. But you've only had a small amount. I had 3,000 or so blasts.

[DennisIDDM]

Well Andy it's like this ... Retinpathy is Very Serious.. It is the #1 cause for Blindness... and having Diabetes is the Root cause... and Having anything above a 5% A1c accelerates it..

What can you do?
1. You haveto get your A1c's down to as near to 5% levels s you possibly can..
Wether it means Loosing Weight, Taking More Meds or Even start taking Insulin injections..

After you get a Eye Vitrus Hemmorage, you will better understand the seriousness of the problem... and it will shake up your whole outlook on having Diabetes..

That 6.8% A1c, won't cut it... Odds are your having alot of 200's as well and anything above 140 2 hrs after eating is bad., very bad. and anything above 110 after 4 hrs is bad as well..

And You have to test every 2 hrs, not less... not so much for the #'s, but to keep reminding you to improve...Eat Less carbs, walk more, etc..

Talking from experience> I have it, My Mother went Blind from it, 2 yrs before dying, My 2 yr older sister is legally blind from it.. I am a T1 Diabetic and thus getting a 5% A1c is almost impossiblefor us, but it isn't for you T2's...

And yes, you should be seeing a Retina Specialist... and getting a Digital Angigram along with other tests... If you have a University nearby that has a Eye Reserach center? Ck with them as well..

Good Luck..Hope you do this..Your Eyesight depends on it..

[Andy_nut]

Thanks for the response.

Unfortunately support in the UK isn't quite the same as the US. For example....

Low carb diets are frowned upon (although I am already on one) and I am no longer allowed to get test strips on prescription anymore! If I want them I have to purchase them myself, and working part time with a family to support makes that almost impossible.

I am keeping on top of it. The UK guidelines for an acceptable A1C is also different than that in the US so my medical team are happy with my progress. I don't really want to get into a debate over US and UK standards but needless to say I am doing everything I can to manage this disease.

"The target for HbA1c is 6.5 per cent or below since evidence shows that this can reduce the risk of developing diabetic complications " from ...
HbA1c (Glycated haemoglobin) and fructosamine - Diabetes UK

Cheers
Andy

[JediSurfer]

I'm sorta special too. Three professors over the years have told me that my eyes are the most perfect human eyes they have ever seen. Nothing to do with retinopathy. Just the eyes themselves. Been studied many time by students .Still no retinopathy after 28 years. Got an eye exam on monday. fingers crossed for me hey.

Hope the treatment goes well for you Andy.

All diabetesologist here in the UK are fully trained regarding diabetic retinopathy.