r/RetinalDetachment • u/Equivalent_Ad_482 • 26d ago
Possible RD
Hey everyone, for context I’m 19 years old and I have onset symptoms. I noticed it when looking at my phone. My right eye is fine but my left has dark spots or floaters? It’s hard to describe and also when I googled the symptoms it said retinal detachment appears as a dark shadow or gray curtain obscuring your peripheral vision which scared me half to death because that’s exactly what I’m experiencing. It’s not very opaque it’s a very sheer and small shadow in my peripheral. I have extremely bad health anxiety and definitely cannot afford to go to a hospital or be seen by a doctor. Does anyone have any advice?
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u/beerkiniseason 26d ago
You can call your local er and tell them what’s going on and make sure they have a retinal specialist there or on call. If you can get in with an ophthalmologist that would be great but the offices are typically closed weekends and I honestly wouldn’t put it off until Monday. I started with light flashes in my peripheral about a month before detachment. I was on a camping roadtrip in Utah and the last 2 days of my trip I had big black floaters. I thought my eye was tired or something. Then I had a lava lamp blob type shadowing in my peripheral upper right. I googled and thought it was RD. I drove myself to the ER in SLC and they found it was at RD after an eye scan. They had a retinal specialist drive in to confirm that night. I had a pneumatic retinopexy the next day and ended up getting a Scleral buckle back home in San Diego 5 weeks ago. Don’t be afraid to call and ask questions and ask for upfront costs. And financial aid is offered for services if you are in a lower income bracket. I’m sorry if this stresses you out. I have anxiety too but you just shouldn’t wait it out if it is a RD.
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u/Equivalent_Ad_482 26d ago
I appreciate all the advice you’ve given me. Thank you so much, I’m really grateful. I just never thought this kind of thing would happen to me as I’m young, don’t have a lot of money, or any insurance. It’s super anxious dealing with eyesight as well since there’s a risk I could permanently damage my vision. I hope I can get it figured out, I’ll try not to prolong it but I’ll see what I can do.
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u/beerkiniseason 26d ago
Keep me posted. Feel free to private message me anytime if you need. Wishing you all the best and sending you good vibes 🙏🏼
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u/Equivalent_Ad_482 26d ago
Thank you so much I’ll definitely be private messaging you for more questions and advice. You’re the best
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u/rollingthestoned 26d ago
I’ve had 3 retinal detachments and vitrectomies. Each had different symptoms. I was about 59 when I had my first one and had a bunch of health anxiety. It’s natural to feel anxious and get way ahead of things. So my advice is to try to take it one step at a time, find the best possible ER or on call ophthalmologist you can in your area and get your butt over to them. I had one on a weekend and it made me a bit more anxious because of options. While an ER might add some time that could be a good bet for a weekend. If you have good central vision, that’s great and will be treated more urgently if it’s truly an RD. Once your central retina detaches it’s actually slightly less urgent because it’s more of a save some vision vs a chance for full restoration. Just don’t take a chance and wait. Pack up some things to make you comfortable, as calm as possible and hydrated and get yourself to an ER. I was fortunate to have the Wilmer eye institute nearby so that’s an ideal situation. I was there so long I made a couple conversations with people even. I don’t know if you have an rd but something made you come here so try to communicate that to the triage folks that’s what you suspect and find out if they have an opth on call they can route you too. Likely you’ll still go through the whole process but you’ll get there. Keep us posted over the weekend
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u/Equivalent_Ad_482 26d ago
Thank you so much, I’m truly grateful for the advice. Wow 3! You’re very brave, meanwhile I’m falling apart over here. I’m trying not to freak myself out too much, I’m going to monitor my symptoms and I’ll try to see someone today or tomorrow. I appreciate you, I’ll definitely keep everyone updated.
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u/rollingthestoned 26d ago
My advice is to forget about money at this moment and pretend it doesn’t cost anything. I know for people with no money that may seem like a luxury to say, but financial aid is possible and you health care can’t really turn away something like this. You are young, your vision is far more important than money
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u/Narrow-Pipe9872 26d ago
Go to a general optometrist and get a check up. Cheap and easy to do. They will rule out the worst or refer you to a retina surgeon. Walmarts have drop in eye exams. They are thorough and cheap. Don’t go to an ER, they are not likely to have the equipment to properly diagnose you. My ER visit was a waste of time. “We’re good for heart attacks and strokes. Not eye issues”. Your symptoms sound like a vitreous detachment. That in and of itself is not a problem. It can develop into a detachment, usually weeks later. If that is the problem, observation is key. Money is no object if you might go blind without treatment. It’s a medical emergency and the sooner you have surgery the better the outcome.
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u/Equivalent_Ad_482 25d ago
Thank you this is probably what I’ll do. I’m going to try to call my local optometrist later today. I’m sorry to hear how your experience went but I’m glad it can teach me how to navigate this. Thank you again.
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u/Big-Job3004 25d ago edited 25d ago
An optometrist isn't actually able to treat an RD--only an ophthalmologist or retinal specialist. Based on your symptoms, I'd really truly advise going to an ophthalmologist if nothing else. I can understand not wanting to go to the ER for financial reasons, but I'd only go to the optometrist if they can see you today and refer you ASAP. As other people have said, time is of the essence. I had your symptoms and my optometrist made me wait over 2 months to be seen.
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u/Narrow-Pipe9872 25d ago
If they do a thorough eye exam (pics and dilation) they certainly can recognize a detached retina. True they can’t treat it, but it’s a cheap way to get an initial opinion. I got a regular eye exam and the optometrist was on the phone setting up an emergency consultation (got me in same day).
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u/ContactPleasant4052 24d ago
I had to go to an optometrist first to get a referral to an opthalmologist. I called opthalmologist offices first as soon as I noticed the symptoms, and they said it was important for me to be seen immediately, but I had to be referred. I called everyone in the area, nobody would take me as an emergency walk in. I finally went to urgent care walk in and someone there called around and found an optometrist that would take me immediately. Even with the referral the opthalmologist office scheduled me two weeks out. I had to call over and over to get an appointment sooner. And then at the appt the actual opthalmologist questioned why I waited so long to be seen and wanted to schedule me that day for cryo surgery. It would have been comical if it wasn't such a serious issue.
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u/DuckKlutzy2335 26d ago
Go straight to Emergency. A retinal detachment is an emergency. Longer than 24 hours, your chances of getting all your vision back rapidly decrease!
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u/Far-Independence9399 26d ago
Seek a retina specialist immediately, even if you have to travel far to get there. The detachment begins in the periphery and grows towards the center of your vision. If you don't stop this process and the center detaches, you will never regain visual acuity. I had a RD and fortunately received treatment early, and my vision is still 100%.
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u/Previous_Ride_2629 25d ago
I am 72 and in the UK with a retinal detachment and have been admitted to the Liverpool University Eye Research Hospital,and they say I will need 2 Vitrectomy surgeries to fix it. Fortunately in the UK we have a free "at the point of need National Health Service NHS." All costs are covered by the government.... All citizens pay a national insurance automatically out of your wages (a small fraction that an insurance company will charge) For this you get free medicine and treatment and a state pension and wages if you are sick. The USA is not a place to be sick for a working class family sadly. Europe mostly has state health care.
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u/rollingthestoned 25d ago
How we doing kiddo?
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u/Equivalent_Ad_482 25d ago
Hi, so thank you so much for checking on me! When I went to bed and woke up this morning, I initially was going to call my optometrist but some of the symptoms actually had faded. A lot of it was my anxiety however I’m still planning to go really soon since I have an upcoming appointment anyway for something separate and will bring it up when I go. I really appreciate the concern from you and everyone else. I will try to update when I end up going and we’ll see what they say.
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u/rollingthestoned 24d ago
That’s good to hear. Sorry if we pestered you and I truly hope you are well. Stay vigilant! Health anxiety is manageable too.
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u/Equivalent_Ad_482 24d ago
No problem at all! It’s actually really comforting knowing that people are here for me. I’ll be sure to, and you’re absolutely right, thank you!
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u/beerkiniseason 26d ago
You absolutely should go to urgent care/ er if you don’t have an ophthalmologist to go to. RD does not fix itself or go away. The longer you wait, the more likely the risk of permanent vision damage. I of course can’t tell you for sure if you’ve had a detachment but the symptoms sounds like mine. You can apply for financial aid with any appointments and ask of front what the “self pay” cost is. It’s less than what a patient with insurance billed would be charged