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Posted 8/29/2013 8:14 PM (GMT 0)
I've had really bad eyesight since I was in Jr high.  Now it seams like I get blurry spots.  I end up cleaning my glasses all the time - there's nothing there.  Also, my eyes actually hurt.  Is this something others face and if so how do you deal with this particular symptom?  I had optic neuritis about 2 years ago (very scary).  Could this have been caused by fibromyalgia?
Posted 8/29/2013 8:18 PM (GMT 0)
I was diagnosed with optic neuritis by my eye doc. It is one of the reasons my Neuro thought I had MS. I went to another eye specialist and he nixed the optic neuritis diagnosis. I still have issues with that eye, so I am not so sure that Fibro does not cause eye issues.
Posted 8/29/2013 9:19 PM (GMT 0)
You might have some floaters going on. If the spots and pain have just started, please see an opthomologist. This happened to me and I had something called iritis, which is an inflammation of the iris (colored part) of the eye. If I hadn't gone when I did,I could have lost my eyesight. Please don't fool around with your eyes and do get them checked out.

Sherrine
Posted 8/30/2013 2:55 AM (GMT 0)
Jasonmom- I get blurred vision often. I use to wake up with dry eyes. I notice an improvement using a thick eye drop at night or anytime. I had a test done on my eyes and it showed I had no moisture in my eyes. I was offerd the eye plugs, but I didn't like that choice. I just stick with the drops.
Posted 8/31/2013 11:26 AM (GMT 0)
My eyes hurt so bad last night I had to take a pain pill that I had left over from shoulder surgery. Didn't help much. This morning they feal better. Keeping my fingers crossed that the pain stays at a tolerable level today.
Posted 9/1/2013 1:24 AM (GMT 0)
Eyes are hurting again tonight. I've noticed it hurts worse when I'm looking at things at differing distances. It also makes them hurt worse to look up. Spent the day with my Mom and she noticed me cleaning glasses multiple times. Guess I'll be seeing that ophthalmologist very soon - wonder if he will be aware of fibromyalgia's effects on the eyes and eye muscles?
Posted 9/1/2013 6:54 AM (GMT 0)
I have a connective tissue disease. My ophthalmologist explained how that disease has caused blurry vision, worsening vision ( dramatically worse every year) and the chance of developing glaucoma. A good ophthalmologist can help you understand how things work which helps find the best way to handle it.
Posted 9/4/2013 5:32 PM (GMT 0)
Angelic, soooo sorry about your vision getting worse each year. Going blind is one of if not my biggest fears. At somewhere around 13y old my vision went from 20/20 to where now without my glasses I will run into walls. When they ask me to read the lowest line on the chart ...... I can't even tell where the chart is. I feel blessed that my vision is correctable with glasses. By the way, my eyes still ache in the evenings, but no where near as bad as it was last weekend.
Posted 9/7/2013 6:33 PM (GMT 0)
I to have been having this problem for the past year. I cant seem to focus, and things are blurry. I just had my eyes checked 2 weeks ago. My eyes didnt change much but I was really looking forward to getting the new glasses and having better vision. Well, that didnt happen. Under the thread here Fribro 101, is a list of symptoms. Blurry vision is listed. It may have something to do with our muscles around our eyes. So i guess its just another thing we have to learn to live with.
Posted 9/7/2013 6:45 PM (GMT 0)
Stacey, have you seen an opthomologist yet?  If your eyes hurt so much you are taking pain medication for them, you need to see a specialist.  I do not believe this is being caused by fibro.  Fibro affects the muscles, tendons, and ligaments.  Yes, we do have muscles in the eyes but I sure haven't heard of this type of pain before and I've been on this forum for 8 years.  As I said in my previous post, you don't want to mess around with your eyesight.  

 

I see an opthomologist three times a year.  I do have glaucoma but I'm a senior so that is not unusual.  I've had the iritis problem several times but that is caused by other illnesses I have...not fibro.  So I hope you will be safe than sorry and get checked out. 

 

Sherrine

Posted 9/7/2013 6:52 PM (GMT 0)
My husband developed blurry vision in one eye, starting last week. I certainly don't mean to scare anyone here, but he went to the eye doctor yesterday and had emergency surgery this morning for a detached retina. I hope anyone with blurry vision gets checked out soon. It may also be something as simple as a need for a new prescription for eye glasses or contacts, who knows?

I don't believe he had any pain in his eye(s), though--just a blurry left eye.
Posted 9/8/2013 3:53 AM (GMT 0)
I saw the eye doctor on Wednesday.  Was as soon as I could get in (long weekend and Tuesday was crazy at work).  He looked at my eyes and said they "are a mess".  I'm no longer producing tears and have multiple microabrasions on my eye surfaces. 

OK   confused     I've never read about this having to deal with Fibromyalgia.   Anyone else have this happen sad ? 

I see my neurologist on Monday.  Set up to see endocrinologist on 25th due to low cortisol.  

I just want to feel better.

Posted 9/8/2013 4:02 AM (GMT 0)
I have dry eyes myself. You have to probably start taking restasis drops. I tried them but was allergic to them.
Posted 9/9/2013 5:26 AM (GMT 0)
Jason- yes, this happen to me. Did he offer some treatment for you? Some eye Dr's are not aware of eye problems with fibro. I use the systane ultra drops sometimes a few times a day. They are a thicker drop. I buy them at Costco at a lot cheaper then other stores.
Posted 9/9/2013 6:43 AM (GMT 0)
Ive had LOTS of eye problems over the last few years. Def due to fibro in my case. I use systane eye drops daily as directed by my dr and. Have my eyes checked regulary. Since I had a corneal abrasion two years ago..

What did this eye dr prescribe for you? What are his/her thoughts on it being fibro related?
Posted 9/9/2013 8:47 PM (GMT 0)
I'm so glad you saw the specialist, Stacey, and I bet you are too.  Now you can take care of those peepers and have them feeling better!

 

You can have dry eye and it sounds like that's part of your problem and could have possibly caused the abrasions on the eye.  Sometimes we can't focus as well due to the muscles.  I have to use closed captioning when watching TV and some days I can't see it as well as other days.  It fluctuates.  Some have sensitivy to bright light, too.  Those are the only eye issues I've heard of. 

 

I have the iritis' caused by other illnesses I have and I also have glaucoma but have that totally under control because I get my eyes checked frequently.  You can have glaucoma and not know it.

 

Hope your eyes start feeling better soon.

 

Sherrine

 

 

Posted 9/9/2013 9:21 PM (GMT 0)
I too use "Systane" in the vials, I also use the night time gel. My eyes are as dry as can possibly be, so I use the drops several xs a day
Posted 9/13/2013 9:18 PM (GMT 0)
I got the Systane. Thanks everyone. I am using it in between the steroid drops the doctor prescribed for me.

On a happy note my fog lifted 3 days ago. It took coming out of the fog to realize how bad it was. I shouldn't have been working like that. I don't think I should have been driving. I can't believe how bad I was. The pain hasn't change though. I'm not sure how to range my fatigue - I'd like to go to bed 1/2 hour after waking up but with a clearer mind ....... I don't know how to explain it ...... I'm just so relieved to be thinking so much clearer.
Posted 9/13/2013 9:19 PM (GMT 0)
Oh, forgot (no really my mind is better). My doctor tested me for Lupus and Sjogren's syndrome this past week. I should get the results next week.
Posted 9/19/2013 9:12 PM (GMT 0)
Sjogren's test negative.  Eyes still hurting and dry.  On second round of steroids and got script for restasis (Not sure how to spell it - it is supposed to help me make tears).  Waiting on insurance to approve it or it will be about $380/month.  Don't know if I can swing that.  I'm also stopping my amatriptaline as there is a very small chance that it is causing dry eyes.  Yesterday I let the eye doctor put plugs in my tear ducts (boy was that fun).  They are irritating right now, but he said most people get used to them and don't notice they are there (kinda like contacts I guess).  In the procedure for the plugs, he numbed my eye.  It took away some of the pain (I'm assuming the abraisions that are better but not healed) but not the fealing like I've been punched in the eye.  The doctor wants to do a CT scan to check for a certain disease that can be caused by thyroid.  He also said that people with fibromyalgia can have eye pain in muscles that move or focus eye, but he wants to be carful. 

I just realized he is an optometrist and I asked him if I should see an ophthalmologist, he said he didn't feel I needed to at this time, but he would have his staff call the local ophthalmologist if I wanted.  He made me a follow up appointment for a month but said if I'm still hurting as bad in 2 weeks to just come in and he will get me in with ophthalmologist right away.  I think I'm going to go with what he recommends (it would probably be a month wait or more to get in with ophthalmologist if I called anyway).  I feel like he is really a good doctor and is being careful.  What do you all think?

Posted 10/6/2014 9:12 AM (GMT 0)
Hi all,

I was recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia and about a month or two later lost my vision in left eye. I had been suffering fatigue and dizzy spells. I started having ionic foot detox spas which pepped me up for a time. The doctor prescribed prednisone for the fibromyalgia but I went off it because it was making me sick and the low dose 5mg did little to ease my pain. I switched to osteo panadol and thought the fibromyalgia pains were covered. Life went on...
Then I had a massage and immediately didn't feel right. I thought I was going to die. I was vomiting and had stomach pain, dry mouth head ache and eye pain. The masseuse used her own conviction blend of cock butter mixed with ylang ylang, lanolin and vitamin e oils plus deep heat cream. She also used hot rocks from a local river and heated them in an aluminum fry pan. The smell was disgusting. She claimed to be licences but her license number was no on her business card.
The following day, I went for an ionic foot spa treatment to try and get the toxins from my body that this dodgy massage stirred up. When I was done with the spa, my water was black like crude oil and the smell so repulsive I'm sure could have been flammable. My feet had puss secretions and all kinds of nasty coming from my body.
I got home and felt a little better for having purged those toxins from my body but four days later I noticed my vision blurred as though someone smeared a patch of grey fog over the left lenses of my glasses. I rubbed my eyes thinking I was tired and wasn't aware of the problem until I closed my other eye.
Saw an optomotrist who immediate send me to opthamologist where he confirmed optic neuritis and ordered an MRI to rule out MS.
Negative for MS.
I lost 6 kg in 2 days and my mouth was so dry and I had an unquenchable thirst. I ended up in hospital and had a spinal tap that went wrong and left me partially paralyzed. My neck swelled up and they pumped me with Methylpred through an IV. The smell was awful and is still a moth later lingering on my skin no matter how many times I scrub and wash.
I was in hospital with a massive headache and light sensitive. The brighter my blood pressure the worse the blinding pain. I was transferred to another hospital for two weeks where they did numerous tests and scans all negative.
This really annoyed me as I am needing a carer now because after 4 weeks of being pumped with steroids both IV and oral, my condition has not improved. I am still technically blind in one eye. Can't read letters or words but periferil vision is ok to distinguish shape and colour. Colour vision ok.
I'm a writer so I need my vision. The optic nerve is not affected, rather the connection where the back of the eyeball connects to the optic nerve is inflamed. In MS cases, I was told the nerve becomes inflamed but mine is not.
So, I'm curious wondering if this happened because of fibromyalgia?
Optic neuritis is a symptom of something. But so far doctors have no real answers to give me and I'm frustrated.
I am a single parent and now need a carer but the only carer I have is my 65yo mother who also has fibromyalgia.
I'm still taking prednisone, IBU, panadol, Ozpan, and something to stop nausea.
Has anyone had their optic neuritis clear up with prednisone or no treatment at all? I'm skeptic as to whether prednisone actually works as online journals conclude the use of oral steroids like prednisone are inconclusive and do not work and in most cases cause the problem to reoccur.
Sorry for all the typos lol I can see the red underlines but my eyes are hurting too much to edit this post. Looks like my career is on hold indefinitely until my vision recovers, if at all.
I'm so glad to have found this support forum. It is good to know I am not alone. Thank you.
Taylor Morgan
Author of Fifteen Shards of Broken Glass by PHOENIX L.JAMES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP4ZTdrsQv4
Posted 10/6/2014 4:54 PM (GMT 0)

txcola said...
I was diagnosed with optic neuritis by my eye doc. It is one of the reasons my Neuro thought I had MS. I went to another eye specialist and he nixed the optic neuritis diagnosis. I still have issues with that eye, so I am not so sure that Fibro does not cause eye issues.

Same here. My Fibro journey started with blurry vision and eye pain (along with numbness & tingling in my arms/hands). I was initially diagnosed with optic neuritis, but a specialist nixed that and said that it's cluster headaches. Optic neuritis is highly connected to MS, so if your dx was correct they should have checked you for MS. If those symptoms are recurring you should really head back to your neurologist and have them take another look. Don't be afraid to ask questions, and make sure they know about other symptoms. They should do an MRI to check for MS, I pushed for them to also do the spinal tap just to be sure.
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