Reading was my favorite pastime...

[Giannababy]

Hello, all, it has been 12 months since DX at age 72. Was an avid reader. However, now I have to squint right eye to focus. Anyone else with PD having similar problem? I assume an ocular muscle must be malfunctioning, like the rest of my body! LOL.

[Enidah]

Get to your eye doctor and have it checked out. I know PD can affect our eyes and I've been sure to go faithfully, as reading is also very important to me.

[M_rosew]

With PD you can't assume anything (and I say that having just had eye surgery).

Get your sight tested asap to check it's only new reading glasses you need.

Meanwhile a magnifying glass is handy to have.

[park_bear]

This strikes me as simply needing new reading glasses. Not necessarily a Parkinson's symptom. I agree with the prior two replies - get yourself to the eye doctor. If you do not care to do that, you can get straight magnifying reading glasses at your local pharmacy.

[Giannababy in reply to park_bear]

Thanks, PB. I did go back to optometrist for a new Rx. He told me nothing changed in my script. However, this right eye squint, almost completely closed, is now automatic when reading. I thought maybe others have experienced it with their PD.

[marilw in reply to Giannababy]

I have Age Macular Degeneration and been getting injections in my eyes over the years to help make with possible leakage.

See a Retinolgist . I also have cover my right eye to read , blurry and double vision. A doctor gave me a simple and cost free trick, take a tissue ,napkin, paper towel or any such item simply fold over placing it over the the eye glass lens making sure the fold is on the outside keep your eye closed as you put your glasses on. . I was told this condition is permanent.We have to adapt as we get older . I tend to put my hand over my right eye. It has cut down on my reading. Thinking of audio books.

[marilw in reply to Giannababy]

I’ve also been told that my vision has not changed please see a specialist. Maybe a neuro retinolgist. Check into it. I cannot wear over the counter glasses will not help .

Will not correct double and blurry n

[ronn]

Your assumption would seem quite acurite. I have a somewhat similar condition, acquired in youth, caused by a blow to the right eye. The doctors refer to it as a "right retinal vitreous detachment" or, in street language, a wrinkled retina. It causes double vision. I also had another, more recent, problem with the same eye. This was labeled a right retinal tear and was treated by laser retinopexy. The purpose of the retinal cauterization was to keep the tear from continuing. It may be worthwhile to have it checked. As for the double vision, you can learn to live with it. An eye patch, (though not always socially acceptable), makes reading easier than trying to squint for long periods of time. Another useful rule is " If you see two bugs on the floor, always step on the left one". I will follow your post.

[S70AWD in reply to ronn]

How do you learn to live with double vision and still drive?

[ronn]

Giannababy, In previous response I failed to mention another eye problem which is probably more indicative of PD involvement. I refer to the loss of depth perception. It is a function you don't even notice whiile it is working properly but its loss or diminishment changes your life. I'm wondering if others have experienced it.

[S70AWD in reply to ronn]

I have a loss of depth perception, along with blurriness, double vision and watery eyes, all of which been designated as the effects of PD. I went from not needing glasses at all to being virtually blind without them in about one year. As an English Literature major in college many years ago, I loved reading but I can no longer focus well enough to read. A doctor prescribed prism lenses but they did not help very much.

[Dinolulu]

This could be a symptom of ocular myasthenia Gravis. My husband has this. There is medication to help, if such is the case. One think you might try is to take your reading glasses and tape the lens on the side that bothers you. Try masking tape or the “foggy” scotch tape and put it on the inside of the lens closest to your eye. Be sure to trim up the edges so you don’t get any irritation to skin or eye. MG is easily diagnosed by a Neuro ophthalmologist. Most eye docs don’t have the proper kind of testing available. Any nausea?

Dino

[adrienneb]

I have similar problems, and have found relief with prism lenses. As I understand it, PD can cause imbalance in the eye muscles, leading to double vision. To compensate for that, one closes one eye, and that can be uncomfortable. My optometrist found nothing wrong, but I then saw an orthoptist (a person who mostly deals with children who have Lazy eye symptoms), and she fixed me right up with the prism lenses. And I can now see and read even at night, and when I am tired. A miracle! If you can't find an orthoptist, then a neurophthalmologist should be able to help you. Good luck! This disease is so much fun!

[missybee]

My husband has PD for 7 years .. he was told of it by his eye specialist.. this wonderful man then did corrective surgery to avoid future problems .. then sent him to wonderful optometrist who did a prism correction to his glasses which fixed final problem of double vision ... the answer is find the right speciaists

[ddmagee1]

That’s exactly what my problem was for a few years, or should I say, similar problem.I wear bifocals, but my right eye does not see as well as my left eye. I went to a clinic, where technicians did all the testing and then an ophthalmologist saw me at the end of the exams. I told them about the problem; however, they decided to continue with giving me the same corrective lenses for both eyes. After living with that for several years, where reading was blurry, somewhat, and I, obviously, could not see as well with my right eye, I decided to see a Doctor of Optometry, who was recommended to me. The last straw was that I misread some notes on a music script, that ended up causing me embarrassment. 40 years ago, I had a bad accident, where a horse threw me and I received a compression lumbar fracture, broken nose, and some trouble with blurriness in my right eye. Later in life, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and then we come to this. So the Optometrist luckily, deals with PD patients and others with neuro problems, so he did the entire exam himself, and tweaked the details. The Optometrist could see why I was having trouble reading, because I had more blurry vision in the right eye, than the left, so he gave me separate prescriptions for each eye, and told me what type of lens/frames etc. would be best. I had new glasses made up, and now I am thrilled, because I can read well again, with only minimal distortion, occasionally. Anyway, that’s my story. I know it’s a long posting, but seeing well to read is really important for me, so I’m sure it is for you as well. Happy New Year!🎊

[czimmerman]

YES. I have switched to audio books.

[mj2dg]

I have a weird problem with the eye on my PD side - sometimes I think I'm blind in that eye but if I close my good eye I can still see so it must be fine. It also feels different than my good eye but I don't really know how to describe the feeling. Either way it make reading a struggle especially when I'm tired.

[vincea]

Listen to what everyone is saying - "go see an Optometrist!" This past October, I had my annual eye checkup . Bottomline, I had 20/20 vision. Last week, I started having double vision and everything that I saw was ever so slightly out-of-focus. So, I called an made an appointment. During the appointment, we soon discovered that I couldn't I couldn't read the fourth line of letters, nor the third, nor the second ... and I could not even tell the doc what the single large letter at the top of the chart was. I have an appointment next week to discuss surgery to replace my lenses with plastic ones - kinda like Lasik surgery, but somewhat different. A month-and-a-half is all it took for my eyes to go from 20/20 to 20/60.

Go see the doctor!

[Fava-1]

my eye focus was the first thing to be affected by PD and helped by l_dopa addition of fava . I lived with that problem 40 some yrs first