Hi All Just want to share my story thank you to anyone who reads it . Sorry its so long
I was diagnosed with glaucoma back in 2010 ,my father had it . I have been on eye drops since diagnosis in both eyes
In 2020 I moved house and moved to a new NHS eye clinic. My referal letter said everything was stable and the only problem was a very small lose of vision in left eye .
A few years before diagnosis I had a Acoustic nuroma ( benign brain tumor) removed from left side . This cause a slight facial weakness and the left eye not to close / blink normally . Hence a very dry eye.
I was told by my new consultant that my vision was 100% in right and 96% in left .
Over the past 3 years ( last visit in June) each visit my VF , pressures & scans have all stayed stable .
Last visit the consultant asked me if I had reported to DVLA . As my eye sight was deemed good and no other consultant ever mentioned it I wasn't aware of this . His parting words were "you'll have no problem at all "
I did as told and I have gone through the horrible process and much to my disappointment I have only been granted a 1 year licence . Its made me feel sick anxious and I've not been sleeping. Since I was advised to report it . I'm normally a very positive person but this process has really effected me . The thought of doing it again in less than 12 months is playing on my mind and making me feel ill .
I don't understand why I only have a 1 year licence given what my consultant tells me.
I'm wondering if I provide information from the consultant on the stability of my glucoma over the year's and possibly ask for his support if its worth appealing for a 3 year licence to be considered. Has anyone done this ?
I do find the feild test very difficult on the left side due to my facial weakness and slow moving eyelid . I've tried drops but sometimes it that makes things blurry.
The specsavers person said she would be surprised if DVLA had any issues with my VFT . Any words of advice very much welcome.
Thank you
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Helphelp123
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Sorry to hear you have to have yearly tests. Mine are 3 yearly at the moment and waiting for new results this year.. As the field test is for both eyes at once I am surprised you have this problem especially if your optician thinks all is well , would ask your doctor to refer you to a consultant, the field test with the dots is difficult, nobody likes it but it's better to go through all this than have an accident and you have not told DVLA about it and you would find your insurance invalid.
I was told that actually one can drive with only one good eye! Try to relax into the test it's only a minute or two . There is another test but supersavers don't have this , where I live anyway, the hospital might?
I understand completely how stressful the experience is! It might be worth getting a copy of your results from Specsavers. You can request it at the time but other posts in this group, gave information on how to do that. You can make a Subject Access Request to Specsavers and they will send it to you. You could then ask your optician or the hospital to explain what the issue is. You would then know if it changes.
Having to do this every year is very stressful but knowledge about the process might help to give you back some control!
You don't mention your age. I used to be given 3 years each time but when it changed to one year, I was told that was a factor. I think it was 75. Might have been 70.
Hello, I think in your case DVLA is weighing not only glaucoma but also other neurological issue (facial weakness due to post operation of Acoustic nuroma). If your condition is stable I am sure DVLA will increase the licence years next time. With best wishes.
Feel so sorry for you -as if the condition isnt worrying enough ,its not driving thats so upsetting &life changing. DVLA or anyone else dont give a toss about actual individuals and helping you question & understand process. I hope you get help .Thoughts with you.
I didnt used to worry bout these visual field tests -didnt understand importance i guess -now I am sooo scared of them which wont help me I know!!!!
Hi are you saying that you did not report your gluacoma in both eyes to the DVLA, I was told that when I was first diagnosed 10 years ago that I must report mine or failure to do so would mean a fine of a £1000, I am very surprised that your Opthalmologist did not tell you that. I was very lucky when I was diagnosed I was able to get DVLA test done in my local opticians, now sadly you can only go to Specsavers, which for me is over 30 miles in any direction. I would see if you could appeal myself, or what you have been given could be down to other health factors. Best wishes.
They gave me a 3 year license but glucoma got the better of me and i had to give my driving license up after driving for 40 odd years broke my heart my life was driving but it was for my own saftey and others
When I was first diagnosed with closed angle glaucoma, I informed DVLA, had the test and had no restrictions on my license. Because of a head injury (nothing to do with my glaucoma) I had to go for a retest. This time I was given a 3 year license. But the next test after those 3 years, I was given a 5 year license. Best of luck for the future, but you may get a longer licence in a years time.
From my experience, I posted it some weeks ago, I suggest you appeal. The DVLA have a section on their website on how to do this. I had my licence cancelled following a FoV test at Specsavers. I took two further tests with two independent opticians, submitted all the paperwork as per DVLA's requirements and after 2 months they gave me a 3 yr licence. I'm 80 with Glaucoma in both eyes. The 2nd opthalmologist had experience of lodging appeals and checked my evidence before I submitted which was invaluable since the first Op. had no experience of the DVLA requirements and failed to provide all the information/results required by DVLA. So don't give up and find an independent Ophthalmologist with experience of DVLA and the FoV machine approved by DVLA. My experience of Specsavers has not been good and its unfortunate that you have to go to them to satisfy DVLA.
Hello Helphelp123 I’m very sorry about your situation. I hope like others have said that you get a 3 year licence next time. I am in my 50s and have glaucoma in 1 eye only at the moment and I too am scared of losing my licence in the future. I have decided to plan ahead mentally for when the time comes. I’ve started using taxis a little bit to get used to them (usually when I go to the hospital) and also using the bus more often so that when the inevitable happens I will hopefully be less fearful of the change. I really hope you keep your licence for as long as possible but I also think it’s sensible to plan ahead just in case. All the best.
I've through all the problems of the VFT and a poorly done test at one Specsavers and I lost my licence for 2 months. First thing is to go to a Specsavers (it doesn't need to be one which is on the DVLA list) and ask for a VFT and eye test and pay for it (about £30) if it is within the parameters the DVLA require, get a copy and contact glaucomaqueries@dvla.gov.uk they were very helpful to me, and I got my 3 year licence back within a few days. I am over 70 so have to expect to do the test again when this licence is up. Obviously I don't know if you other problem affected your result, but I did find that staring at the screen for the duration of the test causes much eye watering, which doesn't help, also I don't know if you wear glasses, but you are allowed 3 goes at the test and I would do 2 with glasses and one without, my experience is i'm worse without glasses, and don't forget to get copies of the result, most Specsavers are very good and helpful, but there are some other posts on here mine included about poorly run tests at some Specsavers. Best of luck.
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