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Old 12-10-2013, 09:05 PM   #1
Quarry Creeper
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Beckley
Posts: 288
Default Lost my sight, need some advise

In the summer of 2012 I got some bad news from my retina specialist. After 20 years of living with type one diabetes, the blood vessels in my eye had constricted and thousands of new smaller vessels had formed to compensate. This caused severe damage to the retina and I had gone from living a normal life of riding my sportbike and driving every day to being 100% blind in just two months. The specialist scheduled two laser treatments to burn off the extra blood vessels and then two retinopathy surgeries to remove the dead tissue. The doctor is the best on the east coast (actually the best on earth in my opinion) and did not give my an estimate of how much if any of my sight would return. I underwent the first laser treatment which was terrifying but relatively painless, the worst of which was the 22g needle inserting into the eye to numb it. The actual procedure only took about 30 minutes and was done using a fifteen milliwatt laser. The doctor managed to get 1500 individual blood vessels with the first treatment, which was on my right eye. With that behind me, the first surgery was next. Being a diabetic complicated things a lot. I was in surgery for a total of four hours and according to my wife things were touch and go a few times with my blood sugar going up and down. The doctor got 1400 vessels with the second laser treatment in the left eye during surgery as well. The next morning I was in a panic. My right eye was glued shut, my left eye taped over and I had no clue where I was. I knew I was okay and that my wife was there but beyond that I had no bearings on my surrounding. The weeks after surgery were rough, I couldn't see, I was disoriented from the medication, I couldn't sleep lying down, and worst of all I couldn't see to work on my RC's or my bike. The depression of knowing that I would never ride my sportbike again, or race my karts or quads, or drive, or even watch tv was bad. The worst part of the whole process was not knowing if I would be able to see my wife or any of my family anymore. I decided to not let that stop me from enjoying my life though. The second surgery was worse that the first, my blood sugar kept crashing under anesthesia and they were afraid that I was not going to make it through the surgery. When I woke up my sugar had stabilized and I was allowed to go home. That was August of 2012. By May 2013 I had about 5% of my sight in my right eye back, enough to see basic shapes and light but no color or definition. Now, December 2013 I have about 10% in my right eye but still nothing in the left. I was able to start working on my trucks again over the summer and I even posted a thread about some issues I was having (with the help of my wife, of course) and I discovered that my crawler was large enough and slow enough for my eye to focus on and follow. This was a huge burden off of me since it meant that I didn't have to abandon the hobby I love.

I am looking for some support. If there are any members on here that are visually impaired and could offer some advise I would greatly appreciate it. If there are any questions I can answer for you just let me know. I know some of the things I have been told have helped me though the process of losing my sight and if anyone is going through the same thing, I would love to pass the help along. Thanks guys and gals for all of the help that you have provided since I joined nearly a decade ago.
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Old 12-10-2013, 09:13 PM   #2
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Just wanted to post up and say you sir are strong and brave for going through the difficulties you have faced this last year. I pray that your eye sight continues to come back and you stay strong during the process.

It sounds like your wife and kids are there with you, so don't forget that. Stay strong for them and they will stay strong for you. Keep up the fight and surround yourself with those things you can still enjoy. If I can ever be of some help, please let me know!
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Old 12-10-2013, 09:22 PM   #3
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Wow man, you are really strong for keeping your spirt up!
I admire you.

Off the top of my head, I think that a Cow RC magnetic mat would be helpful.
That way if you drop a screw, it'll stick to the mat and you can find it again.
Also, they have little compartment area's to put different hardware in.
Store » CowRC

Colored tool handles may be helpful too.
TowerHobbies.com | Integy Ti-Nitride Hex Wrench Set (6)

Good luck and feel free to PM me any questions you may have.
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Old 12-10-2013, 09:40 PM   #4
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Wow! Way to go, man. I'm not much help but, go you!
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Old 12-10-2013, 10:15 PM   #5
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I understand about the laser treatment. I too am a type 1 diabetic (have been for 28 yrs.). My eye Dr. caught mine doing the same thing in time though. The most horrible thing in the world is watching that needle come at your eye (it numbs the entire side of you head so you dont move around during the treatment). I had 2 done on the left eye and they zapped all in one treatment on the right (the laser shoots all around the blood vessels, so they dont spread. The way it was described to me was, imagine looking through a glass of water, now look through a glass of cola. the blood vessels is what stops the vision). Sucks it didnt help you like it did for me. the diabetes alone is a giant PITA. I am facing stage 5 renal failure (which is a whole new cluster F...). It sounds like you have a good support group and all I can really offer you is to hang in there.
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Old 12-10-2013, 11:14 PM   #6
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

While not diabetic and no where near as bad, I've dealt with some vision loss as well in the past 2 years. It sucks, my vision loss is from central serous retinopathy, basically a blister on the retina, and comes and goes. At the moment I have almost no sharpness of vision in my left eye, and my right eye is just fine. 2 years ago when it first happened, half of my visual field turned to black on my right eye, then my left.

FYI to any other middle aged guys, this is a fairly common disease, and can be made worse because of stress or use of steroids (forgot about that part when I got a steroid injection at the doctor once).

One piece of advice I can give, is try to use high contrast in things to help with differentiating them. Like for the crawler make the front one color and the rear a different color, then you can keep track of your direction easily.
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Old 12-11-2013, 12:24 AM   #7
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Wow. Good luck on the days to come. You seem like a strong guy so push on and it will get better with hope
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Old 12-11-2013, 06:40 AM   #8
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Thank you so much for your support, it means a world to my family. We find new ways all the time to do the things that I used to enjoy. Two months after my second surgery my wife and I went to the driving range and hit a bucket of balls. She lined the shot up for me and I used my memory of how my swing needed to be and I was really successful. I don't have nearly the accuracy or distance that I had before but I was still playing golf and that made me happy. At that point I had no light transmission in either eye. That prompted me to do some research and found the USBGA (U.S. Blind Golfers Association) and found that there were a lot of people out there that were like me. I wasn't sure if there were any others who were into RC who were struggling with vision issues. I had seen a video that Evol Villain RC did on a truck for his dad (old gold) and that inspired me to post up here.
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Old 12-11-2013, 09:39 AM   #9
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Wow! Incredible story! Way to persevere and stay in the hobby.

I like the mention of the color coded tools. One addition would be make them NEON and either etch the size of the tool in the handle or use black paint to mark the tool size.
Same for hardware. Get some medium bins with lids and paint the NEON and black in the size of the hardware.
COWRC magnetic mat (already mentioned). Paint the pockets NEON as well so the hardware will stand out against the bright background.
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Old 12-11-2013, 12:18 PM   #10
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Join Date: Jan 2013
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I'm legally blind. Without glasses I can't see well enough to walk. You how ever have become my new hero. Hopefully your sight improves with time.
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Old 12-11-2013, 12:50 PM   #11
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

We used to paint my grandfathers rig neon orange on the bottom and reflective stickers were placed on the body. It helped him know to keep the shiny side up.
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Old 12-11-2013, 08:36 PM   #12
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I know exactly what your going through. I've had type 1 for about 22yrs and the retina in my right eye had detached. When I went in for a checkup they shot me up with iodine and took a hella lot of pics with a special camera of the back of my eye(s). When they showed me what was going on, it was like a damn Christmas tree. Blood vessels were all over the place and there were also blotches which the doctor said was where blood was coming out because the blood vessels were breaking. I had a total of 3 surgeries in the right eye and to this day I can only see what's straight in front of me, my peripheral vision sucks donkey balls. Thankfully, I still have full vision in my left eye, as a matter of fact I just came back from an eye appt. to get laser treatment to stop some bleeding in that eye.

Keep pushing forward man, having a support system with you like that will always get you through the hardest parts of life.
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Old 12-12-2013, 12:55 PM   #13
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Thanks again guys for all of the encouragement, it really means a lot to me and my wife that there are people who understand what we are going through. For my birthday this year she got me a 10.2" Andriod tablet that is pretty easy to see at arms length. That is a huge help; now I can check my email, watch youtube and post on the forums again. Its much easier to see that my 55" tv. When I get insurance again I am hoping to get another eye exam done on the right eye and maybe get a corrective lens made to help with close up viewing. My goal is to hit the trails when the snow clears and see if I can manage to focus on walking the trail and driving the truck without falling. My wife leads me around still, just for safety's sake in public, but in more familiar surroundings I can maneuver pretty well (no more walking into walls and doors).

My wife likes the idea of the color coded tools, she bought some neon duct tape to make color coded rings for my hex drivers. We are looking at getting a CowRC mat after Christmas when the budget allows. Right now I am using an old proline mat that I got back in '08 when I was racing. Unfortunately it is black and blue and not very easy to see even with two good eyes. Buster, my SCX10, is orange with a white soft top and he is pretty easy to see. I am going to hang onto my drifters as well since they are slow enough for me to follow but the nitros and minis are going to have to go. I am just thankful that I can still participate in the hobby in some way, and with any luck my wife will break down and let me build (or buy) her a truck so we can wheel together.
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Old 12-15-2013, 01:07 PM   #14
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I tried out my color coded hex drivers today swapping the chassis on my Stampede 4x4 from the stock grey to a dyed blood red. I also switched each piece of black oxide hardware for a complete stainless setup. Not only do I not have to worry about rust any longer but the polished stainless stands out against the red chassis very distinctly. My wife dyed the chassis for me and it came out great. For my first major project since surgery I am very pleased with how it came out. I got used to what color handle coincided with which size pretty quickly and I worked over a white bath towel so spotting the screws wasn't too difficult. I'm sure that it would have taken a person with two good eyes about 30 minutes to swap the chassis out but eight hours later I am satisfied with my work. The truck is now just waiting for the snow to melt so I can take it out and see if my eyes can keep up with it!
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Old 12-15-2013, 04:54 PM   #15
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

First, hats off to you for being a man among men and facing this head on, braving the surgeries and learning to adapt. Also a big to your wife for being there for you. That being said my father had eye troubles his whole adult life. Multiple cornia transplant, etc. Eventually losing one eye and losing sight just before he passed. My moms family has a history of diabetes. I was well on my way to following their/her foot steps till I went Vegan. I've always been dependent on glasses but sight has went unchanged till my last eye exam where I failed the push the button everrytime you see the little randomly appearing fuzzy dot test with my right eye. So.... My battle begins. You sir have given my inspiration to face this battle head on.
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Old 12-15-2013, 05:19 PM   #16
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Good luck with your eyes sight. I have read that vitamin A is helpful in eye health as are medications such as Preservision or Ocuvite. Those are helpful for macular degeneration as well as general eye health. I am sorry to hear about your father. Hopefully your vision can be stabilized or even regenerated to where it was. My wife has been awesome; she makes sure that I remember that I can't give up. If it weren't for her I wouldn't be here today, that's for sure.

I have some replacement parts on the way for Buster this week. That will be a bit of a challenge since the frame is black and the non-stainless screws are too. I will be changing him over to stainless while making the repairs this week. I will give you guys an update on how that goes.
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Old 01-02-2014, 06:57 PM   #17
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I got the drivetrain mods done to Buster over the holiday, including a Robinson Racing machined aluminum diff gear for the trans, pinned inputs for the axles and pinned outputs for the transmission. I had no trouble doing the mechanical work, I just took my time and enjoyed the build. I ran into some problems installing the new CC BEC however. I cannot safely do any soldering work anymore. I did some nerve damage in my left pointer finger with the soldering iron trying to solder up some TRX connectors. Trying to solder by feel is not the best idea I've ever had. I've got some burn ointment and a bandage on it now, and I'm sure that it will be fine in a few days. It's just frustrating knowing that something I used to be very proficient at I am now unable to do at all. Hopefully I can find someone locally that can do some light soldering work for me in the future and I won't have to worry about this again.
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Old 01-02-2014, 08:06 PM   #18
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I am thinking a big magnifying glass would probably work for soldering in your case. I am assuming your sight is blur.

You are trying and getting things done and that is nice to know.
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Old 01-02-2014, 09:26 PM   #19
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

Hey man keep working at it.. i had some serious vision problems due to severe cataracts in both eyes. I went through it for a little over 2 years, i was legally blind in my left eye and 50% right maybee.. i couldnt read or see anything clearly without my jewelers loop and even then only my right barley. During that time i managed to build the stuff im most proud of..i built rusty pos trucks..lol. I just adapted to what i figured i could do and used all forms of magnification. Im all good now after having both lenses replaced with artificial ones, i think i was able to do it because i really wanted to and as long as you want to build youll find a way.
Good luck with your eyes.

Last edited by vonclod; 01-02-2014 at 09:31 PM.
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Old 01-03-2014, 08:38 AM   #20
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Default Re: Lost my sight, need some advise

I was using the magnifying glass that came mounted to my helping hands, and with only one eye having limited vision, depth perception up close is a little sketchy. It's funny, my wife is in med school and can steadily hit a vein in phlebotomy class but when she gets a soldering iron in her hands she shakes so bad that she can't even hit the wire. I'm going to try it again later today and if that doesn't work, I'll take it to someone to have the connectors taken care of. I can't wait to drive Buster in the snow, he'll be pretty easy to see against a solid white backdrop!
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