UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Hey

i posted a while bk now telling you how i managed to faint when i went for my first appointment at the eye hospital.... well ive got an appointment thurs and i am soo scared the same thing will happen again :( i really dont wanna go and i feel awful just thinking about it...

i dont no wat to do cus im scared it will happen again and does the pain when you blink ever go away?? i think thats what caused it

please relpy soon

stacexxx

Stace,

Take someone with you for starters.

Drink plent of water and dont wrap up like an Eskimo like last time and get over hot

The pain side of things you need to elaborate on with who you see as only they can see what the problem might be. It could be as simple as adjusting the lens fit or dry eyes and just needing some eye drops.

Good luck

Hi Stace,

I remember your fainting episode well - just as everyone at this year's conference remembered mine from 2005!

The last time I fainted was when my stitches were being removed from my right eye. They could come out of my left eye in a couple of weeks, so I know exactly how you're feeling.

Gareth has excellent recommendations. The important thing to realise is that your fainting spell is also emotional as well as physical. You need to be as calm as possible beforehand, and certainly take someone with you.

You'll probably feel petrified of going, but it is that fear that makes you faint in the first place. Try and laugh it off - don't be embarrassed about last time - the staff will have seen it all before. The more you become at ease, the better you'll get.

Also, if you do faint, don't go home straight away. Once you've recovered, you're FAR less likely to faint again, and you will be fine. I've no idea why, but that's what's happened to me.

All the best, and feel free to PM me if you want to chat more.

I fainted when I had my stitches removed too. Second eye I concentrated like mad on a light in the distance - turned out it was an eye chart!! But fainted on the plane on the way home instead!!

Try to think of something else if you can - I go through a dressage test in my head - unlike when riding it for real Megs always canters at the right place and our centre lines are straight instead of wobbly! If what the doctor is doing to your eyes is uncomfortable tell him or her, they can use numbing drops. One doctor at Liverpool insisted on digging the nail of his thumb into my eyelid when he was applying drops! Hospital visits can be nerve wracking but you do get used to the routine in time. I always take my hubby with me, don't know what I'd do without him to be honest. He holds my hand/passes tissues/gives me a hug and always remembers what the doctors have said as I'm always in such a tizzy I forget!

Good luck. (((Big hug)))