How did eye get here?
The Beginning
Just another year to have my eyes examined. 1st optometrist: Informed me of an eye infection and scarring on my cornea. I had no symptoms except the usual redness. So, prescribe the blue bottle of eye drops? The optometrist refused to prescribe them and referred me to an ophthalmologist.
I just wanted new contact lenses.
Sitting in the 1st ophthalmologist’s chair, wondering why I’m here...."Whoa!" The ophthalmologist exclaimed “You have bumps under your eyelids.” What does that mean? It was described as cobblestone-like bumps from wearing contacts for too long. But that was one of a few ocular conditions—each one made me sink down in the chair little by little.
Dry eyes (my eyes are dry?), Meibomian gland dysfunction, keratitis.
I interpreted this as –no contacts for a while.
Was prescribed Lotemax steroid eye drops and Restasis and was asked to use warm compresses.
Mid-way
I wasn’t sure but my eyes started getting worse. I had no symptoms then it progressed quickly to multiple symptoms – grittiness, itching, noticeable inflammation, redness, blurry vision at times, and loss of eyelashes (they would fall out while using warm compresses).
This was so puzzling; it seemed like a dream or nightmare. No contact lenses, diminishing self-esteem, worsening eye health. I returned to the 1st optometrist for an eye exam but was turned away a second time with this statement: “I can’t treat you because you are under another doctor’s care.”
So, back to ophthalmologist #1. Dr ____ told me that my eyes were worse than before so continue using Restasis and see an optometrist.
Optometrist #2 – still no eye exam, they want these conditions to improve. Recommendation: electric eye mask, preservative free drops, flaxseed oil pills, and eyelid scrubs. Since I didn’t feel satisfied with my current eye doctors, I looked elsewhere for eyecare professionals.
Currently
I couldn’t ignore this. I wasn’t well. I have taken care of my health for years, now this.
Ophthalmologist #2 Recommendations: Warm/cold compresses, Lipiflow treatment, 50/50 tea tree oil and water. All of these work!
Writing this was therapeutic. My hope is that I help someone, anyone.
Update: Not much relief, eyelashes are almost completely gone, grow straight/in different directions (some extremely long, some stubby) which makes it feel like something is always in my eyes and hinders my vision.
Update (September 2021):
Email after email, message after message. Work is beginning to pile up, and it has never been this way. As I work or attempt to work, I had always wondered if my decrease in response time was noticeable. And, what about how tired I looked all the time along with excessive blinking while on camera. I had expended countless hours and days thinking of ways to appear the same way as before, complete assignments, and how to take breaks without anyone noticing a difference.
Was my supervisor leader, Brett, going to mention how I have been less responsive to messages and requests for time to complete assignments, I wondered?
It was likely that Brett would question me, and I didn’t want to engage in an awkward conversation.
What’s a Reasonable Request?
I had heard others mention “reasonable accommodation” but didn’t know the intricacies of it. Without full or partial knowledge about how to initiate a conversation with Brett about what’s been occurring and how it has affected work and the duration of time to work, I contacted the Reasonable Accommodation office through my employer. It was highly recommended that I speak with my supervisor as a preliminary step because my supervisor may decide to assist me without having to conduct the entire process with the reasonable accommodation office, which could take at least 15 calendar days or longer. During that discussion, it is your choice to talk about the prognosis or diagnosis(es) or provide test results or medical records; that information is not necessary. I was advised to place focus on how the ocular surface diseases negatively affect my job performance as well as my concerns about productivity. I was informed of the Job Accommodation Network (JAN), which provides a list of disabilities covered under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) on askjan.org. This very helpful website contains information for and provides advice to employees and employers. I communicated with a representative using their chat feature and received the following response.
Using a screen reader could be a form of accommodation under the ADA. Taking additional breaks throughout the day is also a form of accommodation. You may be able to ask that you be allowed to turn off your camera so you can just listen to meetings.
I was pleased that my efforts were successful! Afterwards, I spoke with my Brett and was offered the reasonable requests:
Provide a screen reader.
Provide the Dragon voice-to-text software to avoid staring at the computer screen.
Provide blue protected filters for use in front of screens.
Provide a portable humidifier.
Allow _____ the ability to listen to meetings instead of using camera to lessen time in front of the computer.
Allow _____ to take 2-minute breaks every 20 minutes.
Allow _____ to work mostly in paper form (reading and writing) instead of in front of the computer.
_____ suffers from ocular conditions that result in much discomfort and many symptoms: Itching and tearing, occasional double vision, severe dryness, inflammation and redness, sensitivity to light and fans, and allergens that affect her ocular conditions.
Some of _____’s ocular symptoms may have been aggravated by extensive computer use, and it is important to decrease time in front of screens to help improve her symptoms.
A condensed list of what is considered a reasonable work accommodation is shown below.
Types of Requests:
Assistive devices
Interpreters, Screen readers
A flexible workplace adjusted to fix your unique needs
Flexible work hours
Helpful Resources:
Technology Accessible Resources Gives Employment Today (TARGET) provides assistive technologies and ergonomic solutions to help employees in their work environment.
Job Accommodation Network (JAN) provides free information about types of reasonable accommodation.
At times, I regret mentioning my ocular surface diseases to Brett; however, that may have been a good first step in assisting with improving my symptoms. I continue to optimistically move forward!