<h1> Let every eye negotiate for itself and trust no agent. </h1>

I think I may have mentioned it before, my eyes are dry. "Dry" is not the right word. "Arid", "Desert like" and "bone dry" are more appropriate. I squirt artificial tears into my eyes a few times a day. I darn near drown trying to get those drops in the eye. I get them every where else on my face easily but I do find being accurate formidable.

I asked my optometrist if PD could affect my eyes. Her answer was a definite "NO". My neurologist didn't think so. I found a few reliable sites that opined differently. Here is a list of the possible effects PD has on eyesight:

• Blurred vision or difficulty in focusing may be due to difficulty in moving the eyes or due to the side effects of Parkinson’s drug therapy, especially anticholinergics.

• Double vision usually occurs in Parkinson’s disease due to problems in moving the eyes in alignment from side to side, such as when reading. This occurs as a result of impaired coordination and fatigue of the muscles moving the eyeballs.

• Excessive tearing (lachrymation) of the eyes.

• Dry eyes is caused by reduced blinking of the eyes.

• Difficulty in moving the eyes may be manifested in two ways :
  

  (i) difficulty in starting a movement of the eyes or
  (ii) problem with moving the eyes quickly when following a fast moving object. Instead of moving smoothly, the eyes move in a slow and jerky way. Driving a vehicle may pose difficulties.

• Sensitivity to contrast – there may be difficulty in seeing in dim light, or making out light colored objects against a light background, or difficulty in reading fine print.

• Color vision may be affected for differentiating between slight color differences, especially for shades of blue or blue-green.

• Problem with visuo-spatial orientation or depth perception – the person may have difficulty in assessing the distance between objects and may need to reach out to touch the sides of the wall or objects while walking through a narrow place. This may create problems while walking or driving.

• Glaucoma and anti-Parkinson’s medication – levodopa and anticholinergics should be used with caution in patients with glaucoma.

• Some patients with Parkinson’s disease cannot judge the speed of moving objects, which may be dangerous if driving or trying to cross the street.

• Hallucinations and illusions or visual misinterpretations are more likely to occur in those people who have had Parkinson’s disease for a long time. It may be due to the disease itself or due to anti-Parkinson drugs.

• Blepharospasm or involuntary spasm of the eyelids

Pretty scary, isn't it?

As far as those artificial tears are concerned, I must be patient and calm and improve on my technique. I consider myself lucky. When I get those fake tears into my eye then alles ist gut. I would hate to suffer from one of the other symptoms. I am lucky in so many aspects of the disease. So lucky I may have to become a follower of the Third Eye folks.

So be it.

Header is a quote from "Much Ado About Nothing" by William S and no, I haven't read it. I found the quote on the net.