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LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 10:59 AM Jan 6

One more appointment to go.

THIRTEEN doctor's appointments (primary and specialists) between this past Dec 1 and tomorrow.

If I die, my estate better pursue getting all of these $50.00 co-pays refunded.

I shouldn't complain...for a 67 year old Type 1 diabetic, I'm doing quite well. Bloodwork is good. I'm still strong physically. I have my share of problems that I like to complain endlessly about, but I don't think they are going to kill me soon.

Tomorrow is the one I'm dreading. It's eyeball shot day.

Now, I've calculated that I've given myself more than 65,000 injections (5-6 per day) over the past 30+ years. Needles are nothing to me. I can give myself a shot easier than I can take a pill.

But the eyeball injection makes me feel like a little kid dreading a shot.

As I'm sure some of you here know, the eyeball injection doesn't exactly hurt, except for the pressure you feel when the medicine goes in.

It's just the thought of the whole thing that wigs me out. Makes you feel like you're in A Clockwork Orange.

That's all I got...you all have a good day.

44 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
One more appointment to go. (Original Post) LuckyCharms Jan 6 OP
Please take care of yourself, my dear LuckyCharms . . .We all love you. CaliforniaPeggy Jan 6 #1
I do Peggy. And we all love you too. LuckyCharms Jan 6 #2
I am doing OK, my dear lucky charms! CaliforniaPeggy Jan 6 #26
I'm glad you are doing good! LuckyCharms Jan 6 #27
I hope all goes well for you tomorrow, LuckyCharms. Sending my prayers to you. debm55 Jan 6 #3
Thanks Deb...all will be fine though. LuckyCharms Jan 6 #4
😊 debm55 Jan 6 #5
Sending you good thoughts and warm wishes that it all goes well, LuckyCharms Grim Chieftain Jan 6 #6
I am... 2naSalit Jan 6 #7
Oh no...I wish you the best. LuckyCharms Jan 6 #8
Ooof! 2naSalit Jan 6 #10
My mom used to get those eyeball shots nuxvomica Jan 6 #9
Thinking of you! The idea of eye shots wigs me out as does taking eye pressure manually rather tha. The machine MLAA Jan 6 #11
You too LuckyCharms JMCKUSICK Jan 6 #12
Good luck with your shot tomorrow MustLoveBeagles Jan 6 #13
Good vibes, Charms! Wild blueberry Jan 6 #14
Type 1 here too IbogaProject Jan 6 #15
Are you on the pump, or MDI (multiple daily injections)? LuckyCharms Jan 6 #16
5 shots a day IbogaProject Jan 6 #24
I've screwed up my Toujeo vs. Novolog a few times...not good. LuckyCharms Jan 6 #25
Reading about eye shots made my eyes hurt. KS Toronado Jan 6 #17
I'm surprisingly finding out that... LuckyCharms Jan 6 #18
Yikes, just reading about it hurts my eyes! Sending good thoughts. niyad Jan 6 #19
. LuckyCharms Jan 6 #20
Be nice to yourself Marthe48 Jan 6 #21
I was actually able to skip the last one... LuckyCharms Jan 6 #22
I's never get contacts Marthe48 Jan 6 #30
I was doing a little dance when walking out of the office! LuckyCharms Jan 6 #32
You're brave! Laurelin Jan 6 #23
Jeez, good luck to you too! LuckyCharms Jan 6 #29
No, 3 last week Laurelin Jan 6 #31
Stay strong and get better please! LuckyCharms Jan 6 #33
My BIL gets eyeball shots. I can't imagine.... Sogo Jan 6 #28
I'm sorry the shot gives you anxiety. HeartsCanHope Jan 6 #34
Have you tried nitrous? LuckyCharms Jan 6 #35
Never have tried nitrous. I have weird reactions to meds sometimes, so I stick with the tried and true. HeartsCanHope Jan 6 #36
The nitrous wears off quickly...they give you oxygen when you are done... LuckyCharms Jan 6 #37
61 k7r!!! Niagara Jan 6 #38
No you wouldn't! LuckyCharms Jan 6 #39
I'd call in sick to my eye injection appointment Niagara Jan 6 #40
I'll be honest with you... LuckyCharms Jan 6 #41
I believe it Niagara Jan 6 #42
I don't get the puff... LuckyCharms Jan 6 #43
I might try the numbing drops Niagara Jan 6 #44

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
2. I do Peggy. And we all love you too.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:06 AM
Jan 6

These docs have kept me alive. I HATE going to appointments, but we do what we have to do, don't we?

How are you doing, Peg?

For what it is worth, I'm not highly religious, but I do indeed pray to my version of God.

I mention you in my prayers, and I hope you are staying strong.

CaliforniaPeggy

(156,184 posts)
26. I am doing OK, my dear lucky charms!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:22 PM
Jan 6

Thank you for asking. Today I get to talk to my surgeon. Hopefully we can find out what is in the works for me.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
27. I'm glad you are doing good!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:24 PM
Jan 6

I hope your discussion goes well!

Make a plan, follow the plan, adjust as needed!

Good luck, Dear Peg!

Grim Chieftain

(1,294 posts)
6. Sending you good thoughts and warm wishes that it all goes well, LuckyCharms
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:26 AM
Jan 6

You will be in my thoughts tomorrow. We're with you.

2naSalit

(100,274 posts)
7. I am...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:28 AM
Jan 6

Cringing right along with you. I have vitreous detachments in both eyes now, since this summer, and am dreading the possibility of needing such treatments which would require my getting over some serious brain damage about it before, during and after.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
8. Oh no...I wish you the best.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:35 AM
Jan 6

Seriously, don't worry if you have to get the shots...you'll be good. It's just the thought of them...

I have had vitreous detachments in both eyes for some time now, and it doesn't require treatment, just monitoring. First noticed it when driving and turning my head to check my blind spot...ring of light around outer perimeter of vision.

My shots are needed for a retinal bleed...

2naSalit

(100,274 posts)
10. Ooof!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:55 AM
Jan 6

I have a horrible thing about needles and another about my eyes. I had both onset events examined immediately because I was horrified at the thought of diminished or loss of sight... then the thought of injections should things get worse. The first one still bugs me but the second one is hardly noticeable, thankfully since it's in my good eye. They seem most noticeable when I get tired or when driving at night... don't do much of that anymore.

Hope all goes well today!

nuxvomica

(13,911 posts)
9. My mom used to get those eyeball shots
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:54 AM
Jan 6

For macular degeneration, when she was in her 90s. She had been through the Depression, WWII, and five births but she hated getting those shots. They did help though and she didn't need them the last few years of her life but we went every 6 months never knowing if it would be a shot day.

MLAA

(19,671 posts)
11. Thinking of you! The idea of eye shots wigs me out as does taking eye pressure manually rather tha. The machine
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:57 AM
Jan 6

that blows air. Fingers crossed for you!

IbogaProject

(5,639 posts)
15. Type 1 here too
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:19 PM
Jan 6

I don't like blood draws, nor the big needles they use for vaccinations. My Mom had the eye shots, which really help to slow macular degeneration. We found out by accident that her eyes improved much more with every 8 weeks as opposed to a 6 week interval. Best wishes for a smooth and easy injection.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
16. Are you on the pump, or MDI (multiple daily injections)?
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:22 PM
Jan 6

My endo is trying to get me to go on a pump...but I'm balking.

IbogaProject

(5,639 posts)
24. 5 shots a day
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:07 PM
Jan 6

I get my long acting in pens, which I use like vials with a normal syringe. I only take ~12 units of lantus and I feel I can better get a specific dose with a 30 unit syringe. And I feel it helps me not mix up that and my short acting Novolog.

I had a chance to be in a clinical trial for the first pump back in the 1980s and I balked. My biggest problem was I would have to drop to one shot a day if in the control and I was in good control with two shots of day of the N & R mixed by me twice a day. I also didn't want something sticking out of me, and worried about battery failure. I'm still holding out for the insulin pump to be integrated with the continuous glucose meter. I'm usually under 7 on my AIC, and have hit below 6 with the CGM guiding me, last AIC was 6.7.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
25. I've screwed up my Toujeo vs. Novolog a few times...not good.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:15 PM
Jan 6

I wear a Dexcom, and even that is too much technology for me.

I have both the app on my phone, and I use the receiver also for redundancy, in case either the app or receiver fails. So I'm always carrying around two devices.

I turned off my "high" Dexcom alarm, because that alarm is so freaking obnoxious in the middle of the night.

Have my low alarm set at 90, so I have time to catch a drop. I sometimes dip hard into the 40s though.

My a1C runs in the low to mid 7s, with the lowest recent one being 6.8.

My best to you...hang in there.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
18. I'm surprisingly finding out that...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:29 PM
Jan 6

so many people I know have to get them.

I never realized.

I have a friend who had to start getting them in his late forties...

niyad

(129,824 posts)
19. Yikes, just reading about it hurts my eyes! Sending good thoughts.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:40 PM
Jan 6

Focus on that voice in your ear. . me, making all sorts of rude remarks to keep your mind off things.

Marthe48

(22,763 posts)
21. Be nice to yourself
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:00 PM
Jan 6

I dreaded the shots, from the minute after getting the last to getting the next. The shot was never as bad as the worry.

Maybe they'll give yo a longer interval until the next?

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
22. I was actually able to skip the last one...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:05 PM
Jan 6

but I'm getting symptoms again...so we'll see what they do tomorrow.

I felt like such a jerk at the last one...I almost burst into tears after it! Don't know why...it doesn't hurt that bad...it's the freakiness of the whole thing.

I'm sorry you had to get them, Marthe. I know what you mean about the worry being worse.

All the crap that we have to get done to us that is much much worse...and this little shot makes us fret for some reason!

Marthe48

(22,763 posts)
30. I's never get contacts
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:47 PM
Jan 6

Couldn't stand the idea. I guess the shots are in the same ballpark.

I think I remember you got a break. Like getting a snow day from school

Laurelin

(777 posts)
23. You're brave!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:07 PM
Jan 6

I have had 6, 2 to go this month (if I don't have to go back for this awful flu) and all I do is whine. I agree with you about eyes. I'm sensitive about them too. Good luck!!

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
29. Jeez, good luck to you too!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:33 PM
Jan 6

Are you getting them every couple of weeks?

I don't think i would have the mental strength for that!

Please don't view it as whining...it legitimately sucks!

Laurelin

(777 posts)
31. No, 3 last week
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:47 PM
Jan 6

2 were routine, one was urgent care because of chest pain with the flu.

Sending strong thoughts your way. I do hate when they mess with my eyes.

HeartsCanHope

(1,534 posts)
34. I'm sorry the shot gives you anxiety.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:02 PM
Jan 6

I feel the same way about anything dental, (Marathon Man gave me the willies--had to go to the lobby for a while!) Hope everything goes well. Will be thinking of you!

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
35. Have you tried nitrous?
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:09 PM
Jan 6

I do well with dental stuff, but if offered, I'll take the nitrous for a root canal.

The only real side effect is that you end up telling the dentist that they have beautiful eyes. Man or woman...doesn't matter.

Seriously...ask for nitrous if you have dental anxiety. You won't care what they do to you then!

Best wishes to you as well.

HeartsCanHope

(1,534 posts)
36. Never have tried nitrous. I have weird reactions to meds sometimes, so I stick with the tried and true.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:25 PM
Jan 6

Thanks so much for the information. If I have to go anywhere else I'll keep it in mind! I have a great dentist now, and she knows how to keep me occupied during procedures. She keeps up a funny, informative patter the whole time so I don't have time to think about anything else. She has a dental assistant named Sharon that manages to hold my hand when things are really scary--all while assisting! It's just the waiting time at home before the dental procedures that's the worst. Too much time to think about it! Thanks again for your kind suggestion, I wish I had one for you in return!

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
37. The nitrous wears off quickly...they give you oxygen when you are done...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:34 PM
Jan 6

and they make sure you have a driver to take you home. It REALLY helps if you are anxious. I like getting it, but I have to tell myself to keep my mouth shut because I start babbling like a fool.

I got a tooth pulled one time. It was a difficult pull.

Came home, friends stopped over later.

We had a few drinks.

Was dancing with my friend's wife.

We got too exuberant.

I slipped on something and cracked my head open on a windowsill.

Rushed to the ER.

17 stiches.

That was a bad day anyway you look at it.

Niagara

(11,593 posts)
38. 61 k7r!!!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 03:41 PM
Jan 6

You have much more strength than I have, Lucky.

Sounds painful. I would chicken out.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
41. I'll be honest with you...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 03:51 PM
Jan 6

I feel like I revert back to a child when I get these shots.

I don't know why either, because I've endured much worse.

Niagara

(11,593 posts)
42. I believe it
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 03:59 PM
Jan 6

I don't know how anyone can stay in adult mode during something like that.

I'm a brat during the puff test at the eye doctor. It's nothing, it doesn't hurt. I just can't adult during this process, it's awful!

I tell them this ahead of time but they don't believe me until they experience it.

LuckyCharms

(21,990 posts)
43. I don't get the puff...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 04:03 PM
Jan 6

I get the numbing drops, and then they touch your eye with n instrument to measure the pressure.

Something about the eyes, Niagara...I understand why you don't like the puff.

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