One of my friends from my Retinitis Pigmentosa support group asked me to share the graphic I had made that showed my vision compared to normal vision. It had been almost two years since I made it, so I thought I needed to update it and show what my vision has deteriorated to. It wasn't until I looked at the three images side by side that I really, fully realized the magnitude of the situation. My tunnel has definitely gotten smaller. The floaters and flashing orbs of light are much more intense, and that ever-present spider web like film covers everything I look at.
I have an appointment to see Dr. Elias Traboulsi next week at The Cleveland Clinic. He's one of the top specialists in this country and in the world for R.P. He literally wrote the book, the text book that every school of medicine in this country uses to teach about genetic diseases of the eye. So that's encouraging. At least I'm seeing someone who truly knows something about this thing that is happening to me, to my sight. I should feel encouraged. But I don't. I don't because I know that there is still no cure. I know that at best he will place me on some list to be notified if a cure is ever found. At best he may suggest I try one of the clinical trials. I'll get to be a guinea pig.
I really do try to keep a positive attitude and outlook, but sometimes it is just really hard to do that when you are a visual person, an artist, and your visual world is growing ever darker and farther and farther away.
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