Three months down, three to go ...

3andstop

3andstop

Focus
Silver Member
Well, getting old sucks! I've developed a slight case of diabetes which in and of itself is a problem, but with it came a serious problem.

I've also developed double vision which makes it nearly impossible to play anymore. I see two images of the balls diagonally over each other.

They have made a set of prism glasses that remove most of the double vision but make the balls slightly oval and cloudy. I can't tell where the hell the edges of the balls are. :scratchhead:

The doctor says this is not uncommon, and may correct itself within 6 months. After that time, it's unlikely to get better.

This is torture for me. Anyone else have any experience with this?
 
Get the book Diabetic bible, and live by its advice. Diabetes is a killer diseasethat will bind you, stop kidney function, and all sorts of of bad stuff.
 
I am diabetic (type 2) and last year I had the same thing happen to me. My eye doctor told me to get an eye patch to use when driving or doing anything that required sharp vision (like playing pool). He said it would correct itself in 2 or 3 months. It cleared up after about 7 weeks. His explanation was there is a nerve that allows both eyes to move together that was slightly damaged, so my eyes weren't communicating with each other.
I hope your situation is resolved quickly. In the meantime, those patches are available at any of the large chain drugstores for just a couple of bucks.
I actually managed to shoot ok with one eye, but you have to be careful because without 2 eyes, you lose depth perception. I had a few experiences, especially when using the bridge, where I would touch the cue during warm-ups, or just bunting the cueball because I couldn't judge the distance from the tip to the cue ball very well.
Steve
 
pooltchr said:
I am diabetic (type 2) and last year I had the same thing happen to me. My eye doctor told me to get an eye patch to use when driving or doing anything that required sharp vision (like playing pool). He said it would correct itself in 2 or 3 months. It cleared up after about 7 weeks. His explanation was there is a nerve that allows both eyes to move together that was slightly damaged, so my eyes weren't communicating with each other.
I hope your situation is resolved quickly. In the meantime, those patches are available at any of the large chain drugstores for just a couple of bucks.
I actually managed to shoot ok with one eye, but you have to be careful because without 2 eyes, you lose depth perception. I had a few experiences, especially when using the bridge, where I would touch the cue during warm-ups, or just bunting the cueball because I couldn't judge the distance from the tip to the cue ball very well.
Steve
Click to expand...

Wow Steve, I went past the 7week mark. I hope it gets better. Your doctor suggesting a 2 or 3 month time frame scares me cause I am passing that also.

I have tried an eye patch and it seems these prism glasses are the lesser of two evils although neither is acceptable to play with the monsters I play with.

My usual love is straight pool and instead of playing even with these guys, I'm making a dozen balls and pounding one into the rail, then I watch my buddy pop off 30 or 40 on me just so I can get up and either flub another shot or miss my speed position by a foot.

This is killing me .... I have a follow up with the eye doctor this coming Tues. I hope he waves some kind of magic wand and fixes this thing.
 
3andstop said:
Well, getting old sucks! I've developed a slight case of diabetes which in and of itself is a problem, but with it came a serious problem.

I've also developed double vision which makes it nearly impossible to play anymore. I see two images of the balls diagonally over each other.

They have made a set of prism glasses that remove most of the double vision but make the balls slightly oval and cloudy. I can't tell where the hell the edges of the balls are. :scratchhead:

The doctor says this is not uncommon, and may correct itself within 6 months. After that time, it's unlikely to get better.

This is torture for me. Anyone else have any experience with this?
Click to expand...


I HAD double vision for most of my life and wore glasses to correct it. I fixed it by myself. My eye doctor, who plays ping pong, said that billiards is a great exercise for the eyes, so don't stop playing, imho.

The way I fixed it was through the will and with nutritional supplements. My doc says when I reach 65, I may have to go back to those prism glasses, too, but he was impressed with how well I was doing, considering how bad my eyes are.

Note....It took me 4-5 years (!!!) before I could shoot as well as before I made the changes. I sacrificed some of my best pool years for it, but am happy that I did.

Good luck,

Jeff Livingston
 
chefjeff said:
I HAD double vision for most of my life and wore glasses to correct it. I fixed it by myself. My eye doctor, who plays ping pong, said that billiards is a great exercise for the eyes, so don't stop playing, imho.

The way I fixed it was through the will and with nutritional supplements. My doc says when I reach 65, I may have to go back to those prism glasses, too, but he was impressed with how well I was doing, considering how bad my eyes are.

Note....It took me 4-5 years (!!!) before I could shoot as well as before I made the changes. I sacrificed some of my best pool years for it, but am happy that I did.

Good luck,

Jeff Livingston
Click to expand...

Jeff, are there any specific supplements that you could recommend or identify as the ones that were most helpful. Your condition actually went away after such a long period or did you become used to it?

thanks guys for the help! I may have to give up straight pool for .... dare I say ... nine ball. Na, not so long as we have 1pkt. :)

Boy, its soooo frustrating finally getting an inning after getting hit with a 40 or so, only to pound one into the rail and then sit down again for another 20 minutes. :(

One eye surgeon said that if after 8 months nothing changes there is an operation to the eye muscles that is sometimes successful in fixing the condition. I'm sure not crazy about anyone scooping my eye out of its socket though.
 
It may be hard, but try to have a positive attitude. I know what you are going through and how difficult it has been. Sometimes good things happen.

A positive mental attitude can be the best medicine.
steven
 
driven said:
It may be hard, but try to have a positive attitude. I know what you are going through and how difficult it has been. Sometimes good things happen.

A positive mental attitude can be the best medicine.
steven
Click to expand...

thanks for the positive reinforcement.

BTW .. he does know what I'm going through ... LOL .... he's one of those bums who's hitting me with the 30s and 40s while I'm pounding them into the rail! :banghead:

FYI .. should you guys be interested in what I see when I look at the table, I came across this website and the demonstration is practically EXACTLY what I see.

Look about 3/4 of the way down the page ...

http://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/double-vision.htm
 
3andstop said:
Jeff, are there any specific supplements that you could recommend or identify as the ones that were most helpful. Your condition actually went away after such a long period or did you become used to it?

thanks guys for the help! I may have to give up straight pool for .... dare I say ... nine ball. Na, not so long as we have 1pkt. :)

Boy, its soooo frustrating finally getting an inning after getting hit with a 40 or so, only to pound one into the rail and then sit down again for another 20 minutes. :(

One eye surgeon said that if after 8 months nothing changes there is an operation to the eye muscles that is sometimes successful in fixing the condition. I'm sure not crazy about anyone scooping my eye out of its socket though.
Click to expand...


Avoid the surgery if you can...

It started for me standing on a porch and looking at the moon. I removed my prism glasses and saw two moons. I contemplated what it would be like to not see two, but one moon. I relaxed my eyes and forced the muscles to make it only one moon. This worked for about a millisecond. A little later I repeated this exercise.

I kept at it for a few weeks and began to be able to make one image from two about half the time. I then had an eye appointment and asked the doc about lasik. He said I saw double so that wasn't an option. I told him my goal and he said I'd have to wear contacts for 3-5 years before he'd consider surgery.

I kept up the practicing of seeing one image, now easier since I was wearing contacts and had to do it to survive. I began to play pool with just the contacts and no prism. Eventually, unless I was real tired and/or drunk, I could will my eyes to see only one image. At that point, I was a little pissed at all the eye docs I'd seen over the years who never told me this could be controlled that way.

Eventually my doc sent me to the ping-pong doctor (he does those eye muscle surgeries your doc say you might need) to get his OK before he'd do the lasik. This guy was cool. He spent 3 hours with me and talked to me like no doc ever has. He was impressed by my billiards having helped me overcome my condition. He also said this 'seeing only one moon' would probably only last until age 65 or so....I'm 56 now, so we'll see about that.

Anyway I had two lasiks and can now see without prisms or glasses. BUT...and this is for all pool players considreing lasik...BUT I don't play pool the same way as I did. I had to relearn a lot and completely change my aiming systems and techniques. I can't see well past 6 feet, so playing well on the 9 footers has gone from me. I do sometimes put on my glasses for a long cut, but that disturbs my aiming, too. I noticed that Efren slipped in his game right after lasik. It does change aiming slightly, but that's a ton in a game like pool, as I'm sure you know.

Here and here and here are the supplements I take specifically to help my eyes (I've sold these for 28 years, so take this info with a grain of salt).

Jeff Livingston
 
3andstop said:
(snip)
FYI .. should you guys be interested in what I see when I look at the table, I came across this website and the demonstration is practically EXACTLY what I see.

Look about 3/4 of the way down the page ...

http://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/double-vision.htm
Click to expand...

That's it.

Which reminds me....When that happens to me, I STOP!....and give it time to self correct. Patience is a virtue here, for sure. This has slowed down my play, of course, and that new rhythm must be integrated into your shot recipe or you'll not be focused (literally) and miss. This requires a complete redo of your shot, of course, so give this a year or so, imho. I also have to shake my head to remove the floaters in the way, so my opponents probably think I'm nuts, but that's part of the whole shebang, too....dealing with others during this time.

Good luck, and let me know if I can help in anyway,

Jeff Livingston
 
Jeff, thanks for all the information. My double vision (so far anyway) happens when my gaze goes anywhere other than straight ahead, and far worse to the left and looking up ( as in shooting) than any other position. I'll let ya know how its coming along. Another doctor appointment tomorrow
 
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I forgot a good thing: Use eye drops....a lot. I use Thera Tears which act as a tear replacment, not a slick type drop. That helps when I remember to use it (my doc tells me to use it all the time). The doc also put in what are called punctle plugs (sp?) which plug up 2 of my tear drains so this helps with the dry eyes.

Last night I started out nailing shots and then everything went left on me. oh well, if pool was easy, I'd do something else.

Jeff Livingston
 
I feel for you. I don't have your problem but I developed a case of shingles a few months back, around, but not in, my left eye. The whole thing was on my head/face. My left eye gets tired and has some slight double/blurred vision after a short time at the computer. Also, by the end to the day whether I've been at the computer or not. Hoping it will clear up over time.
Wish you the best!!
 
thanks guys for your words and help ...

One thing I can say for sure is that trying to play 14.1 with this condition reaffirms two things, 1.how much more severe the penalty for missing is than in any other game, and 2. how subtle cue ball position suffers and how much more impact the loss of it is in that game than any other.
 
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