Herpetic Eye Disorders

I am in the worst mental state at the moment.

The other day, I noticed that my vision was changing. I could no longer see clearly out of my right eye. I had noticed a slight pain before, but I brushed it off. I went to the E.R. a few days ago because I had extreme headaches & neck stiffness. Of course, nothing was noted & I was provided the traditional pain meds & sent on my way. However, I know something is severely wrong.

I have noticed that driving to work is a real challenge.i am so thankful that I have arrived safely after each trip. My vision has diminished so much in my right eye that I can barely perform my job. I haven't noticed any active lesions; however, I'm terrified of the thought of ocular herpes. I really hate that I am going through all of this.

I know many are going to say that acquiring herpes in the eye is rare, but with my weakened immune system (lupus) it doesn't seem to be a rarity. Hopefully, I can hang on until my appointment with my opthamologist next week! I have tried to be positive, but I can't find any ounce of optimism at this point. I'm 33 & going blind. WTF? All because of herpes!

I recently discovered Im hsv2 positive and wear contacts so I have been very concerned with infecting my eyes.

I'm not a doctor but this is what Ive learned:

Herpes in the eyes is pretty rare and is mostly from hsv1. That said, they do not recommend wearing contacts while you are having an ob. If you have disposable contacts it is recommended that you toss them to be safe.

I have been having ob's since the middle of december and didn't know it was herpes until a week ago. Needless to say I have been wearing my contacts and have not been diligently washing my hands before I handled them because I simply did not know I had herpes.

I had a few days of pounding headaches and I was freaking out thinking I was going blind or had brain herpes (also rare). It seems that herpes of the eyes also goes away by itself but the ophthalmologist (not a optometrist) can prescribe drops that similar to valtrex will speed up the healing.

If you have lesions around the eyes - go to the dr

An out break on the eyeball can cause blurred vision and its pretty easily identified by a dr

If your vision is blurd so you can't work or drive - I would say a dr visit would be prudent. In your case maybe a quick phone call to ur dr will assist in getting you in earlier (my md is usually scheduled out weeks but when I said std - they found an opening 40 minutes after I called)

I havent gone in to have my eyes looked at, but I continue to monitor things daily. If you find out any new info - or can correct my findings please do so as I am interested in learning more about this topic

@HopefulHerpy Please get your eyes checked. Regardless of what is causing your vision loss, your eyes need to be checked as soon as possible. There could be numerous reasons for sudden vision loss. Some causes can be treated and prevent further vision loss. I have no idea if what you're experiencing is related to HSV. That's certainly something you could mention to the doctor when he/she checks you out. But then allow them to figure out what's going on with your eyes so you can get proper treatment.

i had a strong fear / anxiety of this when I was diagnosed in July. I still worry but I did get on a daily antiviral. After talking to my eye doctor, she told me that it would be highly unlikely for this to affect your eye if you are taking an antiviral.

Also, this doesn't last long at room air so you would literally likely have to go from lesion to eye in under like ten seconds.

Please get to the ophthalmologist ASAP. Honestly, there's and extremely slim chance it's herpes - and if it was it wouldn't just be loss of vision, it would be blisters / itchy / red etc. I lost vision suddenly in my left eye last year, and like you I jumped to herpes. Had to go to an opthalneurologist who diagnosed me with an idiopathic (aka no clear cause) pressure to my optic nerve. Now, my vision is completely normal, no issues. But really hit up that doctor now, if it's nothing they'll alleviate your worry and if it's something they can help!

I went to the opthamologist. I was informed that I have chronic dry eye but keratic precipates were noted. I have a follow up in a few weeks; vision is still not back. Eyes feel as though they're in business for themselves--they not in sync :(

Hopefully, this is alleviated soon. Additionally, I pray I can get on antiviral. All my tests continue to come up 0.90, so all the drs say that I'm negative--even when I argue them down that it's equiovocal :(

Thx @stillstanding @optimist @cheezit @nothinggoodgetsaway