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LuckyCharms

(22,704 posts)
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 11:59 AM Jan 2026

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
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One more appointment to go. (Original Post) LuckyCharms Jan 2026 OP
Please take care of yourself, my dear LuckyCharms . . .We all love you. CaliforniaPeggy Jan 2026 #1
I do Peggy. And we all love you too. LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #2
I am doing OK, my dear lucky charms! CaliforniaPeggy Jan 2026 #26
I'm glad you are doing good! LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #27
I hope all goes well for you tomorrow, LuckyCharms. Sending my prayers to you. debm55 Jan 2026 #3
Thanks Deb...all will be fine though. LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #4
😊 debm55 Jan 2026 #5
Sending you good thoughts and warm wishes that it all goes well, LuckyCharms Grim Chieftain Jan 2026 #6
I am... 2naSalit Jan 2026 #7
Oh no...I wish you the best. LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #8
Ooof! 2naSalit Jan 2026 #10
My mom used to get those eyeball shots nuxvomica Jan 2026 #9
Thinking of you! The idea of eye shots wigs me out as does taking eye pressure manually rather tha. The machine MLAA Jan 2026 #11
You too LuckyCharms JMCKUSICK Jan 2026 #12
Good luck with your shot tomorrow MustLoveBeagles Jan 2026 #13
Good vibes, Charms! Wild blueberry Jan 2026 #14
Type 1 here too IbogaProject Jan 2026 #15
Are you on the pump, or MDI (multiple daily injections)? LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #16
5 shots a day IbogaProject Jan 2026 #24
I've screwed up my Toujeo vs. Novolog a few times...not good. LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #25
Reading about eye shots made my eyes hurt. KS Toronado Jan 2026 #17
I'm surprisingly finding out that... LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #18
Yikes, just reading about it hurts my eyes! Sending good thoughts. niyad Jan 2026 #19
. LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #20
Be nice to yourself Marthe48 Jan 2026 #21
I was actually able to skip the last one... LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #22
I's never get contacts Marthe48 Jan 2026 #30
I was doing a little dance when walking out of the office! LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #32
You're brave! Laurelin Jan 2026 #23
Jeez, good luck to you too! LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #29
No, 3 last week Laurelin Jan 2026 #31
Stay strong and get better please! LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #33
My BIL gets eyeball shots. I can't imagine.... Sogo Jan 2026 #28
I'm sorry the shot gives you anxiety. HeartsCanHope Jan 2026 #34
Have you tried nitrous? LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #35
Never have tried nitrous. I have weird reactions to meds sometimes, so I stick with the tried and true. HeartsCanHope Jan 2026 #36
The nitrous wears off quickly...they give you oxygen when you are done... LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #37
61 k7r!!! Niagara Jan 2026 #38
No you wouldn't! LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #39
I'd call in sick to my eye injection appointment Niagara Jan 2026 #40
I'll be honest with you... LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #41
I believe it Niagara Jan 2026 #42
I don't get the puff... LuckyCharms Jan 2026 #43
I might try the numbing drops Niagara Jan 2026 #44

LuckyCharms

(22,704 posts)
2. I do Peggy. And we all love you too.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:06 PM
Jan 2026

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

(156,775 posts)
26. I am doing OK, my dear lucky charms!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:22 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
27. I'm glad you are doing good!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:24 PM
Jan 2026

I hope your discussion goes well!

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

Good luck, Dear Peg!

Grim Chieftain

(1,895 posts)
6. Sending you good thoughts and warm wishes that it all goes well, LuckyCharms
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:26 PM
Jan 2026

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

2naSalit

(103,450 posts)
7. I am...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:28 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
8. Oh no...I wish you the best.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:35 PM
Jan 2026

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

(103,450 posts)
10. Ooof!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:55 PM
Jan 2026

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

(14,150 posts)
9. My mom used to get those eyeball shots
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 12:54 PM
Jan 2026

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

(19,775 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, 12:57 PM
Jan 2026

that blows air. Fingers crossed for you!

IbogaProject

(5,996 posts)
15. Type 1 here too
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:19 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
16. Are you on the pump, or MDI (multiple daily injections)?
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:22 PM
Jan 2026

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

IbogaProject

(5,996 posts)
24. 5 shots a day
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:07 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
25. I've screwed up my Toujeo vs. Novolog a few times...not good.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:15 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
18. I'm surprisingly finding out that...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:29 PM
Jan 2026

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

(133,262 posts)
19. Yikes, just reading about it hurts my eyes! Sending good thoughts.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 01:40 PM
Jan 2026

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

Marthe48

(23,293 posts)
21. Be nice to yourself
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:00 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
22. I was actually able to skip the last one...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:05 PM
Jan 2026

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

(23,293 posts)
30. I's never get contacts
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:47 PM
Jan 2026

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

(945 posts)
23. You're brave!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:07 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
29. Jeez, good luck to you too!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:33 PM
Jan 2026

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

(945 posts)
31. No, 3 last week
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 02:47 PM
Jan 2026

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

(1,707 posts)
34. I'm sorry the shot gives you anxiety.
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 03:02 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
35. Have you tried nitrous?
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 03:09 PM
Jan 2026

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

(1,707 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, 03:25 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
37. The nitrous wears off quickly...they give you oxygen when you are done...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 03:34 PM
Jan 2026

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

(11,892 posts)
38. 61 k7r!!!
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 04:41 PM
Jan 2026

You have much more strength than I have, Lucky.

Sounds painful. I would chicken out.

LuckyCharms

(22,704 posts)
41. I'll be honest with you...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 04:51 PM
Jan 2026

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

(11,892 posts)
42. I believe it
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 04:59 PM
Jan 2026

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

(22,704 posts)
43. I don't get the puff...
Tue Jan 6, 2026, 05:03 PM
Jan 2026

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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