KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It's Glaucoma Awareness Month, and doctors at Alphapointe are spreading awareness about the condition that affects three million America.
Sabinna Olson is one of those battling glaucoma.
Through her job at the Alphapointe call center, her eyesight is constantly adjusting to different lights from staring at screens to walking down hallways.
"My right eye is nearly gone," Olson said. "My left eye is still here for me."
Olson was diagnosed with glaucoma at 30 and has been battling the condition for over 30 years.
Glaucoma happens when the pressure in the eyes becomes too high, leading to loss of eyesight over time.
It's a condition that sneaks up on most patients.
It usually begins with blurry vision and blind spots.
"It comes in quietly and slowly, and you just learn to adjust," Olson said.
In a matter of years, a patient's eyesight can go from clear to blurry. Olson still has her vision, but it's blurry.
"When I start thinking about what’s going to happen in a year or two years, you know, I know I’m probably going to continue having vision loss and in time, maybe I won’t be able to see at all, and that’s the scary part," she said.
Glaucoma is something that's treatable, not curable.
Dr. Anita Sahni is an optometrist at Alphapointe. She said it's all about slowing the progression of glaucoma.
There's no way to prevent the disease.
The best advice Dr. Shani has is to lead a healthy lifestyle and see a doctor rountinely. But she also believes attitude plays a big role.
"I always tell patients to that, you know, we may have to do things in a little bit different way, but you can live a full life even with reduced vision," Dr. Shani said.
That's how Olson likes to live her, but while it can hard to adapt, she's found she's OK with change.
"May not be good vision, but I can still see, and coming to Alphapointe made me appreciate, to concentrate on what I have, and not what I don’t have anymore," Olson said.
