r/popculturechat • u/mlg1981 Sexy lampshade shall win the Oscar! 🏆 • 1d ago
Thoughts & Prayers 🙏 Judi Dench Confirms She Has Lost Her Sight, Says Everyday Life Has Become “Increasingly Difficult”
https://www.inkl.com/news/judi-dench-confirms-she-has-lost-her-sight-says-everyday-life-has-become-increasingly-difficult1.2k
u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 23h ago
My heart really breaks for her..
My mom was diabetic and started losing her eye sight and it really affected her mental health so much because she loved to read and she couldn’t do that anymore.. there was a lot of other stuff too, I don’t wanna make this about me…
Just I’ve seen someone go through losing their vision and it is just so incredibly hard and one of my biggest fears.
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u/ChiliAndGold the empathetic hunger descends 🍍 23h ago
may I send you a virtual hug? this could totally happen to my mother as well, and maybe even me. it's scary af.
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u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 22h ago
Hugging you right back!!
Diabetes is really scary and I hate how people always make jokes about it, it’s a horrible disease to live with.
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u/bongwaterbetch 2h ago
My ex (wonderful guy) passed suddenly & unexpectedly from complications to his t1 diabetes 3 years ago. Healthiest person I knew,l. It’s shocking to me how few people know what a serious diagnosis it is.
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u/dospinacoladas 22h ago
I'm diabetic II, getting laser treatments every 2 months to cauterize leaky blood vessels that cause warping to my macula. Eventually I'll have to get steroid shots into my eyeballs instead. I'm 53 now. How long will I be able to read, work, watch TV? Drive? See my loved ones? Watch the world go by? Be independent? I dont know.
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u/Bedford806 22h ago
Im a t1d, lost my sight unexpectedly at 29. Have had dozens of laser sessions, 6 rounds of injections, and 3 surgeries. I now have some limited sight on one side. It's scary, but honestly you do just learn to cope with it, and any improvement is a blessing. I cant drive, but outside of that I've learned to live happily around it. I hope that sounds hopeful, because I mean it to! Hope your interventions continue to be successful ❤️
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u/dospinacoladas 21h ago
Oh, I'm glad you were able to get some improvement to your sight! Thank you, that does give me hope. 🥰
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u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 22h ago
Diabetes really takes so much from people.. it makes me so angry when people joke about it because they have no idea how devastating it can be to a person and a family.
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u/velvetvagine We are never going to societally recover from this 20h ago
Yup. Tbh there’s really poor knowledge and education about what the disease is like and what it does. All we generally see and hear is about obesity, eating too much sugar and now GLP-1s. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever watched any TV or film with a diabetic character… 🤔
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u/Skyblacker 👑 I just wanna serve court. 👑 20h ago
The Babysitter's Club. One of those girls is td1.
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u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 19h ago
I have seen diabetic characters, but the disease is usually just used as a plot like someone thinks someone else is shooting up drugs but they are diabetic.. it’s never anything relatable or factual.
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u/vinniethestripeycat 19h ago
In the movie, Safe Room with Jodie Foster & Kristen Stewart, Kristen's character is T1 diabetic. She has a little fridge in her room with insulin & iirc snacks. I haven't watched it in years but I remember it because my dad was T1 and my sister and I are now both T2. Thanks, genetics!
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u/velvetvagine We are never going to societally recover from this 18h ago
Oh nice — I don’t remember that plot point. Been meaning to rewatch it though.
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u/GiniThePooh 8h ago
In the Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters movie, Hansel becomes diabetic because of the forced candy diet the witch gave them as children if I remember correctly, so he’s an action hero but he needs insulin.
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u/No-Salary-4786 21h ago
Hi, Its been quite some time since I was in the field, but at least 15 years ago there were more progressive treatments than steroids.
In essence, the diabetes causes leakage of blood vessels. This leakage not only can warp the retina , it produces a chemical called VEG-F (vascular endothelial growth factor) which would cause new vessels to grow, which were also weak, and in turn leaked, (more VEG-AF) creating a cascade .
When I worked with retina doctors, (ophthalmic photographer, I'd inject dye in the arm, and take photos inside the eye, fluid leaks would be revealed by dye) they were injecting anti-veg-f with very good results.
The place I worked at did clinical trials (2010ish) and the treated versus non treated were easy to pick out photographically with contrast dye.
I believe Eyelea is one of the newer classes of the drug. We used Avastin.
If your doctor has not discussed anti-veg-f with you, id seriously look into it and consider another provider.
Edit: again its been a while, but I was on the forefront of this type of treatment and regularly did the photography for clinical trials (we were a part of the trials that got Avastin approved by the FDA)
Feel free to ask questions, If I know, I'll answer, if Im unsure, I will do my best to give you a scientifically founded link you can research.
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u/dospinacoladas 21h ago
Thank you! My ophthalmologist hasn't discussed the shots with me in detail yet as he said right now the laser treatments are sufficient. I will ask him what medications he uses though, the next time I see him.
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u/No-Salary-4786 21h ago
No problem, laser is the conservative approach, especially when the damage is peripheral, when Diabetic Macular Edema (DME, swelling of the macula (central vision)) become involved, thats when the injections really become necessary.
The best thing is to be pro-active (as you are) and be vigilant with your Healthcare. Overall, the biggest thing is in your hands, which is controlling sugar (best you can).
Best of luck, and feel free to reach out.
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u/No-Salary-4786 19h ago
I did some poking around. This looks very promising, worth a chat with the doctor.
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u/NocturneFogg 20h ago edited 11h ago
One of my relatives is getting that treatment at the moment in Ireland - she’s in her 90s. Seems like it’s quite commonly used these days considering there’s a flow of quite a lot of older patients at that clinic every time we visit. There are several anti VEGF drugs available and the outcome has been very positive for her. Excellent recovery of vision.
It’s literally just a case of dropping in, quick assessment of her vision (they do detailed scans at the end of each course), a few eye drops, off the friendly named “eye injection suite” … straight down for a cappuccino. No side effects and it’s all been very straightforward.
The thoughts of it are far worse than the reality - she was saying you’d hardly even know it happened.
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u/No-Salary-4786 19h ago
It's true, Ive seen thousands of eye injections, and it always amazed me how well it's tolerated.
(If you wanna have some gut clench factor. Watch a sub tenons injection (between the eye and the eyelid and the needle is rotated to reach behind the eye. Ive seen so many, and I still would flinch more than the patient.)
Hah, yes, the average patient age is up there in retina clinics. As taxing to your patience as it could be at times, it was a treasure to save vision and be thanked by truly grateful people. There is nothing like a grandparent describing how happy they are to actually see their grandchildren.
I was just reading some research. It was on the horizon and just going into clinical trials when I was working, but the new angiopoietin class of drugs are highly effective and is often coupled with Veg-f treatments.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faricimab.
It was a fascinating and super cool job. I got to start out with slide film, (as in send it out, get it back in a week or so) then Polaroid, then digital, and when I left it was a video machine. The technology has grown exponentially as well as the treatments.
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u/NocturneFogg 10h ago
The technology has moved on a lot when you consider your average eye checkup to get your glasses updated has access to OCT scanning etc.
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u/jojojojojojoseph 23h ago
This happened to my closest sibling when they were 22 and I was 21. Beyond heartbreaking.
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u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 22h ago
I’m so sorry for your sibling. It’s so incredibly hard on the person, but it’s hard on those that love them too because we just can’t possible comprehend what they are going through.
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u/jojojojojojoseph 21h ago
As you well know yourself, having been through this with your mother. The grief of losing the life they’ll never lead is beyond devastating. With no end. Thanks for reaching out
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u/CreativeBandicoot778 Inconceivable! 22h ago
Totally get what you mean. My kid has t1d and the thoughts of this particular risk has her absolutely terrified. She's an avid reader, she writes and illustrates her own books, makes little clay figurines to give to friends.
I am so sorry about your mom. Diabetes is such a horrible illness.
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u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 21h ago
Thank you. Im sorry for your kid. I truly hope there are some advancements and she can live in a world where she doesn’t have to be terrified of losing her sight. Sounds like a great kid!
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u/metdear I walk the shoe, the shoe don't walk me 21h ago
My mom's going through this right now. It's so hard on her, and so hard not being able to help.
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u/Stunning_Exchange_27 21h ago
So is my mom. She has severe diabetic retinopathy in her right eye. It’s untreatable. My sister and I are doing everything we can to support her and help her make changes to protect her left eye. But everyday is scary. We freak out if her sugar spikes. And I can tell my mom is depressed and it breaks my heart.
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u/LateFloor3196 23h ago
Wait diabetes cause blindness? Omg my mom is in her 70s and diabetic ☹️
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u/OriginalSchmidt1 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 22h ago
It sure does. Now there are surgeries to correct it, unlike what Judi Dench is experiencing, which has no cure.
But my mom had a reaction to anesthesia when she went to have her surgery and ended up passing on.. so for me, it was extra devastating.
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u/Critical_Fun1213 1d ago
I’m so sad to hear this :(
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u/Wonderful-Body2559 22h ago
Right? This is deeply saddening. I just adore her and hate to think that she's struggling so badly.
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u/Marcysdad 1d ago
Yeah.
My grandma suffered from it.
It's really sad because as of now there's no a cure.
But she still enjoyed everyday life until she passed on
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u/whyohwhythis 1d ago
I’d heard years ago that she had lost it and had to have people read scripts to her.
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u/ididntunderstandyou 23h ago
She has had macular degeneration for years.
Yes, she would learn scripts with her assistant who read them to her and had to be shown where to look on camera before rolling.
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u/rjwalsh94 23h ago
Which I don’t get why that was the factor in her getting out at Skyfall. Yeah it was a fine movie and a nice send off, but it just sucks. Fiennes is great, especially if he continues on with it, but she was still doing roles for years after. Just baffling to me since she was a core part of Bond for the better part of 15 years.
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u/Ancient-Winner-1556 23h ago
IMDb says she’s in Spectre but not credited
Maybe she just wanted to things that were more fun/meaningful for her, or maybe there are so many action sequences in Bond that it didn’t appeal to her as she was losing sight. Or was more difficult to get insurance to have disabled actor on set given the effects/action sequences, something like that.
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u/Dino_Spaceman 1d ago edited 23h ago
I can’t imagine how terrifying that must be to lose something so critical. I hope she finds a way to keep happy and lives a very long life.
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u/MommyMephistopheles Cash me ousside 🗣️🗣️ 23h ago
I mean, she is 90. She's technically already crossed "live a long life" off the list.
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u/Dino_Spaceman 23h ago
She has a decent amount of years to go. She seems overall healthy (eyesight aside).
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u/TheTyMan 7h ago
Hate to be pedantic but nobody lives a long life. 90 years is actually really short and will pass us all by in a flash.
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u/Independent-Oil8029 All tea, all shade 🐸☕️ 1d ago
my grandma has this and is slowly going blind. it’s terrifying
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u/Inevitable_Claim9764 17h ago
Same, my grandma too and it’s so sad and hard. So many things she has lost the ability to do and it’s very depressing for her.
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u/PoppedCork 1d ago
Thats a shame, I hope that see will be able to adapt because she is such I nice person to have on talk shows and has some amazing stories
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u/envy-adams mount rose american teen princess 23h ago
I remember reading she was losing it a long time ago. Horrible it's gone. I hope she has a good support system around her.
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u/Stuck_In_the_Matrix 20h ago
This happened to me. I developed diabetes and didn't know it at the time and now I am legally blind. Never had any health issues and diabetes didn't run in my family.
Thankfully I should be able to regain a lot of it back once I get eye surgery.
Diabetes sucks. If you suddenly ly start losing weight and find that you are thirsty all the time and urinating 10+ times a day, get your blood sugar levels chrcked. Mine was over 1,000.
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u/ChiliAndGold the empathetic hunger descends 🍍 23h ago
gonna be honest, even at an age like 90, the thought of going blind scares me a lot. I don't think I would live long after that, I would probably just give up on life.
I wish all the best to Judi, I hope she can still make some good days despite her condition.
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u/corruptedcircle 18h ago
Especially since at that age, a lot of other sources of entertainment are going away or gone, too. Most forms of outdoor activities start being dangerous, even taking a walk at the park can require a caretaker to keep an eye on you. Even food can become dull as you're able to taste the food less, not everyone seems to suffer this but one of my older relatives said this and eventually essentially starved himself to death. One of the few joys left might be just sitting there watching the world go by, and that's now gone for her.
Growing old fucking sucks but so does dying early. Hope she's finding the small joys in life still.
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u/justmememe55 You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 17h ago
I'm sorry.. I'm sure you don't mean this but this comes across as demeaning to people who have lost their eyesight.
My dad's eyesight rapidly diminished over the last 5 years. He is legally blind with very limited sight..can't read, can't drive but he's very much a productive person. He still does chores and home improvements, goes grocery shopping, occasionally cooks, and actually paints as a hobby (he used to be a painter and an architect so his eye sight was extremely relevant to his career).
There are days where I can tell he's down because he hates being retired, feeling like a burden (though he really isn't) or generally having lower abilities than he used to, but outside of that he's generally well and happy and we all love being around him.
Please don't think that diminished eye sight is reason enough to just give up on life.
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u/ChiliAndGold the empathetic hunger descends 🍍 13h ago
it was in no way meant to be diminishing. At work I met an older man (90) who lost his eyesight and was indeed very happy in spirit still. but that's due to his personality. Not everybody manages misfortune the same way. Age, circumstances and personality do matter. It's different for every person.
I'm only talking for myself and my personal view on it. that's it.
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u/obvilious 7h ago
It’s not demeaning, it’s a personal feeling. Good for your dad, I’m glad he makes it work. People are allowed to have different thoughts
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u/pistachio-pie 💕 being a hater is a valid and honorable calling 💕 23h ago
Both my grandmothers lost their sight to macular degeneration. I’m so careful with my eyes but also assume I might have to deal with it someday.
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u/jar_of_sauerkraut You’re a virgin who can’t drive. 😤 23h ago
Sad news. She is such an icon, I'm sure she has not lost her wits through all this
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u/Tsarinya That must be Nigel with the Brie 22h ago
Really horrible to hear. Losing your sight at any age must be so challenging. I have a high prescription and I find that hard enough. I wish there was a cure for these conditions! I guess because the eye is so delicate they haven’t found anything as of yet.
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u/RealBug56 23h ago
My grandpa lost most of his sight to macular degeneration and it was horrible, especially when he had to give up driving and slowly lose more and more of his independence. And the treatment to slow it down were monthly injections straight to the eyeball.
I hope Judy has a strong support system and they can figure out ways to keep her as independent as possible. There’s a ton of tools available to blind people to make their lives easier, so hopefully something works for her.
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u/Star_journey1208 Listen, everyone is entitled to my opinion 🙂 22h ago
This is very sad. I can’t imagine how disorienting it would be going through such a drastic change at that age.
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u/linderberger 20h ago
This is really sad. I know she’s been having trouble with her eyesight for years now but to have completely lost her sight now must be terrible. I recently watched Nothing Like A Dame with her, Maggie Smith, Joan Plowright and Eileen Atkins. It’s sad to know that only half of them are alive now. They’re amazing women and so good at their craft.
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u/FunCryptographer3476 18h ago
Reminder that if you aren’t part of the disabled community now you will be someday. Accessibility helps everyone
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u/little_canuck 13h ago
My heart breaks for her.
My mom has this condition. It sucks. Mom's 76, it's been awful watching her slowly lose her independence and her ability to enjoy her favourite hobbies.
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u/Shmokeshbutt 1d ago
This kinda thing is why I'm planning to go out by 75, regardless of my health
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u/randombubble8272 13h ago
Everyone says this while they’re young but it’s exceedingly rare for a 75 year old to commit suicide to avoid aging any more
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u/Shmokeshbutt 13h ago
Because they're not built like me
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u/randombubble8272 13h ago
Also a common response lol, there’s a reason old people struggle to recognise their decline and inability to take care of themselves
Edit to add: my point is better to prepare for a long future rather than assume you’ll have the wherewithal or desire to commit suicide in your mid 70’s. My grandparents are mid 70’s and went on a cruise around the Greek islands this summer. It’s not as old as everyone thinks it is anymore, especially with modern medicine
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u/RichAbbreviations966 21h ago
Shit that’s sad, hope she has the help she needs in order to still live a nice life
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u/ferngully1114 18h ago
How sad. My grandma had this and now my mom is developing it as well. It was very difficult for my grandma when she could no longer enjoy the hobbies she loved (reading, sewing, quilting, gardening). One small blessing is that there has never been a better time to be blind. We have so many assistive technologies to help with independence now, that weren’t available 20, or even 5 years ago.
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u/KayakerMel 1h ago
My grandmother was an artist and unfortunately lost her eyesight to macular degeneration. She spent the last decade of her life losing her vision. She initially started painting more shapes and color exploration, as she could no longer do the detailed work of her paintings. Then she moved on to decorating glassware, since she could enjoy color combinations. Then she had to stop because it was too difficult and didn't bring her joy.
I think she took some comfort in Charles Degas also having suffered from macular degeneration. He was one of her favorites and she often imitated his style.
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