A Constant Pain in Sunshine Coast Woman’s Eye Leads to Life Changing Diagnosis

Unlike many glaucoma patients who often have no symptoms or pain, Jen Gierens, 56, from the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, knew something was wrong when she started experiencing pain in her eyes and had a dull, constant headache.

“The heaviness and the pain in my eyes was when I knew something was not good in the very beginning. People had been saying my eyes were really red and bloodshot for a while but when I started experiencing a dull headache I realised I needed to get my eyes checked. I learnt that glaucoma really sneaks up on you like that, you don’t know you have it until you’ve been affected.”

Jen has undergone many surgeries in an attempt to save her eyesight, however, unfortunately she has lost sight completely in her left eye. With support and guidance from her ophthalmologist, Jen’s main focus now is ensuring she does not lose sight in her right eye due to the impact and trauma of previous surgeries.

“Currently the key focus of my treatment is keeping my right eye comfortable by keeping the pressure at bay with regular eye drops.”

While Jen had to make the challenging decision to give up her career as a chef, she did not want glaucoma to stop her from doing the things she loves. She was inspired by her love of fishing with her partner, Ian to write and publish her first children’s book*.

“When you are first diagnosed with glaucoma and faced with the reality of possibly losing your sight as I was, you do ask yourself, ‘What I am going to do for the rest of my life?’

“Thankfully, I found an outlet for my creativity, managing to write and publish a children’s book, and I’m now busy working on my second book. Of course there are challenges with writing a book but they aren’t insurmountable and I love it. It’s a pretty amazing achievement, all things considered!”

Jen’s positive attitude to her glaucoma diagnosis and life is infectious. “I am more up than I am down. We all have our days. You pull yourself together because really, at the end of the day, no one else is going to do that for you. I don’t want to drive people crazy by being too negative.”

Jen hopes Glaucoma Australia’s campaign Don’t Be Blindsided will educate Australians about this insidious disease and the importance of having an eye exam this World

Glaucoma Week – because it could be the difference between losing your vision, or not.

“Being blindsided by glaucoma is exactly what happened to me,” she says. “I’m now blind in one eye; I wish I wasn’t as it has completely changed my life. Australians need to know that there is no cure for glaucoma, so early detection is key.”

* Toby's Tackle Box: The Adventures of Four Magical Lures by Jen Gierens