Living with CSCR (Central Serous Chorioretinopathy)

rustybear27 said:Ole,.. I actually underwent MPLT-MicroPulse laser therapy—the so-called "cold laser" as my doc calls it (though whether that's Iridex or not, I haven't a clue). The idea is that it supposedly revitalizes cells without destroying tissue, but it doesn't actually stop the leaking/leakage from the vein—tried and tested on me. It improves the situation, but it doesn't seal the vessel. My doctor is a great guy, but in many other instances, life experience has taught me that you eventually have to become your own doctor.😁. Just get an FAG done, then you'll know for 100% certain if there's a leak in the vein or not. They were focusing entirely on my eye issues, but they did a quick 10-second scan of everything else too—that’s how we caught the other issue early on, something that didn't even show up on the OCT.
Thnx for the Astaxanthin.
The oil definitely works—I can see improvements. 🙂
I've had injections before, too, but they didn't stop the leakage.

Btw, don't use Bacopa monnieri or Brahmi Gotu Kola if you're pregnant or planning to be; I read somewhere that it should be avoided during that time.

Ugh, that planning sounds amazing. Nature, streams, forests... our true habitat. You can tell my hunter-gatherer genes are kicking in immediately. haha

Hey there, rustybear27!
Keep me posted on how things are going 😀 I'm really glad to hear you're noticing some progress.
So, I picked up some Spirulina today... and man, I totally blew it by getting the powder version. It was awful! I almost gagged. I still feel a bit nauseous just thinking about the taste. I tried plugging my nose and chugging it, but it just wouldn't work... I'm going to have to figure out a better way to take this 😨 For the next few months, I've decided to focus on vitamins and antioxidants specifically for eye health. Just trying to give my eyes a chance to recover.
I have one more question for you 😀 I'm a little confused about that FAG thing. Say, for instance, if the vein isn't actually leaking, why would this happen in the first place? I get it if there's a leak, but if it's possible for the vein to be sealed and I still developed CSR, where did that Edem come from? Do you have any idea? Is it possible for it to leak once, create Edem, and then stop leaking? I'm struggling to find the right way to ask this ☺
Have you started planning that nature getaway yet? I remember mentioning it to you last time. We were out at Kalnik for training 😂 and we're looking at a shorter trek toward the end of the month. Honestly, being out in nature this spring has been pure bliss. It's my medicine and my therapy 😉 Next month, we're planning to spend two or three nights in the Alps, maybe combine a few short hikes that are doable with the baby in a carrier. My husband is all in 😂
Take care, and hoping for good news

Hey,
figured I’d jump into this thread too.
Basically, about two and a half months ago, while I was sitting at my desk at work, my vision in my right eye suddenly got blurry.
Here’s the backstory—during that stretch, work was incredibly stressful (we're talking over two months of non-stop pressure), and I was glued to a computer screen all day. On top of that, I had chronic sinus inflammation and felt this constant pressure around my eyes; sometimes it felt like my sharpness just dropped out for a second. A few days after that, I fell asleep on the couch with the heater blowing directly onto my face, and I woke up the next morning with pain in my right eye. That pain lasted all day until I got home from work around 6 PM. Then, silly move—the following Wednesday, I banged my temple against a wall pretty hard. Two days after that, while working about 12 hours into my shift, my right eye went blurry again.
The next day, I went to the ER. They rushed me in for an OCT, and they diagnosed me with CSR—macular detachment of 605 microns at the center of my vision (the fovea). To make matters worse, when I went back for a follow-up seven days later, the detachment had worsened to 785 microns. At that point, my central vision was blacked out; I couldn't recognize faces or even see light from small LEDs in the dark.
The very next day, I received an Avastin injection in the eye.
Surprisingly, my vision started returning after just seven days. When I went back for a check-up two weeks later, the OCT showed that 95% of the fluid had cleared, and my vision was back to about 90-95% capacity.
The doctor told me he’d never seen results like that in his practice, and scheduled me for a follow-up in two months.
Since I’ve had perfect vision my entire life, I was honestly terrified and in shock. I couldn't sit around waiting two months, so after one month, I went to a private clinic for another OCT, feeling a bit skeptical. That scan showed the fluid was completely gone and the macula looked healthy (all green on the scan). There's still some swelling on the side of the eye, but the doctor says we just have to wait it out.
The problem is, my vision is still distorted, and worst of all, objects look about 20-30% smaller. It’s incredibly annoying because it messes with my overall binocular vision—it feels like I'm looking through a diving mask. I'm hoping the object sizes will eventually equalize with my other eye, especially since this has been going on for two and a half months now, and from what I read online, recovery usually takes 4-6 months. I just really hope there isn't a relapse. :|
My next appointment is June 5th, so we'll see... sorry for the long post.

Hey everyone,
just wanted to give an update after my last checkup on June 5th. Same as before—no more fluid in the macula and the OCT looks clean. However, the image size is still shrunk by about 30% when I try to focus on smaller or distant objects. My visual acuity is sitting at roughly 90%, and things look a bit watery when I'm reading fine print. The doctor says the image size should start returning to normal over the next few months—supposedly there should be noticeable improvement within three months, stretching up to a year. How are you all doing? Have any of you dealt with a recurrence? How is your vision and image size looking? Has the image size balanced out at all compared to your other eye?

Hey crimsonhound27!
I’ve been meaning to get back to you for ages, but honestly, I just wasn't in the right headspace to even think about anything regarding CSR... After it happened, I had this weird sensation where everything looked diminished, almost like I was diving underwater. I couldn't really explain it to anyone—my sharpness was fine, nothing was blurry, but it just felt like I was submerged. My doctor told me it should pass with time, and I think the issue with objects looking smaller gradually improved over about 3 or 4 months once things settled down, but I’m still stuck with about 5% of that "underwater" effect; there’s no easy way to shake it. That said, my OCT scan two months later came back green, but there was still this tiny bit of retinal detachment visible. You know how on an OCT it looks like a U-shape? Well, on the bottom right side—not dead center, but slightly off to the right—there was a tiny, tiny little bit still detached, even though the OCT shows green and the thickness is totally fine. Mind you, the report also noted some heavier pigment clumps and tiny drusen at that spot. Throughout the whole time when the issue was peak, my visual acuity was 100%; the only thing was this weird colored ring blinking in front of my eyes. The most interesting part was that during that phase, I could actually watch TV without glasses. I usually wear them for distance, but while the detachment was active, I could read the text on the screen with my right eye perfectly fine... There is still a slight color difference when I look through my right eye compared to my left, and if I look at a cup with my right eye and then shift to the left, I notice these shadows for the first few seconds. Also, when I read tiny print, it looks kind of greasy, like it was printed on oily paper, even though I can see the tiniest letters clearly with both eyes. For example, if I take a photo of this screen and try to read it in my gallery without opening the image—meaning when it's shrunk down in the thumbnail view—I can read it easily... I know it sounds silly, but that's kind of my benchmark...
Then, three months after my last checkup, I went back for another follow-up and it turned out the detachment had actually grown a bit more, even though the OCT is still showing green, so they put me back on eye drop therapy.
I went in for a FAG last week; I scheduled it at the local clinic because the wait times are way shorter than elsewhere, and man, I was terrified. While I was waiting for the results, the doctor called me in to do some other kind of angiogram imaging. I was absolutely freaking out—which, fair enough—and then they called me back in to take another shot and nobody would say a word to me... Anyway, the initial diagnosis was confirmed: CSR in my right eye, and it's still leaking. I guess they weren't quite sure what was going on... Minimal detachment, still leaking, but the OCT says green... On the 28th, I'm heading to see my ophthalmologist with these results (my regular doctor moved to another city in the meantime), and I have no clue what the difference is between seeing her and going to a laser clinic... I'll see what she says.
I've also started getting those damn floaters. I see all these transparent little circles when I look up at the sky; they drift around and stretch out like egg whites. When I mentioned them to the doctor (I've brought up a few of them already), he barely even listens to me before just saying I have to get used to it, that everyone gets them when this happens... But it drives me crazy because I can spot them on the wall, the floor, the countertop... If I move my eyes left to right, it just looks like a faint grayish shadow, barely noticeable, but when I look out at the sky, I can sort of focus on that shadow and then make out those clear little circles. It's so overwhelming and frustrating and scary that I find myself constantly staring at them, just struggling with it.
Anyway, sorry for the massive wall of text, but that’s basically my whole situation laid out... I really hope you aren't dealing with any lingering detachment or leakage, and I hope you have the patience to just wait it out until everything looks normal again. It’ll settle eventually. Did your doctor see any lasting traces on your scans?
Good luck! 👍

Nicholas Ortiz48,
I see a lot of similarities in our situations. My OCT was green just a month ago—I went to a private clinic—and the doctor told me back in the fall that things should improve regarding image size and clarity. Basically, we’re looking at that same 3 to 4-month window after a green OCT, so I’m hoping for the best. That said, my regular doctor at Johns Hopkins Hospital mentioned it could take up to a year to fully recover. On the right side of my center, there's still this tiny, minimal ablation visible, though the doctor didn't mention it. He did take an extra shot further to the right and slightly above center, where there's a bit more noticeable ablation present—I assume that's the leakage site since my Edem came in from the top right. If I'd caught it earlier, they probably would have treated it with laser or an injection before it hit my central vision, but hey, it is what it is. The doctor didn't say much about it; he just told me to reach out if things get worse, so I guess it's fine for now. I had those flickering, bubbly flashes two or three weeks after my injection—that was just residual fluid—and they cleared up once it passed. I still have floaters that move when I move my eyes, and that's in both eyes, but I don't pay them much attention. They're harmless, even if they're annoying. Right now, my main preoccupation is the image size, because obviously, that's the real issue. My vision was nearly 100% at the last checkup, but again, that's not the main problem—it's the visual quality. Your vision stayed at 100% consistently, likely because you didn't have massive Edem, so logically your vision should almost completely recover. In my case, the swelling was huge—around 800 microns—so I lost some vision too. I just hope your retina hasn't been damaged too badly.
Those static, clear bubbles you're seeing are scars; I think they're permanent, though they might shrink a bit over time.
Anyway, hopefully our condition keeps improving. Let me know how you're doing.
All the best! ☺

I wonder if there might be some way for you to upload those OCT images? It would be helpful if we could follow along with them.

Hey there! So, my checkup went pretty smoothly; I had an OCT done and everything looks clean now. There’s still just that bit of pigment clumping left, but the doctor says it’s just a leftover from everything that went down and there's nothing to worry about. I've got my next follow-up in two months. I’m going to try and upload the old photos soon... It actually looks like the macular shape has returned completely to normal. Even back on that January 19th scan—the one where things finally started looking "green"—there was still this tiny bit of displacement, but now it looks exactly how it should. We'll see if it stays that way, though I'm really hoping it does. My vision still feels a little watery, and honestly, I'm not even sure if that's ever going to clear up, but let's hope it's just passing 👍
Do you not need to run those FAG tests? Let me know how things progress with you, crimsonhound27. Good luck!!!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/gaFgUGhihrCiCTTg9

Look, I’m probably going to sound like a total amateur here, but I honestly have no clue if there’s a better way to upload images directly to this thread, so if anyone actually knows the trick, feel free to point me in the right direction... For now, I’ll just try getting around it by sharing the album link above, so hopefully you guys can actually get it to open without too much trouble...
Best,

Hey 😁, it's me. Things are looking up... I slipped up a bit, but I've stuck with the Cannabis oil and RSO, and I even started smoking joints—honestly, that seems to work incredibly well too. It’s improved significantly. If I stay on this track, I think I'll feel like a new person in maybe 2-3-4 months. Btw, I took your advice and ordered some Astaxanthin—it's awesome.

Hmm, powder and Spirulina... maybe try mixing it into yogurt? Just a little bit. I ended up buying the tablets from Kernnela (from Germany).
Yeah

Nicholas Ortiz48 said:Hey there, rustybear27!
Keep me posted on how things are going 😀 I'm really glad to hear you're noticing some progress.
So, I picked up some Spirulina today... and man, I totally blew it by getting the powder version. It was awful! I almost gagged. I still feel a bit nauseous just thinking about the taste. I tried plugging my nose and chugging it, but it just wouldn't work... I'm going to have to figure out a better way to take this 😨 For the next few months, I've decided to focus on vitamins and antioxidants specifically for eye health. Just trying to give my eyes a chance to recover.
I have one more question for you 😀 I'm a little confused about that FAG thing. Say, for instance, if the vein isn't actually leaking, why would this happen in the first place? I get it if there's a leak, but if it's possible for the vein to be sealed and I still developed CSR, where did that Edem come from? Do you have any idea? Is it possible for it to leak once, create Edem, and then stop leaking? I'm struggling to find the right way to ask this ☺
Have you started planning that nature getaway yet? I remember mentioning it to you last time. We were out at Kalnik for training 😂 and we're looking at a shorter trek toward the end of the month. Honestly, being out in nature this spring has been pure bliss. It's my medicine and my therapy 😉 Next month, we're planning to spend two or three nights in the Alps, maybe combine a few short hikes that are doable with the baby in a carrier. My husband is all in 😂
Take care, and hoping for good news

Hey everyone, looks like I'm stuck in the same boat as you guys. I just started on Diamox. I've been taking it for two days now, and man, this stuff is no joke—I'm getting these crazy tingling sensations running from my neck down my back and all through my hands, especially after I move around at all. Has anyone else dealt with this? Does this weird nerve stuff actually go away if you stick with the treatment for a while longer?

I suppose one should probably keep an eye on potassium levels while taking diam

Just wanted to drop a quick update: after two months, the Edem has completely cleared up, and my OCT looks good. I'm done with the Diamox tablets too—only took them for about a month.
But here’s the thing—even though the OCT is fine, everything still looks slightly darker and just... smaller? Like, vision is a bit diminished.
What have you guys dealt with? Is there any actual hope that these weird visual glitches will fully vanish after some time? My doctor is basically telling me it might stay this way because of some leftover scarring.

Ugh, figured I’d chime in for a second. CSR is definitely the fallout from overusing corticosteroids, high stress levels, and just generally poor lifestyle choices. As for me, I tackled my stress issues by simply walking away from my job and switching careers. Since then, the CSR hasn't come back. What remains—just like others here have mentioned—is this distorted vision that makes it feel like I'm looking through water, but even that is slowly improving. I’ve managed to get about 90% of my vision back, though the sharpness isn't exactly stellar. The main thing is that it doesn't limit my daily routine, and more importantly, I don't qualify for a disability.

Whether it decides to show up again... well, we'll just have to wait and see.

Henry Perez5 said:Hey everyone, looks like I'm stuck in the same boat as you guys. I just started on Diamox. I've been taking it for two days now, and man, this stuff is no joke—I'm getting these crazy tingling sensations running from my neck down my back and all through my hands, especially after I move around at all. Has anyone else dealt with this? Does this weird nerve stuff actually go away if you stick with the treatment for a while longer?

I was diagnosed with CSR last week and they put me on those exact tablets.
My ophthalmologist mentioned that I should expect that tingling sensation; apparently, it’s linked to potassium loss caused by the diuretic effect. To manage that, she prescribed potassium chloride tablets to take once a week alongside the Diamox and my eye drops. She also suggested I lean more heavily on bananas, tomatoes, and other potassium-rich foods while I'm on the medication.

I haven't dealt with the tingling, but after five days of taking them, my leg muscles—especially my thighs—have been aching quite a bit. It makes me worry that these pills might be flushing out other essential things, like magnesium, too.

Since I'm already here, I wanted to say hello to everyone and briefly share my story.

I was diagnosed with CSR just a week ago (though it turns out my first episode actually happened about a year and a half ago, but I'll get into that in a bit).

As often happens, after an incredibly stressful period in all areas of my life—both professionally and personally—which culminated in the passing of a close elderly relative a month ago, I started seeing a dark spot in the focus of my left eye. Now, I’ve never been the type of person to run to the doctor for every little thing, and at the time, I honestly thought this was just a minor glitch, so I decided to ignore it. However, after a couple of weeks, that little speck grew and expanded until it was taking up a significant portion of my field of vision and darkening everything. It got to the point where my vision in the left eye was quite poor in low-light conditions. That was my wake-up call that I couldn't just brush this off anymore.

So, I headed over to a private ophthalmologist for a standard exam and an OCT. The verdict: CSR, with vision sitting at about 50-60%.

The doctor also mentioned that there were "scars" left over from previous bouts of CSR. That immediately reminded me of a situation a year and a half ago when I saw "floating" letters and a circle in my field of vision, though it cleared up within four or five days. Back then, I had gone to a general hospital, but the doctor told me she couldn't make a definitive diagnosis without an OCT, which none of the clinics in San Diego had available at the time. Since the symptoms vanished the very next day, I just moved on and forgot all about that episode.

In short, following the exam and the OCT, she prescribed me Diamox tablets, Yellox eye drops, and potassium chloride pills, and told me to come back for a follow-up in 15 days.

After one week, my vision is starting to improve, but I'm dealing with some pretty intense muscle aches in my legs from time to time (I'm assuming it's a side effect of the diuretic, as I mentioned in my reply to the post above).

If any of you have recommendations regarding diet, or any other advice on lifestyle changes and managing stress, I would truly appreciate it.

Hey there, everyone,

Does anyone actually have any insight into how Cannabis oil works? I just picked some up, so I’m trying to figure out if it’s actually worth the trouble. I was diagnosed with CSR back in July of last year, and my doctor over in Germany prescribed me Glaupax, which I think is pretty similar to the stuff you get over here. I took it for about three weeks, and I guess things improved a tiny bit, but the issue hasn't really gone away. I haven't actually gone back for a follow-up exam since then. Aside from just trying to stay stress-free, what has actually worked for you guys? I am honestly dreading the idea of having one of those injections shoved into my eye; I want to avoid that at all costs if I possibly can. Is laser treatment even a viable alternative?
I would truly appreciate any advice or medication recommendations you might be willing to share. It would mean a lot.

rustybear27 said:Hey 😁, it's me. Things are looking up... I slipped up a bit, but I've stuck with the Cannabis oil and RSO, and I even started smoking joints—honestly, that seems to work incredibly well too. It’s improved significantly. If I stay on this track, I think I'll feel like a new person in maybe 2-3-4 months. Btw, I took your advice and ordered some Astaxanthin—it's awesome.

Hmm, powder and Spirulina... maybe try mixing it into yogurt? Just a little bit. I ended up buying the tablets from Kernnela (from Germany).
Yeah

Hey there... been gone for a bit😵...but the oil is working wonders. After about a year of using nothing but Rick Simpson Oil (I tried several different types of eye injections, but they didn't really do much), without any other medical help, the Edem has almost completely vanished. It’s receding fast—my doctor is actually surprised and happy; things are looking up.🙂 The amount I take is about 1/4 the size of a grain of rice on a toothpick, right before bed, on a small piece of bread, followed by some water. I also use regular CBD oil daily—5 drops under the tongue once a day, and sometimes another 5 drops at night. Honestly, nobody really knows why Edem happens (I suspect it's stress... specifically cortisol levels spiking when we're stressed, and if that stress is constant, the cortisol stays high, which wreaks havoc on the body), but somehow this miracle RSO is clearing everything right up. RSO regulates the endocannabinoid system and who knows what else... basically, it heals. Nature really does have the answers; forests are our friends and our natural home.👍

Nicholas Ortiz48 said:Hey there, rustybear27!
Keep me posted on how things are going 😀 I'm really glad to hear you're noticing some progress.
So, I picked up some Spirulina today... and man, I totally blew it by getting the powder version. It was awful! I almost gagged. I still feel a bit nauseous just thinking about the taste. I tried plugging my nose and chugging it, but it just wouldn't work... I'm going to have to figure out a better way to take this 😨 For the next few months, I've decided to focus on vitamins and antioxidants specifically for eye health. Just trying to give my eyes a chance to recover.
I have one more question for you 😀 I'm a little confused about that FAG thing. Say, for instance, if the vein isn't actually leaking, why would this happen in the first place? I get it if there's a leak, but if it's possible for the vein to be sealed and I still developed CSR, where did that Edem come from? Do you have any idea? Is it possible for it to leak once, create Edem, and then stop leaking? I'm struggling to find the right way to ask this ☺
Have you started planning that nature getaway yet? I remember mentioning it to you last time. We were out at Kalnik for training 😂 and we're looking at a shorter trek toward the end of the month. Honestly, being out in nature this spring has been pure bliss. It's my medicine and my therapy 😉 Next month, we're planning to spend two or three nights in the Alps, maybe combine a few short hikes that are doable with the baby in a carrier. My husband is all in 😂
Take care, and hoping for good news

Ugh, okay, some spirulina is decent, gross 😁..but Kernnel spirulina is the gold standard.

Nicholas Ortiz48 said:Hey there, rustybear27!
Keep me posted on how things are going 😀 I'm really glad to hear you're noticing some progress.
So, I picked up some Spirulina today... and man, I totally blew it by getting the powder version. It was awful! I almost gagged. I still feel a bit nauseous just thinking about the taste. I tried plugging my nose and chugging it, but it just wouldn't work... I'm going to have to figure out a better way to take this 😨 For the next few months, I've decided to focus on vitamins and antioxidants specifically for eye health. Just trying to give my eyes a chance to recover.
I have one more question for you 😀 I'm a little confused about that FAG thing. Say, for instance, if the vein isn't actually leaking, why would this happen in the first place? I get it if there's a leak, but if it's possible for the vein to be sealed and I still developed CSR, where did that Edem come from? Do you have any idea? Is it possible for it to leak once, create Edem, and then stop leaking? I'm struggling to find the right way to ask this ☺
Have you started planning that nature getaway yet? I remember mentioning it to you last time. We were out at Kalnik for training 😂 and we're looking at a shorter trek toward the end of the month. Honestly, being out in nature this spring has been pure bliss. It's my medicine and my therapy 😉 Next month, we're planning to spend two or three nights in the Alps, maybe combine a few short hikes that are doable with the baby in a carrier. My husband is all in 😂
Take care, and hoping for good news

Henry Perez5 said:Hey everyone, looks like I'm stuck in the same boat as you guys. I just started on Diamox. I've been taking it for two days now, and man, this stuff is no joke—I'm getting these crazy tingling sensations running from my neck down my back and all through my hands, especially after I move around at all. Has anyone else dealt with this? Does this weird nerve stuff actually go away if you stick with the treatment for a while longer?

It works. It almost completely cured me... you just need patience. I stuck to very small doses in the evening, and after a year, the results have been great. Look, this isn't going to happen overnight. It takes time, but it'll solve the issue. The most important thing is making sure you get the real deal.

neoneagle7 said:Hey there, everyone,

Does anyone actually have any insight into how Cannabis oil works? I just picked some up, so I’m trying to figure out if it’s actually worth the trouble. I was diagnosed with CSR back in July of last year, and my doctor over in Germany prescribed me Glaupax, which I think is pretty similar to the stuff you get over here. I took it for about three weeks, and I guess things improved a tiny bit, but the issue hasn't really gone away. I haven't actually gone back for a follow-up exam since then. Aside from just trying to stay stress-free, what has actually worked for you guys? I am honestly dreading the idea of having one of those injections shoved into my eye; I want to avoid that at all costs if I possibly can. Is laser treatment even a viable alternative?
I would truly appreciate any advice or medication recommendations you might be willing to share. It would mean a lot.

rustybear27 said:It works. It almost completely cured me... you just need patience. I stuck to very small doses in the evening, and after a year, the results have been great. Look, this isn't going to happen overnight. It takes time, but it'll solve the issue. The most important thing is making sure you get the real deal.

Hey, thanks for checking in!

Do you happen to know where I might be able to pick up some of that Rick Simpson Oil? And I'm wondering, what's the actual difference between that and standard CBD oil?
Is it necessary to take both?