Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Eye Exams Make Me Sleepy


This morning was my first official eye exam of 2013 - And there have been no changes since my last visit. In my Dr’s own words:  Everything looks good!  

And I’m grateful and relived. 

But as I sit here at work waiting for my anime eyes to go back to normal as I try my best to focus on the letters on the screen (not so easy when your pupils are dilated,) all I want to do is go to sleep.  
WHY? Because every single time I go to the Eye Doc’s, the rest of the day has me:
  1. Explaining to anyone and everyone who crosses my path that I’m not high
  2. Shielding my eyes like one of the Twilight gang from any and all sunlight
  3. Downing massive amounts of caffeine and fighting the irresistible urge to take a nap 
I don’t know If this sleepytime effect occurs because I get up extra early to arrive at my Dr’s office at 7:30 a.m.; or it's  some weirdo side effect of the eye drops that never seem to want to leave my eyes, (on average, my eyes stay dilated for at least 6 hours,) or it's because of all the stress and anxiety that builds up for days before each visit and doesn’t let up until my eye exam is over. 

Most likely it’s some Kellylicious trifecta of all of the above.  And for the record, it has nothing to do with my bloodsugar, which is 129 ;) 

So has anyone else experienced the sleepytime effect after they get their eyes dilated or am I the only one who needs a caffeine drip IV after a visit to the eye doctor? Diabetesalicious minds want to know! 

8 comments:

Scott K. Johnson said...

Glad to hear that everything looks good - that's fantastic news!

I don't get sleepy, but definitely fight with the blurry vision and harmful bright lights.

Wendy said...

I get so sleepy the rest of the day too. My eye doc says that it's eye-fatigue and can tire some people out.

Vera said...

@ Wendy: That totally makes sense! I tend to get tired eyes too - just the eyes though.
Kelly, ask if they have the drops to make your eyes normal again in a shorter time afterwards - I don't know whether they give you the same stuff for dilating your pupils in the US, but in Germany you can get something to reverse the effect more quickly.

Unknown said...

I recently had a lasik evaluation and had my eyes dilated twice because they said the first didn't work. At first it was ju the normal blurry and being blind by the sun, but then I became extremely exhausted. I had to take a nap before going to work after my exam But I had to leave after a couple of hrs because I was so tired and felt high kinda stumbling on my feet. Went home took another 45 min nap and had to do some errands. After picking up my kids and getting them feed from Burger King and had to go to bed. I could no longer take care of my kids and went to bed in the clothes I had on. It was the most bizarre feeling I've ever had I felt like I was drugged. It took two days to recover and I'm finally feeling better.

Mark said...

I had a similar experience to Monique today but not as extreme. I was drowsy for about three hours afterward. I also had a LASIK consultation. I looked up side effects of dilating drops and I didn't see anything about drowsiness. Strange...

Unknown said...

They do make me drowsy. Thought it had to affect someone else this way. Found your post. Going to get my afternoon coffee to help counteract this drowsiness. Few hours before bedtime yet.

Anonymous said...

I'm 66 yrs old and I've noticed recently over the last several yrs, when I get my eye exam I'm just exhausted for the rest of the day and then I sleep all day. I feel medicated too, like someone injected a drug into my veins!!! It's damn creepy!! Here it is Weds.....and I'm still a bit tired out. I kept thinking it was cuz' I have Fibromyalgia?? Apparently, this is not the reason.....weird, VERY weird!!!

Unknown said...

I am happy to see this because to actually Google can eye dilution make me sleepy seemed silly...but lord! All I want to do is sleep this afternoon!
I thank you for your share. I am feeling more comfortable in giving into those feelings today!