Keratoconus Journeys
Keratoconus Journey: Derek
Derek based his entire life on becoming a pilot, but at age 25, he received unexpected news that threatened to change the trajectory of his dream: he was diagnosed with progressive keratoconus.
Keratoconus Journey: Karolyn
Working as an emergency room nurse, Karolyn is accustomed to treating a wide range of illnesses and injuries. When she began to experiencing vision issues herself, Karolyn visited a specialist…
Keratoconus Journey: Andrew
Andrew noticed his vision impacted all aspects of his life: he was struggling in school, feeling less than confident behind the wheel. Not once did he ever he think he was living with a progressive eye condition.
Keratoconus Journey: Diana
At 14 years old, Diana found herself squinting to see the board at school and while watching television. It wasn’t until a decade later Diana discovered she was living with progressive keratoconus.
Keratoconus Journey: Ryan
Ryan, 26, has always been passionate about health and wellness, so when he began to experience vision issues that impacted his day-to-day life, he became worried.
John’s “Crazy” Keratoconus Journey
John, who has progressive keratoconus and Down syndrome, teamed up with his father to establish John’s Crazy Socks. John was optimistic about his future, but he was worried that his keratoconus…
Keratoconus Journey: Louis
As a young high school student, life can bring many challenges – whether it be schoolwork, sports, or friendships. Others are also dealing with a progressive eye condition.
Keratoconus Journey: Steven
Although Steven struggled with his vision for a decade, it wasn’t until he suggested to his wife that they get a bigger television that he realized his declining eyesight was becoming problematic.
Keratoconus Journey: Jimmy
For over 40 years, Jimmy learned to live with and manage his keratoconus using a contact lens. However, as his keratoconus continued to impact his ability to remain active, the potential need for a corneal transplant became a concern.
Keratoconus Journey: Jackson
Jackson has had a rocky relationship with his vision for years. He tried his best to adapt to his declining vision, and even got his first pair of glasses, however his vision only continued to worsen. After struggling for over a decade, Jackson finally learned what was causing his vision issues.
Keratoconus Journey: Casey
Casey noticed his vision was blurry at just 15 years old. An initial diagnosis determined he had a cataract, but after undergoing the recommended corrective surgery, his vision only continued to decline. A second opinion found that he was in fact living with keratoconus.
Keratoconus Journey: Trayci
Growing up, Trayci didn’t know a life without contacts or glasses, so when she had the option to receive Lasik, she took it. However, 14 years after receiving the procedure, she once again found her vision declining.
Keratoconus Journey: Luke
Luke’s journey began at a young age. In 4th grade, he started complaining of general vision issues, including blurry and double vision. That was when he, accompanied by his parents, first visited an optometrist…
Keratoconus Journey: Joe
Although Joe had never heard of keratoconus before, after learning more about the condition, the diagnosis began to make more sense. For years he had experienced many of the symptoms, including difficulty getting soft contacts to stay in his eyes..
Keratoconus Journey: Chris H.
Chris’ life has always revolved around baseball. But when he started to have difficulty seeing, he began looking for solutions to strikeout his vision challenges. His trouble visually tracking the ball and chronic headaches had begun to seriously impact him by the end of college
Keratoconus Journey: Dione
Dione had been living in a “haze” of blurry vision since she was 18 years old. She tried a variety of contact lenses hoping they would help her to see better. However, it wasn’t until 2011, when she received an unexpected diagnosis…
Keratoconus Journey: Sarah
As a small child, Sarah underwent unrelated eye surgery and wore glasses for years to correct her nearsightedness. With her complicated eye history, Sylvia was diligent about Sarah receiving alternating annual ophthalmologist…
Keratoconus Journey: Kyle L.
For nearly two decades, Kyle’s rare corneal disease slowed down the busy engineer and avid traveler. He often wondered if he would require a corneal transplant, until a fluke allergic reaction forced him to visit a corneal specialist.
Keratoconus Journey: Andre
For years, Andre wore glasses to help with his nearsightedness, but in his early 30s, he began to notice his vision getting slightly worse. As an active and inquisitive person, he wanted know more about what was causing the change…
Keratoconus Journey: Mike H.
Uncomfortable with putting contact lenses in his eyes, for years Mike opted to wear glasses to help correct his vision. Over time, Mike noticed that the glasses were no longer helping him see…
My Family’s Journey with Keratoconus
Growing up, I thought I had perfect vision. I didn’t wear glasses or contacts and my doctors never noticed anything problematic with my eyes…
Keratoconus Journey: Kenny
At the age of 32, Kenny’s optometrist told him his vision was rapidly deteriorating, but his fear of eye drops, contacts, and medical procedures stopped him from visiting a specialist…
Keratoconus Journey: Brent
Brent is not known for slowing down when things get tough. As a personal trainer, he tends to power through. He’s accustomed to encouraging his clients to do the same, but when he began having trouble…
Keratoconus Journey: Baylen
In 5th grade, Baylen started wearing a contact lens in his left eye to correct for his nearsightedness. While the contact seemed to manage..
Keratoconus Journey: Adam
Adam started feeling like there was some sort of dust or debris in his right eye and the more he rubbed his eye, the more he feared that he was making it worse.
Keratoconus Journey: Dan
In his early teens, Dan first began noticing a minor change in his vision but assumed it was nothing serious, since it wasn’t affecting his daily life. His vision never impacted his studies…
Keratoconus Journey: Bekah
Bekah went to her local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) near Austin, Texas, to renew her expiring driver’s license, but she didn’t expect what would happen next…
Keratoconus Journey: Nishi
In November 2016, about seven months after cross-linking became FDA approved and over two years after her initial diagnosis, Nishi received the procedure in her left eye. About two years later, in October 2018, she also received cross-linking on her right eye.
Keratoconus Journey: Gage
With the help of his doctors and corneal cross-linking, Gage is happy to be living on campus and being able to experience college the way he had always envisioned. Gage is also looking forward to planning hiking trips.
Keratoconus Journey: Nic
As an airplane mechanic, Nic depends on his eyesight to inspect and repair airplanes. However, seemingly out of nowhere, he noticed his vision was changing as he started to see halos and glare and halos of light as he worked. When his vision began to fail, he needed to find a “fix”
Keratoconus Journey: Joseph
I was familiar with keratoconus growing up. My mother struggled with the condition for years, using different contact lenses and glasses with little success. Ultimately, she elected…
Keratoconus Journey: Danny
As a Manhattan TV producer, Danny relies on his vision to story produce episodes of reality TV. However, it is not surprising that even someone who is known for having a “good eye”..
Keratoconus Journey: Aaron
Aaron was an active teen growing up. He participated in many sports despite wearing thick glasses to see clearly. As a high school varsity football player, Aaron’s teammates often teased him…
Keratoconus Journey: Brandon
Now that he can see clearly again, Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Brandon Williams is ready to resume his lucrative NFL career. Williams has an eye disease called keratoconus…
Keratoconus Journey: Dr. Eric
As a pathologist (a physician who studies the cause, origin and nature of disease), Dr. Eric’s profession depends on spotting warning signs that can impact his patients’ health…
Keratoconus Journey: Shanice
Growing up, Shanice was a talented athlete who dreamed of competing at the highest level of sports. In high school she was a standout player, eventually winning a scholarship…
Keratoconus Journey: Cedric
Considered a “failure to thrive” infant when he was born, Cedric was only given a 10% chance to live by his doctors. Cedric was taken in by one of his attending nurses who made him a part…
Keratoconus Journey: Kiana
Kiana’s struggle with her vision began during her senior year of high school in Boston, Massachusetts. Instead of looking forward to her future, Kiana found herself experiencing troublesome…
Keratoconus Journey: Amritpal
Amritpal’s interest in the field of eye health began with a personal battle to preserve his own vision. In 2014, Amritpal was taking a simple vision exam during his driver’s test when he discovered…
Keratoconus Journey: Thomas
Growing up, Thomas relied on his 20/20 vision to participate in athletics and extra curricular activities, with baseball as the sport in which he truly excelled. Although he received regular check-ups…
Keratoconus Journey: Jessa
When Jessa was in eighth grade she began to experience difficulties with her vision. While she had worn contact lenses for a few years, some things began to look “funny” and out of focus. Jessa’s…
Keratoconus Journey: Richard
Richard knew that something was wrong with his vision when he began to experience constant headaches while reading. One morning, Richard woke up to find his vision had noticeably worsened…
Keratoconus Journey: Max
Max was just a typical 15-year-old from Columbus, Ohio when his eye health changed forever. It started with a routine optometrist visit with his older sister, Morgan, to pick up a new…