Please help donate for my eye surgery (Danbury, CT)

Please help donate for my eye surgery

gofund.me marissakeratoconus Hi My name is Marissa and I am 26 years old. I was recently diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease called Keratoconus. According to the American Optometric Association Keratoconus is a vision disorder that occurs when the normally round cornea (the front part of the eye) becomes thin and irregular (cone) shaped. This abnormal shape prevents the light entering the eye from being focused correctly on the retina and causes distortion of vision. In its earliest stages keratoconus causes slight blurring and distortion of vision and increased sensitivity to glare and light. These symptoms usually appear in the late teens or late 20s. Keratoconus may progress for 10-20 years and then slow in its progression. Each eye may be affected differently. As keratoconus progresses the cornea bulges more and vision may become more distorted. There is no cure for Keratoconus except for cross-linking or a full corneal transplant.In 2011 I went to the eye doctor to get a new pair of eyeglasses. After I received my new glasses I never saw clearly through them. I did not think anything of it as I knew I had poor vision. After 2 years I went back to an eye doctor for a new pair of glasses because I could not see through the original glasses at all. The eye doctor said that my prescription hadn t changed but did not provide any further assistance to me so I figured I would go see another doctor at a later point in time. Over time I became less able to see clearly. I cannot see smaller writing on the TV I cannot see the writing on computer screens without englarging it and I cannot drive safely at nighttime as the glare and halos from the lights affect my vision severely. Two weeks ago I went for another eye appointment to get a new pair of glasses. My doctor seemed perplexed and began doing random testing. At the end of my appointment she told me she was 90% sure I had Keratoconus and that I needed to go to a specialist right away to confirm. Today (8 5 15) I was fully diagnosed. While special contact lenses can help me for a little while the stage in which I am at (given a 3-4 year time frame) is more progressed where my doctor knows that cross-linking eye surgery will be the only thing to truly help me. Unfortunately the FDA has not approved this surgery even though the Eye Bank Association of America has estimated more than 40% of the corneal transplants in the U.S. or more than 6 800 transplants could be avoided if cross-linking were approved to treat Keratoconus. Since this is not FDA approved my health insurance will not cover the procedure and all costs associated will be out of pocket.2015 and 2016 is supposed to be the happiest time of my life. My fiance Andrew and I were recently engaged and we have been saving up to get married in October 2016. The cross-linking surgery since it is not FDA approved is 2 000 per eye plus follow-ups. Anything and everything can help so that I can get the cross-linking surgery and avoid the risk of full cornea transplant. Thank you to everyone for the love & support.-xo Marissa Lynne