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Miyako Murray lost her vision after developing an eye infection from swimming with contact lenses in (Picture: Miyako Murray)
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Miyako Aiko-Murray, from London, has been
forced to quit her job and her studies due to a life-altering eye infection
brought on by going in the sea with contact lenses in.
She began suffering from migraines and a pain
that felt like she had ‘metal in my eyes’, but she claims doctors dismissed her
concerns when she visited A&E.
Her painful symptoms got worse over time until
one day she woke up unable to see. She told Metro.co.uk: ‘I had just started my
first full time job and I was studying accountancy on the side.
A specialist told me to go to A&E when the
pain got really bad. ‘I went a few times
but they did not really look into it.
I would get sent home in five minutes. ‘Over
time the scars grew and grew. I woke up one day and realised I could not see a
thing.
Even when I turned on the lights I could not
see anything. I started calling for my mum. It was such a shock.
‘I knew something was wrong but I didn’t get
the help I needed when I was going to the hospital.
I’ve been told I won’t be able to see ever
again.’ Miyako was on a ‘beautiful family holiday’ last summer when she
developed the infection.
After months of being passed between different
health professionals, she was diagnosed with Ancanthamoeba Keratitis (AK)- a
rare infection that damages the front of the eye.
She was put on hourly eye drops that felt like
having ‘bleach’ poured into her eyes, but things got worse in March when she
developed congeal scarring on top of the infection.
The former customer care worker, now 20, says
she can ‘only see light’ and feels ‘shut
off from the world’ as she learns to adapt to being visually impaired.
She said: ‘I have had to stop doing all the
things I used to love. My life is on hold. ‘Before this happened, I was very
open.
I went out with my friends, I was so happy. ‘I
was doing anything that was possible to get my future up.
I would do music, I was into performing
arts, I loved sports and going the gym.
‘That was really good for clearing my mind and keeping me calm. I can’t do that now. I don’t see my friends anymore.
I am
shut out from the world. ‘It’s not really possible for me to go out on
my own because light really effects me.
‘I don’t use a phone or any technology as It
gives me a headache to look at a screen.
I just sit in a dark room dealing with depression and anxiety.’ Miyako
may need cornea transplants and faces years of painful treatment until an eye
donor becomes available.
She was forced to quit her job in December and
is struggling to afford the cost of assisted technology that would help her
adjust to a life without sight.
A year on from the incident, she has set up a
GoFundme page to help pay for visual aids so she can resume her studies and
eventually get back to work.
She said: ‘My mum has become my carer, she is
really struggling. I was providing for
myself and my mum.
‘For that to be cut out is really hard, I was
working so hard towards my future and now it’s like I am starting from the
bottom.
‘I have to pay for eye patches, eye wear,
special glasses, assisted technology. ‘I used to think I would get better.
I struggled to accept what happened. But I
started reading other peoples stories and it was really hard for them too. ‘
Acanthamoeba keratitis is most common in
people who wear contact lenses and early diagnosis is essential for effective
treatment.
Miyako wants to raise awareness about the
infection to stop others going through what she has experienced.
‘A lot of people don’t know I have this, they
think I am just being anti-social’ she said.
‘It’s
been a year now and a family member suggested creating a page to get my story
out there.
‘It’s not something I wanted to scream about a
first but a lot of people wear contact lenses even just for fashion, they need
to know about AK.
’ You can donate to Miyako’s GoFundme Page
HERE
Source: Metro.co.uk
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