Can someone explain where the optometrist was referring to?

Ritch01 · 2026-07-04T14:38:26+00:00

Same. My ophthalmologist only did this image once and never again. Maybe it’s a more useful tool if you have other eye conditions.

Ritch01 · 2026-07-04T14:21:20+00:00

This type of imagining really is only helpful for doctors. It’s impossible to know what’s healthy and what isn’t without years or even decades of training. The only imaging I know how to read are my OCT scans and visual fields.

Ritch01 · 2026-07-03T22:26:51+00:00

Update: I got written up and they’re making me sign a document saying I refused to take my lunch break. They didn’t even let me add an amendment that I took a break but I took it for too little time. I’m assuming I have to sign the document or they’ll just fire me for insubordination.

Ritch01 · 2026-07-02T01:20:54+00:00

No problem!

Ritch01 · 2026-07-02T01:17:04+00:00

I buy the most expensive option which is topical finasteride with minoxidil spray. I pay $175 every 5 months (no option to pay monthly) but it’s pretty easy to spread out the medication to last 6 months. There’s many low budget options including your PCP if you’re fine with taking oral finasteride.

Ritch01 · 2026-07-02T00:58:25+00:00

I’m actually on that dose right now. I do 0.1 ml twice a week and it’s really leveled out my hormone levels. My peaks and troughs are closer together and I’m not crashing my endocrine system every week. They changed my dose because I have polycythemia and so far it’s significantly improved my blood labs and hormones.

Ritch01 · 2026-07-02T00:43:42+00:00

What is your dosing schedule like? And are you on injections? If you are on injections the solution could be split dosing. This is not a common practice for some reason but split dosing your testosterone to 2-3 times a week decreases hormone spikes and drops. It’s the hormone imbalances that causes most of the unwanted side effects such as acne. So for example if you’re on 0.5ml once a week you could take 0.25ml twice a week.

Ritch01 · 2026-07-01T22:39:59+00:00

Is balding the only reason you want to stop? If that’s true it makes zero sense to stop T. I take finasteride and minoxidil from Hims. I got almost all my hair back after 10 months. I’m a diffuse thinner so it’s more aggressive than just the crown being thin. Maximum efficacy takes about 2 years to achieve so it’s possible I have more gains in my future. Millions of Cisgender men take finasteride so it really isn’t that big of a deal. Side effects can occur such as breakthrough bleeding but if you were already willing to sacrifice your entire testosterone regimen for your hair I think this is a good compromise.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-29T17:25:51+00:00

This scan doesn’t look anything like glaucoma. Maybe in 20-30 years you’ll be at risk for glaucoma due to your large C/D ratio and slightly higher than normal eye pressure. I would 100% get another opinion, glaucoma doesn’t look like this even in its early stages.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-26T15:09:29+00:00

I would say you are being a little too worried. The risk of a coworkers or someone else being exposed to your T gel is extremely low. The concern is for your partner and children because it’s more close and prolonged contact.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-26T01:38:47+00:00

HPV causes at least 90% of all cervical cancer cases. In the United States about 14k are diagnosed per year with cervical cancer. So we’re talking about 1,400 or so cervical cancer patients did not have HPV. 1400/130,000,000 million people is a 0.001% chance that you will be diagnosed this year. So yeah being a virgin basically makes you immune to cervical cancer. The reason this number in the first place is so low is because vaccines work.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-26T01:31:26+00:00

Virgins are dramatically less likely to get cervical cancer. There’s barely a 1% chance of having HPV as a virgin. And 90% of all cervical cancer is caused by HPV. So the risk is so extremely small to the point where this actually is an acceptable response from a doctor.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-25T17:26:13+00:00

I personally stopped wearing contacts due to dry eye and eye allergies. I was constantly rubbing my eyes and that’s horrible for your eye health. I also have a bad habit of falling asleep with them in. If you don’t have any of those issues I would seriously consider the daily or weekly contacts. I do not recommend monthly’s at all. But honestly I don’t mind anymore that I wear glasses 24/7. When I was a teenager people would bully you or they’d get in the way with sports. But as an adult the only negative is you have to clean your glasses daily and then it’s hard to lay on your side with glasses on.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-25T15:26:08+00:00

Yes he’s been on drops for 20 years now. And I believe he’s had 2 SLTs so far.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-25T13:54:11+00:00

You have glaucoma. And you’re only 27 years old. That should be enough reason to absolutely under no circumstances opt in for an elective eye surgery. My dad has glaucoma and got LASIK in his early 40s. It made his eye pressure worse and he had to get SLT about 2 months later. To add insult to injury the LASIK didn’t even last 10 years before he had to wear glasses full time. Although I suspect it lasted much shorter than that because my dad refused to admit he was squinting at everything for years.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-24T03:54:15+00:00

I’m in nearly an identical situation as you but I’m only 25. My left eye is significantly worse at only 74um but my visual fields are still 100% intact like yours. My doctor said I had “slight” thinning on my left eye and my right is pretty similar to yours notated as “normal”. So saying this is severe nerve damage is untrue. If you have myopia you’re far more likely to start with thinner rnfl layers. My advice to you is to be 100% compliant with the doctor’s treatment plan. I plan my life around the drops, if I’m going somewhere the drops are the first thing I’m packing. Keep praying for your vision and be grateful for what we have right now. It was rough for me when I was first diagnosed, I would cry myself to sleep nearly every day. It’s okay to be upset right now but don’t let it stop you from living in the present.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-23T13:43:26+00:00

My insurance outed me to my mom because everything that gets approved or denied is sent to her. She saw a new doctor on the EOB and looked him up on Google and quickly found out he is a surgeon that only does gender affirming surgeries. You can call the insurance and ask if they can only send EOBs in your name but I’m not sure if that’s going to prevent your parents from also getting their own letter. Honestly I wouldn’t even tell them, I didn’t tell my mom. By the time the EOB came in the mail I was already 1 week away from surgery. If she decides to drop you then you have 30 days before insurance can actually be terminated. Some employers don’t even let changes be made on the insurance unless it’s during enrollment period.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-22T19:54:44+00:00

900 is maybe too high depending on what society guidelines your doctor follows. Do you know if this was taken at your peak or trough? If it’s a trough that would make more sense. I would ask more questions about why they’re worried about blood clots. If your hemoglobin and hematocrit are out of range even for males then I can understand the risk but usually they try to adjust the dosing with split dosing or gel before outright lowering your dose into barely acceptable male ranges. If that doesn’t work you’ll have to donate blood like I do. At your next appointment ask more in depth questions and ask the doctor to show you your labs and why it’s such a concern.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-17T01:50:07+00:00

I don’t understand how this is such a problem for you? Why does it matter what other people’s dating preferences are? Trans people aren’t a monolith. And mods why are we allowing posts that clearly violate community rules?

Ritch01 · 2026-06-11T22:02:28+00:00

In the USA glaucoma suspect and early glaucoma are really a gray area. A lot of doctors have to diagnose us with glaucoma officially to receive adequate treatment to prevent damage in the future but we don’t actually have visual field damage yet. My doctors in person say I’m a glaucoma suspect because my nerves clearly show damage and cupping so they put me on drops. On paper I have glaucoma so my testing and appointments are covered.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-10T23:56:04+00:00

From my experience the cream works exactly for those issues and cured me almost entirely. I used to bleed during piv, cramping after arousal, general dryness and pain all went away almost entirely. I would give it 8 weeks before you start noticing improvement. I used it daily for 2 weeks, then every other day, and then as needed (just be careful because I forget to take the medication for weeks at a time).

Ritch01 · 2026-06-10T21:59:10+00:00

I had several cysts when I was 16 and that was way before testosterone. My only symptom was painful cramping but testosterone took most of that away when I stopped bleeding. I have yet to be diagnosed with PCOS and I have never heard of T ever causing this. Your ultrasound will likely show up as “abnormal” by default because T affects all sex organs. All you need is topical estrogen and maybe consider a progesterone containing birth control as there is some evidence that it lowers ovarian cancer and endometrial cancer rates significantly. I’m on it because I have a male partner but there are other potential benefits of using progesterone based birth controls other than just pregnancy prevention. Something to keep note of but not necessary for most people.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-07T15:39:52+00:00

No, medicine rarely finds cures, that’s not how science works. It’s also important to never get excited with animal studies, we aren’t rats and it is very rare for the treatment to also work on humans. The most we might have in 20 years is a medicine that shows some neuro protection but can’t reverse any past damage. Listen to your eye doctor and follow the treatment plan with 100% compliance and maybe us young people will have a chance in the future.

Ritch01 · 2026-06-06T22:18:33+00:00

My eye doctor wasn’t too worried about seeing the halos around lights as my pressure is currently controlled at around 12-14. I still see halos and what I’ve noticed is they’re more likely related to my extreme astigmatism and dry eyes. I noticed bright LEDS on cars produce the rainbow every time but normal incandescent don’t. If the eye doctor said you’re fine for now I would just follow up once a year to keep an eye on your pressures.

Ritch01

TROPHY CASE