Lost her vision: – Frida (23) was frustrated:

No one, not even ophthalmologists, could explain why Frida Petersen (23) from Namsos has been blind in her right eye for the past seven months.

As part of an effort to solve the medical mystery, she wants to share her story with as many people as possible.

So, he has chosen to be open about the situation in a local newspaper, on Facebook Namthal newspaper Now in Dagbladet.

– I hope there is someone out there who knows what this is, says Frida.

Seemed innocent

The 23-year-old gratefully accepts all suggestions. One Saturday morning in June last year, something suddenly hit her and consumed her.

– It's been a very difficult six months. Fortunately, I had good friends and a wonderful family who supported me, but it was difficult, she says.

At first it all seemed so innocent.

– I woke up with a red and swollen eye, it was a little itchy, I actually thought it was a cataract, says Frida.

She had eye inflammation, technically known as conjunctivitis, twice before.

Although she was a little surprised that she had lost her vision in the swollen eye this time, she concluded that it would definitely return as the swelling subsided.

– was very bad

The following Monday, she went to work as a security controller at Namsos Airport.

– The eye did not improve, and my colleagues and I thought it was very bad. “I actually put a regular plaster over it to cover it in the beginning,” the 23-year-old says, laughing.

Eventually, they agreed to take Frida to the doctor.

“You're not going back to work,” was the message she got. The 23-year-old was on sick leave four months after starting her dream job.

– I was a bit shocked here and there, but at the same time I know very well what the eye looks like, so I felt it was better to keep calm in order to recover, he says.

After that, Frida was followed regularly by an ophthalmologist at the hospital in Namsos.

– Fear and confusion

Over the next two weeks, both swelling and inflammation subsided, but vision did not return.

– I was confused and scared. At the same time I tried to think positively. “Surely the vision will return,” I told myself. Lately, I've become more realistic and trying to come to terms with the idea that I might have to live with this for the rest of my life, says the 23-year-old.

Frida never had eye problems. Like many, she used glasses and contact lenses to correct her vision, but that was about it.

– I thought of everything. Maybe something happened when I unfortunately hit something in the eye at work two weeks ago? But… Frida says it only hurt for half a second.

He describes the current function of the affected eye as follows:

– Like someone shining a very bright light on a thick fog. She says that light goes in all directions, so my eye can't control the amount of light being let in.

This is tiring for Frida's head and at the same time leads to over-exertion of her healthy eye. The result is frequent throbbing headaches.

– It usually knocks me out for 15 to 20 hours, says the 23-year-old.

– Nothing is wrong

So she made sure to cover her eyes with sunglasses and an eye patch. Recently, he also got a special lens that blocks 95 percent of light.

– First symptom injuries

Frida was always closely followed by an ophthalmologist. First at the hospital in Namsos, now in St. Trondheim. Olav's in hospital, but the eye disease remains a mystery.

– They have tested everything possible. Whole head – both brain and eye. Experiments show that everything should be. There is nothing wrong with the nerves or the anatomy of the eye, says the 23-year-old.

For the past seven months, Frida's daily life had been very limited. She did not go to work and was not allowed to drive.

– As driving is a beloved pastime of mine, it was incredibly difficult. I tried to do other activities, but it was difficult without a deeper concept, Frida says.

Back at Volvo

Three weeks ago, the joy was overwhelming when Frida was allowed to get behind the wheel of her Volvo again.

By then, six months had passed since severe vision loss, accordingly Driving license regulations If you can get your driver's license back”[ …] An optometrist or ophthalmologist certifies satisfactory general visual function and a driving assessment is then carried out with a passing result”.

According to The Great Norwegian Encyclopedia It is assumed that the patient has had enough time to acclimate to the monocular and has subsequently recovered some of his depth vision.

– The only difference really is that I have to move my head more to track – I can't just move my gaze. Also, it's important for me to be careful with the blind spots, but it's going well, says Frida happily.

She is also determined to return to work at Namsos Airport soon.

– If I am blind in one eye, life is not over for that reason! But my parents and I are getting very frustrated as we don't know what is causing this, he says.

– Very personal

It's hard to say at this point if Frida will ever get an explanation for what happened.

Lost an eye after a big mistake

As Frida is still under investigation at the hospital, St. Olav's Hospital did not want to comment on his case specifically, but spoke in general terms.

– There may be times when you cannot find a reliable explanation for a patient's symptoms, says Nupur KumarHead of the Department of Ophthalmology at St. Olav's Hospital.

– Does it often happen that such investigations take a long time?

– In general terms, the answer is that investigations can take time. To follow the progress of the individual patient you need to compare new investigations frequently and new investigations over time. He says that the time perspective here is personal.