“Branch of Pale Green Orchids” for Glaucoma Awareness
Glaucoma is an eye disease that can lead to blindness.
“Branch of Pale Green Orchids” is a 9x12" acrylic painting I made for glaucoma awareness. Glaucoma awareness month is every January with a green ribbon. I chose orchids as the flower to use because orchid blooms last a long time, and we would all like our vision to last. The blooms have green shadows on them to represent the green awareness ribbon, and the black background symbolizes blindness.
Glaucoma is caused by damage to the optic nerve; having high blood pressure can damage the nerves. Think of your blood vessels like a garden hose- the more you crank up the water, the more pressure is placed on the fibers of the hose. This is similar to what happens in your body when you have high blood pressure, which is also why high blood pressure is a risk factor in conditions such as stroke.
The nerves in our bodies like space- they don’t like to be cramped. Our bodies also need oxygen to function, and the added pressure can damage the walls of our blood vessels, disrupting the delivery of oxygen to the eye properly.
Diabetes also adversely affects the nerves in our eyes by causing blood vessels to become brittle. Going back to the garden hose analogy, a damaged, brittle hose may crack and leak, before eventually breaking. A brittle hose with cracks will not deliver water properly to where it needs to go, just as brittle blood vessels cannot transport blood and oxygen properly throughout our body.
There is no cure for glaucoma, but there are treatments. The best thing to do for yourself is to get regular health screenings. This includes a wellness visit to your primary care physician, who can diagnose high blood pressure or pre-diabetes early. Also get yearly eye exams.
To learn more:
Side note- if you have health insurance, then preventive screenings should be covered 100%. However, if an issue is found during your preventive care exam, your insurance carrier may then consider it a diagnostic visit instead and cover according to your plan, which may not cover your exam completely. This should not discourage you from getting your exam- finding issues early on will help your body and your wallet.
If you do not have health insurance, find out who your local county hospital is- they may be able to work with you.
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