A mum-of-six forced to have her eye removed after an infection took hold has shared the warning signs to help others.

Tamaryn Gormley from Worcester first began suffering from pain and blurred vision back in March 2020, when she was diagnosed with panuveitis, an inflammatory condition.

The 52-year-old was given eyedrops but the symptoms soon worsened and she claims multiple blood tests and scans have since failed to find a cause of the infection.

Since then, the mum has undergone several surgeries and in April last year, Tamaryn lost vision in her left eye as her retina began to "detach" and the entire eyeball had to be removed.

She is now sharing her experience to help others and has also taken to TikTok, where her story has gone viral.

“I really miss my eye – losing it has affected everything in my life,” Tamaryn told NeedToKnow.online.

"I'd do anything to have it back but it was dying and there was nothing more that could have been done.

"People take for granted their body parts and so did I, but this is one of the most devastating things in my life.

"I also can't have my kids touch my face or get near me anymore, as I'm very cautious about this.

"If they approach me on the wrong side, I jump as I can't see them coming and my youngest is now very protective whenever we go out.

"They're old enough to look after themselves now but it's still very hard to deal with.

"I want to share my story to help others.

Tamaryn suffered with symptoms of blurred vision and an extremely swollen eye for about a year prior to having her eye removed.

The mum, who also has Type 2 diabetes, spent her time in and out of the hospital to get help for the infection.

She said: "The warning signs for me were having blurred vision and my eye being completely red and swollen.

"I was in so much pain which prompted a trip to A&E, I was told to go to an optician.

"It was the optician that told me I needed to get to an eye hospital because I had high pressure building in my eye."

In Tamaryn's case, the retina tragically kept detaching itself despite numerous surgeries, steroid implants and drugs to rectify the issue and her eye slowly began to die.

Speaking about the moment her eye was removed, she said: "The night it started to detach again, I went to hospital – little did I know this was the last time I would see through that eye.

"As the night continued, sweat was pouring out of me, I felt so ill and the pain was excruciating.

"I was told the best thing to do would be to get it removed.

"I texted my kids that I had some news to tell them and I sat down with them before explaining everything which had happened and they were shocked.

"My children tried their best to comfort me, with one of them telling me: 'At least this will stop all the pain, mum' and it was exactly what I needed to hear.

"But it's still been very difficult."

Since having her eye removed, Tamaryn has been struggling with her balance, which unfortunately lead to the mum breaking her fibular in two places after a fall in July 2022.

The mum is also unable to leave the house alone or go out at night time due to her vision issues, and requires help with basic tasks such as cooking and cleaning.

Tragically, cysts have also begun to develop in the socket where her left eye used to be.

However, she is determined to find a new way forward and is using TikTok to make others aware of infection signs and to spread the message that we shouldn't take our eyesight for granted.

A recent video has racked up over 753,000 views and 25,700 likes, with the mum blown away by people's supportive comments.

She added: "I was amazed by all the support I received from TikTok.

"I hope that by making the video, I have been able to raise some awareness about what happened to me.

"Although I have a long way to go mentally and physically, I am slowly starting to regain my confidence.

"I am finally beginning to feel happier with the way I look."

ENDS

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