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Peggy recounted her first diagnosis.  "I had never heard of AMD until - wham, I couldn't see!" The telltale symptom showed up while she was attending a symphonic concert. She noticed something was wrong with her vision.  When she closed her left eye, the whole cello section disappeared.  Peggy had been diagnosed with cataracts earlier and thought that they might have gotten worse, so she immediately made an appointment to have her eyes checked. 

The Ophthalmologist made a preliminary diagnosis of AMD and then sent Peggy to a retinal specialist for a second opinion.  It was when Peggy was in the waiting room and flipping through different eye condition pamphlets that she knew the second opinion would confirm AMD.  She had every symptom described in the booklet on age-related macular degeneration.  The specialist confirmed it but offered little in the way of written or verbal information.  He attempted to give Peggy a video about AMD, but she was so discouraged and angry over the diagnosis that she declined the offer.  A video on AMD was not what she felt she needed. 

Once she accepted that she had macular degeneration on top of the cataracts she was already dealing with, Peggy began to look for all the information she could find. Rather than become depressed, Peggy vowed that she would deal with whatever happened.  So she began to close the AMD eye just to see how it might be if she lost complete sight in that eye. She investigated areas where she might move in order to access a good city transportation system so she could get around if she couldn't drive any longer. 

She also tried letting out all of the frustrations she was encountering with her AMD on paper.  Writing became the outlet she needed to deal with fears and anger over the vision problems she was facing.  If her vision begins to affect her writing ability, she may try using voice activated technology.   Or, she could go back to sculpting, an artistic medium where she could continue to express herself yet with the sense of touch, rather than sight.  But above all, she kept reminding herself that AMD was not a life threatening condition, nor would she allow it to interfere with the quality of life she had experienced so far.  She laughs when explaining that her husband has a hearing problem while she has a seeing problem and together they make a complete person.  Or she refers to him as her "Seeing eye husband." Having a sense of humor has helped her most of all.

Peggy realized that although she might have to adapt some things in her life to the progression of AMD, she wouldn't lose much.  She will still sing and tour internationally with her group The Mansfield Chamber Singers, travel to visit her grandchildren, write, and create the Family History project she has been working on as a legacy for future Leavitt generations.  This energetic mother and grandmother has a lot of history to cover!

When asked what advice she would give to people newly diagnosed with AMD, Peggy said, "Deal with the surprise and shock and then move on.  Ask all the questions you can.  Find others in the same boat and share your experiences and information.  They may know something you don't about AMD - know that you are not alone!  Above all, continue to do the things you love and keep your sense of humor."