Can you ask your doc to try to put you on lupus meds just to see if it will work? Maybe you're doc is worried that giving you Lupus meds might have a conflict with other medicines you're taking so he really wants to make sure.
I say if you're not happy with your doc, change him/her. My eyesight is crap too and I have Lupus.
Pretty much there's two kinds of medicines they give you for Lupus, prednisone (steroid for anti inflamation that you take preferably for short periods of time, it works right away) and plaquenil which takes months to kick in and it works more on preventing a flare up. They say Plaquenil can give you glaucoma (eye illness due to high pressure).
To be honest, having predinisone and plaquenil is no walk in the park. I don't feel any better after being diagnosed. The medicines give you crappy side effects that have made me stop taking them.
The best feeling in the world is getting a steroid via IV. OMG, i feel like a kid again! My cheeks get fat and I look like crap but I don't care, I feel good when it's via IV. The pills, I find, barely work. Also, I've noticed pills from certain pharmacies give me terrible side effects compared to the same prescription I got filled at a different pharmacy. wierd huh?
My suggestion is, if you're in pain...ask the doc for steroids anti-inflammatory meds. They give that to everyone for almost any reason. If you hate your doc, change docs. Keep trying. Hang in there.
I wish you the best of luck. Being sick sucks!