I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun-shiny day.
(Jimmy Cliff)
Up until the moment I was lying on the operating table, I didn’t really think about what I was going to go through. What I was thinking about was the long-term implication of laser eye surgery. No more waking up deaf AND blind. No more stumbling into the wall when trying to get to the bathroom at 2:17 a.m. The future never looked better (pun intended).
But first, that meant I had to go through the procedure, about all 10 minutes of it. It wasn’t a decision that I made lightly. My eyes are both eyes and ears to me, and laser eye surgery, despite that it has advanced so much in the past few decades, is not without risks. Risk that I was willing to take, after much consideration and research and consultation.
The day of my surgery, I was trying not to think about the risks. There was a grand facade of bravery.
“Oh, I’m going to be so fashionable,” I said as I pulled on my blue surgery cap and placed protective coverings over my feet. “Ready to wear those glasses for the last time?” I asked the fellow patients waiting for surgery with me. There was a smile on my face.
Then it was into the surgery room, and I was lying down on the table, clutching the stuffed koala the doctors had given me as a comfort item. I kept my fake smile, but it was harder. The smile vanished as soon as the procedure began.
I won’t get into the gory details, but I will say it was frightening to not be able to see what was going on. All I was thinking was, “Stare straight, stare straight, don’t blink, don’t blink.” My eyes and my ears were useless, and it was frightening. I think it was far more frightening for me because I had no verbal cues and few visual cues other than an occasional thumbs up from the doctors. For all I knew, my eyes were being squished like Play-Dough.
And it was over in about 10 minutes. The koala took much damage, but it survived too. I opened my eyes and saw a difference immediately. They weren’t squished — they were changed.
And now I have 20/20 vision. It’s a new year, and I have new eyes. Next, new hearing aids.
Congradulations on the new eyes!! I am glad it worked out so well. You’re no longer blind.
Hey, congrat’s! I hope it continues to go well!
Yay!!! Love your telling of the story – so happy for you!!!!
I’ve been viewing your blog from some time now, and it looks nice. Glad to hear of your good news through your blog. All the best for 2009!
They didn’t give me a bear to hold — what a great idea. Things have obviously progressed in MANY ways in the 10 or 12 years since I had LASIK!
I remember two moments. There was the frightening one where the OR light went funny and I realized that one of my eyeballs had obviously been sliced into. But then there was the incredible moment when my doctor sat me up, pointed to a clock on the wall, asked me what time it was — and instead of saying, “Clock, what clock?” I could see the time. It was fuzzy because of all the drops in my eyes, but I could see it!
It must have been far more difficult and scary for you since you couldn’t hear what was going on. I didn’t understand much of what was being said, but at least I could hear the familiar voice of the opthamologist I had known and trusted for 20-some years. I’m glad you had the stuffed bear!
It takes a while for everything to settle down. I saw halos around lights for several months, for example, so I drove at night only when absolutely necessary. But at some point I realized I wasn’t seeing them any more and I couldn’t remember when they had gone away.
Keep putting the drops in. It really helps.
It was actually a raccoon, not a bear. I was so nervous, I guess I didn’t look at it closely. Or, perhaps the fact that I didn’t have glasses on was the reason for my species switch! It really helped having something comforting to grip.
I think my eyes are starting to settle down. They’re pretty dry most of the time, but I’m not getting the vision fluctuation like I was before.
You’re much braver than I am. Doesn’t help that my consultation didn’t promise me 20/20 due to the very severe astigmatism I have. Maybe when my new ear (CI) settles down I’ll consider getting another consultation. It has been a few years, who knows what new things they can do now.