Scary eye surgery yesterday.
“I could never do that,” Don said, shuddering. “I can’t even put in contact lens.”
Yesterday my friend Don picked me up after right eye surgery to give me a ride home. We stopped for dinner at a restaurant first.
At 51, I had cataract surgery. “Your cataracts were from growing up on a lake in Michigan with all that reflection,” the eye doctor said.
“An after-cataract can develop months or years after cataract surgery. An after-cataract is treated with a laser. Your doctor uses a laser to make a tiny hole in the eye tissue behind the lens to let light pass through. This outpatient procedure is called a YAG laser capsulotomy.”
Blurry vision. Hiking, I noticed it when descending steep trails. You must see where to place each foot. It's a safety issue. Sewing, I wear a headlamp. A lighted magnifier is great for removing stitches, especially black-on-black. Driving at night was terrible.
Pre-surgery, I spent an hour having my eyes tested and measured in detail. Funnily, I mentally heard the "Jaws" shark sound effect as the surgeon pushed the laser toward my face.
Holding still was the hardest part. He deftly slipped in a circle propping open my eyelids. Wide awake with my eye dilated, I leaned against forehead and chin rests. I had to stare at a bright red light while the surgeon worked for 10 minutes.They used pain-killing eye drops.
“We’ll see if your insurance will pay for surgery on your left eye,” he said.
Arriving home, I collapsed and slept for two hours. Too much nervous tension. My right eye was still dilated and the eyeball throbbed.
I Can See Clearly
This morning I awoke with better vision. Everything is sharply outlined. I'm thrilled!
“Your vision will continue to improve over the next three days,” the surgeon said.
18
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Had both eyes done June-July this year.
Just like going through the drive through at a fast food joint. NEXT.
moosepucky
Level 7
Nov 13, 2019
1
All the better to now see all those beautiful mountain views.
Marionville
Level 10
Nov 13, 2019
1
You're right. Thank you.
Great to hear that you’re on the mend! Eat well and continue healing, you’ll be better than new thanks to science.
Chevre_Sournois
Level 6
Nov 12, 2019
2
Congrats and continued wishes for speedy healing. I had lasik on both mine after being legally blind without glasses for decades. Couldn't do contacts, the time I tried was hard lenses and cut the inside of my eyelids because of the severity of nearsightedness and astigmatism. Best thing I ever did. They also clamped my eyes and head for surgery. Fifteen years later, I'm almost 60 and still don't need readers. Science is wonderful!
Larimar
Level 8
Nov 12, 2019
2
Great news, however I get angry when the surgeon says; we will see if your insurance will pay for surgery on your left eye. There should be no question about them paying if you need it. That is why universal health care should be in place.
Jolanta
Level 9
Nov 12, 2019
5
Agreed.
"You may need to wait until next year," the eye surgeon said. I'm glad they're checking with my insurance company first.
@LiterateHiker Them checking might not do it. Sometimes you need to push too. Tell them the risk it makes for you as a hiker and they might move it along....
Insurance companies only care about profits, not patients.
This was driven home when I worked as a social worker at two nursing home/ rehab facilities.
Patients who couldn't get out of bed without help (two broken arms) were sent home alone, when their insurance company refused a continued stay.
@LiterateHiker Health, Aged care, education , housing should not ever be for profit only, ever.
@LiterateHiker My point is sometimes you need an insurance override the Drs office isn't always the best advocate for that.
I worked in Mental Health I know the system is flawed. Both as a professional and a consumer.
However I still tell people to advocate for themselves. It works!
Feel better soon 
!! Glad you got it done.
KittensandSage
Level 6
Nov 12, 2019
1
Sunglasses are as important as sunscreen. Not sure if everyone knows that yet?
I was lucky I grew up in an Optical town so I was wearing sunglasses on the lake I spent my summers on at a young age.
RavenCT
Level 9
Nov 12, 2019
4
RavenCT
Exactly. I grew up with all that glare and no sunglasses.
Living on the sunny side of Washington State, I wear sunglasses every time I go outside. If I forget sunglasses when it's raining, the sun inevitably comes out.
It's called a nuclear cataract. I also had this issue. A racquet ball injury created a cataract in one eye (another pain/gain episodes in my life). I had terrible eyesight and had the lenses in both eyes replaced and got 20/20 vision on one eye and 20/15 in the other. A radial karatonomy took care of astigmatism in one eye. Years later the cloudiness came back and I was told it went 'nuclear.' Was also told no big deal and an opening was available right then and a few minutes sitting behind a machine, zap, zap done. A year later the other eye was done. It took a while for all the fruit flies (floaters) to finally disappear. Isn't life interesting???
BTW, I was told by the doctor cataracts are often a build up of proteins in the lenses. Vegetarians apparently have a lower incidence of cataracts than non-vegetarians.
JackPedigo
Level 9
Nov 12, 2019
3
Glad it worked. Like you, I see "fruit flies" zooming around in my peripheral vision.
Peripheral floaters are normal after the surgery, the surgeon said.
@LiterateHiker They are and they go away, mostly. If people look at you wondering just tell them you're swatting fruit flies. Once in a while one flies by. lol
Soo all your hiking in michigan as a youngin caused you long-term to develop cataracts? Or just generally living in michigan correlates to one developing cataracts? 
demifeministgal
Level 8
Nov 12, 2019
1
Growing up in a lakeside home, I spent my childhood and teen years swimming, sailing and ice skating.
My mother was addicted to tanning. We ran around in swimsuits without sunscreen or hats.
@Allamanda ooh that is unfortunate... well my eyes are safe from the lake/river/ocean effect then... but it's okay the screens will damage them yet! 
XD
Exactly.
I am very squeamish about eyes. I guess I'll have to get over it at some point.
Stephanie99
Level 8
Nov 12, 2019
1
Very good description of the experience. Glad things worked out OK.
IamNobody
Level 8
Nov 12, 2019
2
Thank you.
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