Cataract surgery today

[LWJ]

Good luck! My Mom just had this (82) and my wife is schedule to do so (53).

Should be a walk in the park. Word is, colors get less yellow and brighter.

[Rot 911]

Paul, I hope you get to feeling better soon!

[Racerbvd]

Good luck, you will be fine. I just took a friend to have one yesterday, talked to him today and he is doing fine, follow up went well. He told me that he could see colors he hadn't seen in years. He told me the only reason he did it was because it was required to renew his driver's license. Oh yeah, my friend Ted is only 90 years old, still independent, still enjoys the Corvair convertible I found for him last year (the only thing he doesn't like about it is that it is a automatic) but he did get rid of his bike a few years ago.

[hbueno]

For the lenses, do you get a say in the prescription, or is that calculated and decided by the ophthalmologist?

[Superman]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Slow improvement since operation....

Expected. Speedy recovery, Paul. No wait. FULL recovery, whether speedy or not.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by hbueno

For the lenses, do you get a say in the prescription, or is that calculated and decided by the ophthalmologist?

Duh, I thought you were talking about glasses needed after the surgery, not the lenses used for the surgery. Nevermind...

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by hbueno

For the lenses, do you get a say in the prescription, or is that calculated and decided by the ophthalmologist?

Opthalmologist and I had a discussion before the surgery. I thought I wanted multi focal, but after he explained and considering my other problems, went with the single.

So, I will be wearing glasses after both eyes are done, but a much lighter prescription than before.

Progress on the healing...I slept for almost 10 hours last night. Body telling me something? Woke to what I could now call almost mild discomfort...just a dull eye ache & feels a bit scratchy, like something small in the eye.

Drops-drops-drops.

[masraum]

Yep, my wife's Dr steered her away from the multifocal as well. I don't remember why.

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Progress on the healing...I slept for almost 10 hours last night. Body telling me something? Woke to what I could now call almost mild discomfort...just a dull eye ache & feels a bit scratchy, like something small in the eye.

Drops-drops-drops.

Could be worse. Cataract surgery is pretty easy. My wife had a torn retina with a nearly total vitrectomy (sucked the most of the juice out of her eye). We had to do drops for her every 2 hours the first day, then every 4 hours for the next week, then it started decreasing. She had to stay face down for 1-2 weeks, and was mostly stationary for another week afterwards.

She waited a few months and then had cataract surgery.

She just recently got the follow up zap after the cataract surgery because something got cloudy (normal and the quickest and easiest fix of the bunch, quick outpatient laser zap to the eye).

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Drops-drops-drops.

Sight clarity? Improvement?

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Bob Kontak

Sight clarity? Improvement?

Still fuzzy...like extreme near sightedness, only can't focus close or far, Also a bit of "fog" although it's a clear day...hard to describe. I'm thinking still some healing to do. So, drops-drops-drops every couple of hours. They gave me a log sheet to check off.. 7 days of both Prednisolone and Tobramycin drops, then 2 more weeks of Prednisolone alone. Prednisolone is the one that burns a bit..

[Bill Douglas]

I remember as a kid/teen the old guy next door talking about a Cadillac in his eye.

[Superman]

We need more current information, Paul. Are you able to thread needles in moonlight now with no magnification?

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Superman

We need more current information, Paul. Are you able to thread needles in moonlight now with no magnification?

Hardly...Okay, an update.

Had the right eye done on the 21st. After the surgery, Dr. explained to me that I'm one of those with "fragile cornea"...that he'd done his best to clean them up, but that...yeah, I could expect some more pain. He was right...a pretty miserable first night after the numbing wore off. But...much better than the left eye. Today, only a light scratching sensation, like a speck of dust in the eye...hardly any bother at all.

Still on drops-drops-drops in both eyes, but only the steroid drops for healing in the left.

Of course, keeping up the drops for glaucoma...that will go on for life. Right eye, both antibiotic and steroid drops. Good I have a log sheet to follow...means 5 different dops bottles, all used at various times. Easily confusing.

Vision: Boy, did things EVER get brighter. I had no idea how dim things had become with the cataracts. I can read fairly well without glasses, still nearsighted though probably not as bad as my old 20-400+ eyes. All this without glasses because my old glasses pretty much useless...and need to be completely healed before a new prescription can be determined. Probably in a couple of weeks. That'll be a bit $pendy since I'll be getting my usual 3 pairs. Regular, sun, and what I call my "geek glasses" for playing pool. Lenses for pool are oversized and high riding for when "down on the shot".

So, that's where I'm at now...looking forward to the healing to end, so I can get back to normal life. Poor Cindy handling all the driving chores for now. Hey...not seeing well as she drives is a benefit. Not nearly as nervous about her driving as I was when everything was in focus.

[masraum]

Glad that you're healing up. Glad that you're seeing a positive difference in your vision too.

Thanks for the update.

[oldE]

Excellent news, Paul.
In a short while the non-stop drops should be but a memory.
Treat yourself to a cool pair of 😎

Best
Les

[Bill Douglas]

Paul, would you let us know if it's improved your pool game.

Good luck with the quality of your new vision.

[KFC911]

Keep on healing Paul... thanks for the update!

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

Paul, would you let us know if it's improved your pool game.

Good luck with the quality of your new vision.

Sadly, pool isn't like riding a bike. It's one of those things you need to keep doing in order to stay in stroke. So. adjusting to new vision will be only part of it. World class players forced to lay off for medical reasons for even as little as a month take nearly a year to get back in tournament trim. Neils Feijen, currently ranked 6th, had to take time off for elbow problems...after healing, it was almost 2 years before he won another tournament.

Duffer me? May take longer to become a decent player again. May not ever happen.
Glad it's not my living, just something I do for recreation. I'll suffer many frustrations, but "love of the game", right?

Right now, just hoping I feel better tomorrow. Our 47th anniversary. Hope to at least take the old gal out for a steak. Can't ply her with booze though. She'll have to drive.

[pwd72s]

Finally, it feels like the healing is complete. Done with the post surgery drops. An appointment with the opthalmologist tomorrow. I believe it's going to be an exam and testing for a new correction prescription. Yes, I'll still need glasses. Still nearsighted without glasses, but definitely not as nearsighted as before. At the last visit, the surgeon said he expects me to have 20-30 vision in both eyes with glasses.

If it turns out to be so, I'll consider that a miracle!

Then the wait for 3 pairs of glasses...regular, sun, and the large lenses "geek" glasses for pool playing. The pool glasses go above the eyebrows, so no frame in the way when "down on the shot". I've discovered that those have a dual purpose...handy for when doing arms above head while looking up wrenching and other chores.

Anyway, can't wait! It'll be great to be able to drive again...

[Joeaksa]

I have had several friends have this done in the last 10 years. Everyone of them wished that they had gotten it done years earlier.