My Final Decision - Blind as a bat, or sharp as Superman

The Final Decision – Two weeks more passed and I really wanted the surgery. Enough that I was willing to do more research. Unfortunately most sites, even the ones I mention are too technical to help any of us make a decision. But I read somewhere that made complete sense. Trust your eyes with the doctor and not the machine. Which made sense. If anything did go wrong, you still had a good doctor who cared.

I never doubted doctor 3, it’s the material online that confused me. But I am glad I did all the research on the machines and the doctors. Because now I know I did go with the best care and forgive me for sounding cliché but 3rd time’s a charm.

My date was set. The time had come. I was ready. Almost. Nearly. Kind of. Maybe I shouldn’t. Ah screw it, I’m doing it anyway.

Day 0 - Day of the procedure – 18th June – As I lay there helpless, the smell of my corneas (sort of like burning hair) together with the sound of the laser, my butt cheeks immediately clenched in fear. We humans are born with this defense mechanism. If you don’t believe me, just visit your nearest prison.

But all that clenching went to waste. Honestly, the only pain I felt during the procedure was the clamp that held up each of my eyelids. But the pain is negligible. In fact, many children happily make varieties of this face. At first, I was worried about my eyes blinking but with the clamps, it is impossible to blink. Of course, I would not advise trying to blink, sneezing nor would I advise winking at the nurse.

Another concern I had was what if my eye moves while the doctor is doing his business. Relax, the machine automatically shuts down. I won’t get into specifics because each machine is different but today’s second generation Lasik machines are way, way faster than the human eye.

During the procedure, my doctor washed my eyes with saline a few times and within 5 minutes, he said “Okay Clark, your right eye is done.” I replied, “That’s it?”
After a few minutes and some more butt clenching, my left eye was done. They helped me up and I could immediately see. My vision was foggy but the objects were clear. It’s like looking through dirty glass. My eyes started to feel extra sensitive to light and I was told to shut them.
It was over. My eyes were tearing from the operation. I was happy. More tears. Shucks.

After listening to the post procedure care instructions I was on my way home. I was wearing the dark glasses, my eyes were shut tight but it felt like someone was shining bright lights straight into them. The pain shot right up into my head. I reached home and took a pain killer that the Eye Clinic said I may need.

Luckily I didn’t sleep much the previous night and took a nap. I woke up and the pain was gone but my eyes felt dirty. Sort of like contact lenses at the 12th hour. But hey, I had vision. I was Superman. Well, almost Superman. I had to report back tomorrow morning for the first check up. A week later for the second checkup. And a month later for the third and final. I had steroids drops for the first two weeks and artificial drops for the next four weeks. (Each Doctor has his own idea on which drops and for how long. It all depends on your location and your doctor and his machine and probably his upbringing. Just do what they say and understand that they’re important to prevent infections and inflammations.)

Day 1 – 19th June – On my first day with vision, I woke and removed my protective eye shields. These are recommended for the first 3 nights to prevent touching or rubbing at night. (Your eyes, that is) I looked over to the clock and for the first time in many years, I could tell what time it was without holding that damn clock 8 inches to my face. It was great. I was almost too happy to go to the clinic. And then I saw these red blotches on the whites of my eye.
I looked like I belonged on the front of a Japanese horror dvd. They were burst blood vessels which apparently happens. They formed at the top of my eye, under my eye lids and were not visible. However, by raising my eye lids, I could have easily given some Children a taste of their own medicine and emptied out the entire playground within minutes. But that’s another blog.
At the clinic, they said my eyes were perfect. I was told to read the charts with each of my eyes. My right was better than my left. I could read the entire bottom line (20/20) My left eye could read most of them. There was haziness and halos did appear around light. Vision for most people will be hazy. Like looking through a slightly unclean pair of spectacles. My eyes were still not comfortable but this is all part of the healing process.