Two weeks after cataract surgery.

Well, I am actually 4 weeks post-op for my left eye and 2 weeks post-op for my right eye. And I have to say I am very, very pleased.

My distance vision in both eyes is crystal clear. Something I have NEVER had. I was diagnosed as being extremely nearsighted when I was 6, so I have never had clear distance vision. I guess I thought everyone saw stuff that was in the distance as blurry. I still am amazed to be able to look down the hall at work and see things so clearly. Or to be able to see cars and street signs so clearly that are WAY DOWN THE STREET. It really is pretty incredible. I have worn glasses all my life and contact lenses for about 20 years and never was my vision corrected to this clarity.

The surgeries were not painful at all. I have heard that some placed give shots to numb the eye, but mine was numbed with drops. No needles were ever used near my face. I did have IVs in the back of my hand each time. I was told that I was given Valium to help me to be calm. I laughed and told them both times that I could not be much calmer or I would be asleep. I was not nervous for either surgery. Honestly, I couldn’t tell if I did get Valium as I did not feel anything. I was told I would feel drowsy but I didn’t. I felt wide awake and alert the entire time. And that was not just my imagination. Hubby told me that I did not seem to have had any anesthesia. I was also told that I would probably want to nap when I got home. I did not. So it was a very mild dose, I guess.

I did not get patches over my eyes after surgery. Just walked out and went home wearing my own sunglasses. And they worked just fine. After the first surgery, we went through a drive thru and picked up some lunch. We got home and I settled in my recliner and kept the room pretty dim since my eye was still dilated, but I was not at all sleepy.

The only rough part was like I wrote about previously about it being hard to see between surgeries. I will tell you, anyone that is extremely nearsighted that intends to have vision correcting lenses inserted when they need to have cataract surgery, needs to have both eyes done as closely together as possible. The time between surgeries was awful for me. I ended up being off work for 14 days instead of the 7 days I had planned. I could have used short term disability, but I have a ton of vacation days, so just used those. I thought I would be worried about missing work, but it would have been pointless for me to go in as I could not sit in front of a computer for more than an hour without getting eye strain and a little dizzy.

I did not read much in between as it just was not comfortable. I just binge watched tv and movies. I became addicted to Law and Order SVU, a show I had never watched before, and got through many seasons of it on Hulu. LOL!

The second surgery was as easy as the first. No pain whatsoever. After it was done, Hubby and I opted to stop at a Denny’s for breakfast as my surgery was at 7:30 am. The only issue I had was that everything was really bright as my right eye was still dilated, so I just kept my sunglasses on most of the time. I didn’t even think about bringing reading glasses, so Hubby had to order for me as I could not read the menu. LOL!

The next day I could see so clearly! It was excellent. At my follow-up appointment, my dr. said my eye looked so good that he lifted the driving restriction, so as soon as I got home I called my hairdresser and made an appointment for the next day. LOL!

I know some people have the same issue I did between surgeries, like Sluggy is having now. But most people do not. My dad waited 6 years between his. LOL! You do have to put eye drops in your eyes for several weeks afterwards, but I don’t have a problem with that.

Hope my experience helps you prepare if/when you have to have cataract surgery.