Was Blind, But Now I See: The Recovery

I'm not going to lie--the recovery from my LASIK surgery was pretty rough. They’d warned me that I would “experience some discomfort,” and boy howdy, they weren’t kidding. When I got home the first day, I went right to sleep, slept for a couple of hours, got up and ate the lunch B cooked for me, and went back to sleep. They gave me these plastic goggles to wear when I slept so that I didn’t inadvertently (or advertently, I guess) poke myself in the eyes or rub them or anything. I felt like a huge dork wearing them, AND it is not comfortable to sleep with hard plastic things pressing into your face. But, thanks to the Valium, I’m sure, I slept just fine that day. When I woke up the second time, I called my roommate B from my cell phone (I think she was in the kitchen) and told her I was lonely. She came back and visited me, and then BJ came over for a few hours. I was still groggy and kept my eyes closed most of the time, so he just did homework, but it was still nice to have some company. My Incredibly Hot Former Home Teachers also came by to see me, and they even watched the DVD of my surgery. Everyone else has declined that opportunity for some reason…

So, overall, Monday wasn’t bad. I slept for most of it and had company for the rest of it, so, really, I’d love to have that kind of day more often! However, Tuesday was not like that. I had to get up early for my day-after follow-up appointment, and kindly, The Canadian offered to drive me. That went just fine, and when we got home, I went back to bed. BJ called and asked if I could use some company for lunch, which of course, I could. I didn’t realize how much, though, until he got there. By that point, the “discomfort” I’d been warned about had really kicked in, so I couldn’t even open my eyes, much less see. Even still, I had to keep all the lights off and blinds closed. So it was most fortunate that BJ came over, because he made me some lunch, which I never would’ve been able to do on my own. After he left, I was on my own again, so all I could do was lie on my bed with my eyes closed. I tried watching TV, but I couldn’t even do that because the light from the screen was too bright. Tuesday evening was probably the low point, because my roommates went out, so I was alone again, in the dark, with nothing to do but hurt.

Wednesday was awful. I was in my apartment all day with nothing to do. I couldn’t take the boredom anymore, so I put in a DVD, closed the blinds, turned off the lights, put my sunglasses on, and put a blanket over my head. That way, I could at least listen and think about something other than my eyes. They burned so badly that I still had to keep them closed, and tears just gushed out. I finally called the eye doctor and asked about that, and he advised me to use the numbing drops he’d given me every four to six hours. When he originally gave them to me, he told me that using them would slow the healing process, so I'd been hesitant to use them. But once I got the go ahead on Wednesday afternoon, I used those puppies right away. They were BLESSED. I could open my eyes for the first time without hurting, and I was so grateful! The effect was short-lived, though, so between applications was still rough. However, the doctor also told me that I’d probably start feeling much better by the next day, so I went to bed with high hopes.

On Thursday, I could open my eyes without stinging! It was wonderful! The stinging was gone, but the effort it took to focus on anything was too much, so I still couldn’t watch TV or anything. And I couldn’t see worth a darn. Everything was completely blurry, so I couldn’t function. Once again, BJ brought me some lunch and kept me company for a while. I was very appreciative. By evening, my vision was already starting to clear up a little, so I decided to venture out into the world. I went with my roommates to dinner group (previously, they’d just brought food home for me each night). It was exciting to interact with people again, even if I couldn’t look at them. On the way home, we ran into Hot Pants, who was heading to Institute and invited me to go with her, so I did. We had one horrible moment at the end when we got separated in a crowd of people, and I just stood there frozen, not knowing where she’d gone. But she rescued me a few seconds later and got me home safely.

On Friday, B drove me to work. It was the first time I had to focus on anything, and it was quite tiring! A task that usually takes me about 20 minutes on the computer took me 2 ½ hours. After that, my eyes were exhausted, so I couldn’t do any more. I kept my eyes down the rest of the day, and my student employee kept telling me I looked shy. That afternoon, BJ drove me to the eye doctor, where they removed the contact lenses they’d put in to protect my eyes while the cells grew back, and they told me I’m right on track. Now all I have to do is wait for my vision to improve! It comes and goes, but I can already see much better than I could before the surgery. It’s weird to not have to put my glasses on in the morning or take my contacts out before I go to bed. I haven’t gotten used to it enough to feel liberated yet, but I’m sure I’ll get there.

I know I haven’t painted a pretty picture of what my surgery was like. A few people have told me I’ve convinced them not to do it. But honestly, if I had to go back, I would still do it all over again. Three days of pain for how many years of being able to see on my own? That’s pretty darn amazing. “Eye”’ll take it!