My Journey to Perfect Vision- LASIK Surgery
Lasik and how it's changing my life
When I was a little girl I was the only one in my family that didn't wear glasses. I thought glasses were just something everyone had, everyone in my family wore them and I wanted to be like the rest of them. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins it seemed like I was the only one that didn't get to wear these really amazing accessories. That was until finally in 5th grade I was "lucky" enough to finally require them. Ahh yes, dreams do come true, finally I was just like the rest of them and all was well again.
Of course, we grow up and things change. As I grew older I began to require a stronger prescription with thicker glasses to be able to see. Every six months it seemed like I needed a new prescription and suddenly the glasses became something I hated, something to remind me that I was practically blind without them. If my glasses broke life had to be paused until I had them fixed, I couldn't do anything without them anymore.
Probably the best example of this was about ten years ago when I was a camp counselor. We were always taking the kids swimming in the pond, doing ropes courses, or hiking through the woods. One day the arm to my glasses snapped off right where the screw tightens to hold the lens on. Panic immediately set in since I couldn't walk around too easily, let alone drive myself anywhere. Thankfully, it was in between groups of campers AND my grandparents were nearby to come rescue me and take me to Lenscrafters to get a new pair of glasses made on the spot. Suddenly, I found my self dreaming of a day when I wouldn't have to rely on glasses or contacts to simply be able to live my life.
Finally, my prescription has leveled off, -8.5 in the right eye and -8.00 in the left eye, with an astigmatism in both eyes. Last week I went in and had an consultation to see if I was a candidate for LASIK. I was nervous, I don't like medical procedures, doctors, or hospitals, BUT there's no needles in this procedure so that made it something I could at least consider. I was also worried they would tell me no, that my prescription was too extreme or my astigmatism would disqualify me. Every person I saw looked at my prescription and said, "Oh boy, you are pretty blind aren't you?" Often this remark was followed by their personal LASIK story involving a -2 or -3 prescription that they had corrected. Each time I heard someone's story it was making me more nervous about what they would say at the end of the appointment.
Much to my amazement they said I was a perfect candidate for the procedure. I made an appointment that day and decided not to fixate on what I had just signed up to have done. They sent me home with two prescriptions to pick up and start using the day before the surgery, as well as afterwards. One is a steroid and the other is an antibiotic.
Yesterday was my procedure and already an amazing difference could be seen the moment I sat up in the chair. I could immediately see as if my glasses were on, with a bit of fogginess as a result of the surgery. As I can now make sense of things that are farther than four inches from my face without the help of glasses or contacts, I can happily say once again that dreams do come true and all is well!
This morning was my first follow-up appointment and the doctor said that I basically have BETTER than 20/20 vision! Things are still a bit fuzzy and my eyes feel like there is an eyelash in them, or that my contacts are in and feeling a bit dry, but I can now see as if I am wearing my contacts. The fuzziness will clear up as my eyes heal but I will no longer require glasses or contacts. In about 3-4 weeks I should be healed up and in six months my eyes should be completely adjusted to their new shape.
It's not often that something life changing comes along, something that completely turns the tide in a person's life, but having this LASIK surgery is definately a defining moment in my life. For the first time in 17 years I can see clearly without having to put in contacts or put on a pair of glasses. I will never have to scramble for find my glasses, or worry about what could happen if I lost a lens while at work or shopping. The constant worry about not being able to drive myself home and being stranded is gone. Life is crisp and clear. Now I feel like I'm living in a world that is High Definition and I won't ever miss anything due to poor vision again!
