I had my 2nd eye done today and before I forget I want to record what I remember about going through the experience because I remember barely anything about the last one. Last night I was trying to remember what happened after I was done and it was a complete blank. I couldn't remember anything about the surgery part either and I know I was awake so while it's fresh in my mind I want to capture it here. I made a point of staying alert to what was going on and I started to tell Larry so he would remember too when I first came into the recovery room.
My right eye was done first on May 31 and I was supposed to get the other one done the following week but then the London trip came up so we postponed it until today. Last time my appointment was around 10:20 and they were already running behind when we got there so it was more like an hour later that I was taken in. This time I was scheduled for 7:40 and everything was right on time.
I was taken into the prep room and put on the bed in the first cubicle. There I had my blood pressure, pulse and oxygen levels read and I got the first of the goop in my eye. First it was a numbing gel and then some other numbing as well as antibacterial drops. I was given a shower cap for my head and a warm blanket, the best part, and a nurse hooked me up for my heart monitors on my arms and put in an IV line with just a little saline to get ready for my real drugs.
Here I am with my shower cap and betadine around my eye, nobody punched me.
I was wheeled into the next cubicle where I would wait for the anesthesiologist and they let Larry come sit with me for about 15 minutes or more until I was wheeled into surgery. The nurse, Joe (very cute) who was going to be my nurse in surgery came and introduced himself to me and made sure I knew what I was having done. I never saw him in surgery because I was lying down and they taped shut my good eye. Dr. Reed came by and initialed above my eye and checked on the lens I was going to have which was in a box at the end of my bed. When the nurse from the prep room knew that the anesthesiologist was on his way she gave me more of the numbing gel and drops as well as the tubing in my nose for oxygen.
The anesthesiologist came and chatted and mixed my cocktail and then I was wheeled off to the operating room. I remember the last time Dr Reed mentioned something about holding my eye open with something but I don't remember him saying it this time. Then he told me that I should watch one of the three lights I saw and follow it around. To me they looked like marshmallows, one big one and two minis, so I picked the big one and just followed it around with my eye. I think I was more talkative this time than the last. After all, it wasn't like when I'm at the dentist and there's always something in my mouth. After a while I saw what reminded me of a kaleidoscope. It was mainly pink and baby blue and just moved and swirled around. Someone asked me what colors and I told them, it must have been Dr Reed because then he said that he was removing the cataract. I asked if it was in one piece or pieces and I think he said it was one piece but it had to be removed in pieces. Then he said he was halfway done and was going to put the lens in (I think). After the pretty colors were gone the marshmallows came back and I followed the big one around again but this time they looked like they were going into a cone shaped cave.
Then I was done and with no mercy lots of tape was pulled off my face and before I knew it I was in the recovery room with a cup of coffee, Lorna Doones (my favorite cookie after giving blood too) and Larry. Got my instructions about taking it easy today (no problem!!), no alcohol and got my appointment for tomorrow confirmed and we were home by 10:12 (according to life360).
I still had Dr Reed's initials on my forehead until I scrubbed them off after dinner.
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