PRK Surgery Diary: 10 Week Update

Previous PRK post here (6 week). Read next PRK post here (? week).

I went in for a checkup last monday, April 30th. It was a very quick appointment. First the nurse came in and asked me how my vision was (very good), whether I was still using artificial drops (occasionally, especially after long drives/plane rides), and if I was having trouble at night (a bit of “halo” effect, but nothing to prevent me from driving). She asked me to cover one eye and read the smallest line I could (15 for both eyes, but only barely). With them both open I could easily read line 15. The doctor then came in, looked at the surface of my eyes under one of those weird lit microscopes, and said everything had healed great.

Overall, no problems to report. The brief pain I used to feel upon stepping outside into bright light has disappeared almost entirely. I still have not tried opening my eyes under water (the pool at my apartment is salt water filtered and I am a big chicken about getting unnecessary salt in my eyes). I find if I sleep with a fan on I tend to wake up with dry eyes, but the dryness quickly goes away.

My mom is getting LASIK in both eyes next week. It should be an interesting comparison to PRK, and I will report back with how her surgery goes.

PRK Surgery Diary: 6 Week Update

Previous PRK post here (4 week). Read next PRK post here (10 week).

Apologies for not putting out a 5 week update, but I didn’t think it was necessary. I don’t notice any problems with my vision: edges are as clear as they were with contacts and I can’t tell any difference when driving at night. I now only use the artificial tears in the morning and at night before I go to bed. My eyes do seem to be a bit dryer than I remember upon waking up, but not to the extent that they are terribly uncomfortable. One thing I have noticed is a brief, dull ache when I walk into bright sunlight from a dark room. In no way is this a deal-breaker.

Updates are going to get less frequent now. I have another doctor’s appointment in a month and will post something afterwards. Don’t hesitate to contact me with questions.

PRK Surgery Diary: 4 Week Update

Previous PRK post here (3 week). Read next PRK post here (6 week).

Have you ever seen the Pink Panther movies? Here’s the quote from Strikes Again that I think of whenever I sit down to write a PRK update I hear Dreyfus saying: “Every day and in every way, I am getting better, and better”. Great movie kids, go watch. So how are the eyeballs. Still getting dry, especially after long hours at a computer screen. I sometimes notice I can’t see far away- but it’s never bad enough that I can’t function. I really don’t even let it bother me because I’ve told myself that healing takes months. You know what’s great, being able to wake up and get going without sticking my fingers in my eyes. Good feeling.

PRK Surgery Tips

It’s been almost 4 weeks since I had PRK on both eyes and I thought I’d post some pre- and post-surgery tips for those of you considering getting the procedure. This list will probably go through a couple updates as I think of more to add…

• Definitely, definitely bring someone you know and love with you on the day of the surgery. I know that it’s required to have someone drive you home, but it really helps to have a close friend or relative to give you support. Knowing you’re about to lay down under a laser that could potentially ruin your eyes is rough, especially when you don’t have someone you trust there to listen to the doctors and hold your sweaty palm.
• Embrace the valium. I didn’t even have the option NOT to take it. It makes everything seem less intense and makes it easier to concentrate on the little laser light.
• Bring a pillow and blanket with you in the car for after your surgery. Trust me the only thing you will want to do is sleep, especially if you go straight to a pharmacy to pick up your prescriptions. Target parking lot = sleepy time.
• Have your bedroom all set up before you get surgery. Tape pillow cases over windows, unscrew lightbulbs. Do whatever you have to do to make your sleeping area a dark sanctuary. You will be spending several days in it.
• Clear a little space in your fridge for all your eye drops. They feel so much better when they are cold. Make it easy for you to find each drop just in case you have to stumble around by yourself while your guardian is out.
• Really try to give yourself 4-5 days to recoup. I know it’s hard to arrange that much time off, but trust me, you will NOT be able to work on a computer within this time frame.
• Buy a pair of good sunglasses (i.e. spend more than $15). Don’t be cheap and waste a $4000 surgery because you developed retinal hazing due to crappy glasses.
• Actually WEAR THE NOT-CHEAP SUNGLASSES YOU BOUGHT.
• Stop wearing make-up prior to surgery. How many days is really up to you, but the longer you keep your face clean, the less chance of infection. Eyelash bugs do not promote healing. Likewise, don’t wear make-up afterwards (if for some reason you even have any desire to touch your eyes, which promise me, you won’t).
• Ice pack in the freezer. Do it now, you’ll want it later.
• Try not to cook with onions for the first few days. I had some in a salad and they made my eyes stream uncontrollably.
• Don’t panic if your vision sucks afterwards. I was very unsatisfied for almost 2 full weeks after surgery- things where blurry and light sensitive and all around nasty. Trust me, have faith in the process. Now, if after, say, 3 weeks there is no improvement, go see your doctor.
• Wear your night goggles (see attractive photo above). They keep you from whacking yourself in the face while you sleep. No rubbing your eyes. Period.

To be continued…

PRK Surgery Diary: 3 Week Update

Previous PRK post here (2 week). Read next PRK post here (4 week).

Late, I know. Thanks to Chris for reminding me to post something. To be fair I was going crazy in South Beach and the last thing I was thinking about was blogging. Actually, that’s the first point I wanted to make: my eyes are now to the point where I don’t have to worry about them anymore. While I was on vacation I was seeing well enough to enjoy the beach and the scenery as much as if I had been wearing my contacts. I am not light sensitive (although walking suddenly from a dark room into bright sunlight is a bit painful)- but I have been dutifully wearing sunglasses as my doctor instructed. The edges around objects are started to become crisper at further and further distances. Near vision is completely back, but I am finding that it takes longer for me to adjust between far and close up (hopefully this goes away with time…)

In terms of medications, I  have been using the steroid drops twice a day in both eyes. This coming week I will drop down to once a day. I find that my eyes aren’t getting as dry as they have been, but I pop in some artificial tears whenever I get a chance because it feels good.

I went in for my 3 week check up this Monday morning and I swear it was the fastest doctor’s appointment I have ever had. A nurse checked my vision with one of those cover-up-each-eye shields, then asked me to read the letters with both eyes open. I was definitely more confident with both eyes working together, and apparently scored a 20/20. Hot damn. A huge shit-eating grin spread across my face when I heard that. 3 weeks ago I could barely stumble around without glasses!! The doctor came in, looked at my eyes to check for inflammation and told me everything was progressing as expected, nothing to worry about. Said he’ll see me in 2 months. I was in and out of that place in 8 minutes flat.

I did have a scary night driving experience on Sunday night coming back from a full day of travelling. My flight didn’t get in until 11:30 pm, so here I was driving home at past midnight. Not fun. The combination of tiredness, eye strain, eye dryness from the plane, dark, and oncoming headlights was a nightmare. I don’t think I have ever concentrated quite so hard on driving. Definitely not a great experience. The whole combination of factors contributed to enormous halo effects and left me squinting and driving very slowly…

So to summarize the changes from last week: the clarity factor far away is the most noticeable difference, with edges appearing sharper (although not completely to where they were with contacts). I have been swimming in both the ocean and the pool and have not had any issues, although I did not try opening my eyes underwater. To be honest, I did miss a handful of my scheduled steroid drops but have not had any healing issues. I have been kind to my eyes and given myself plenty of artificial drops and I have been religiously wearing sunglasses whenever outside.

PRK Surgery Diary: 2 Week Update

Previous PRK post here (1 week). Read next PRK post here (3 weeks).

Hello. So 2 weeks after surgery I am seeing decently well. Lights still appear “bigger” than they should be, but my near vision is back to normal! It took 10 days for my eyes to stop being dilated (yes, a full 10 days. It looked like I was hitting some massive Js that entire time.) I’m not 20/20, but I can manage quite well without glasses so fuck it, it works for me. And it has only been a few weeks, so they can only get better from here. I’ve been tapering my steroid drops like the doctor told me- down to 2 drops a day now. And using the artificial tears whenever I need some extra moisture. Dear lord I apologize for this post I am drunk as shit sitting in the airport.

PRK Surgery Diary: Day 8- One Week Mark

Previous PRK post here (Day 7). Next PRK post here (Week 2).

I’m at the one week mark and can say that the pain is completely gone. I did work on the computer for several hours yesterday and yes, I felt my eyes straining. It’s just so hard to give them a rest when you need them for pretty much everything. My vision is getting more stable by the day, but I’m still very dilated. Objects are not sharp, but appear less blurry than before the operation. Hopefully my pupils will start returning to normal in the next week (the doctor estimated 8-10 days).

I will now post in weekly intervals so as to give more of a summary of how I am recovering. I was “quoted” a recovery time of 3-6 months. Check back soon for more updates!

PRK Surgery Diary: Day 7

Previous PRK post here (Day 6). Next PRK post here (Day 8- One Week Mark).

Little change over yesterday but I feel like my eyes aren’t tiring as easily. Still cranking in the tear drops to fight dryness. My vision is better than it was without glasses but lacks the crispness around the edges. So basically, I can drive, but signs aren’t easy to read. It’s like when you put in contacts and everything comes into sharp focus- that’s still missing. From what I read, crispness is the last thing to develop during the healing process. Time will tell.

PRK Surgery Diary: Day 6

Previous PRK post here (Day 5). Next PRK post here (Day 7).

Not much new to report. Less light sensitive today but my eyes are still hella dilated from the medication. Apparently blue eyed people like myself stay dilated for days longer than the norm. I can’t tell if what I am seeing is better than if I just went without glassies or contacts. Lots of drops to keep things moist. I’ve also been having trouble sleeping, but I can’t tell what that’s from…

PRK Surgery Diary: Day 5

Previous PRK post here (Day 4). Next PRK post here (Day 6).

This morning I decided to try to go to class at 10:05. Will update later as to how that goes. Not very enthusiastic, but I can’t miss another one of these lectures. I plan to wear my dark sunglasses, sit in the front row, and look as pissed off as possible. Maybe I’ll even rock back and forth like Ray Charles. Still don’t have distance vision and dryness is very noticeable.

UPDATE: Class was brutal. I couldn’t see the whiteboard and had to squint in pain to look at what he was writing. Spent most of the time with my head in my hands. We drove to the mall and I stumbled around Nordstrom’s for a while. I can’t tell if my vision is any better than it was before the surgery. It seems to be clearing a tiny bit. I’ve stopped taking the antibiotic drops and now am just using the steroid 4 times a day. By saturday I will reduce it to 3 times a day. And so on until I see the doctor again in March for my 1 month check up. The pain is almost entirely gone at this point.

LATER UPDATE: I worked out for the first time since the surgery. Nothing major- just sat on the bike and did a few minutes on the elliptical. Felt OK throughout. I’m now browsing the internet! My eyes are definitely still tired and drier than normal, But I am so glad I can use the computer again…