I had my LASIK surgery about a month ago, and…I can see! At least once a day I’ve thought “I should take my contacts off” or “Do I need more contact solution” or “where did I put my glasses” only to do a little happy dance when I remember that I don’t need that crap anymore!
The morning of the surgery I was nervous but trying really hard not to think about it. Punchdunk drove me in, and since we were a bit early, we stopped at La Madeleine for breakfast sandwiches. I didn’t eat mine right away…there’s no telling what will come up if you eat too much before something like this. In the waiting room, I filled out some forms (there are always forms) and they stuck a little name tag on me with my name and procedure on it. Comforting to know they try not to misplace their patients.
They put me in an exam room, did a few more tests (what letters are those? You can’t see any of them? Wow.) and then let me sit and stew for a few more minutes while the numbing drops and the Xanax they gave me kicked in. Finally, after the doctor came in to chat for a moment, and they lead me through the litany of eye drops I’d be using for the next few weeks, they took me back to the procedure room.
You lie down on a table with two machines that swing over your face alternately. If you’re lucky, you go to a place that provides you with a teddy bear to hold on to while they work. By that time, with my mostly empty stomach, the Xanax was starting to really kick in. I was totally fine with the little suction cup thingy that squeezed my eyes so they could make the flap. When the doctor folded the flap back, I was ok with that too – although it looked like the room was moving as he moved the flap, so it was hard to tell if my eye was holding steady like he told me to. The laser was totally groovy too. I just looked at the light and tried not to notice the weird smell.
By the time I sat up and they took the teddy bear from me (hey! I need that!) it was obvious that things were much clearer than before. They slapped some shades on me, shook my hand, and pointed me out the door. On the ride home, I was starting to feel the effects as the numbing drops wore off. I sniffled and cried and shoved an egg and bacon croissant into my face. One good nap later, the stinging was mostly gone, the tearing had stopped, and aside from some fuzziness, I could see. In fact, at my post op appointment the next day, I was already 20/20.
So one month and a bazillion eye drops later, I’m about to find out if I’m ok to go back to BJJ. I’m too impatient to sit by the mat while people roll. Thankfully I’ve been able to swim a bit, which helps with the antsyness. But I’ve had no real outlet for my stress (i.e., need to beat on people), so cross your fingers for a go decision on going back to rolling!
