My Adventure in Lasik

April 21, 2008

My adventure begins Friday morning I get to the city centre mall and I have 20 minutes to kill before my appointed time so I go for a tea, coffee was not recommended. So I'm getting my tea and while I'm waiting for I find that my bank card is at home and not with me. I go to the clinic and let them know I'll be late and run home, 45 minutes I return to the clinic and most of the nervous energy is gone.
I sit in one of the large leather seats and the smell of chocolate chip cookies over takes me. I want to throw up. Why do they think having plates of cookies all around would be a good thing I just want to take the plate of cookies in front of me and throw it across the room. I think I'm still nervous. I get called and they check my eyes. I wait and I go in with a speed talker to pay and get my kit. I barely understood what she said the whole time. I go and wait in the darkened waiting room. I'm really starting to freak out its going to be soon and I didn't get the Ativan yet. I wait trying to not think about what they are going to do to my eyes. I'm called to the pre-op section of the waiting room, I'm third in line. They give us little blue sergical hats to wear, quite the fashion statement really. I'm getting a little freaked the first person gets drops, then later in she goes. The second guy gets drops and I ask if Ativan is still and option. I'm talking to the speed talker and she discusses with me the options. I have coffee instead as the surgeon doesn't like to have people on it unless absolutely needed. I start to calm down after the coffee, then the door opens and the tall blonde surgeon says its my turn. I get up and go to my doom.

Dr. Leger is very friendly and confident, I start to feel a little more relaxed. He does a quick check of my eyes and I go to the operating table. I lay down and they give me squeezie balls to hold onto. The put more freezing in. I think I'm OK, then it starts. They cover one eye and put in the instrument to hold open my other eye. It was an uncomfortable moment then looking at red laser light and everything goes black I squeeze the balls as hard as I can. They start to "Fry" and the clicking of the laser and smell is hard to take. It smelled like burnt fish. The clicking like a noise from science fiction, a loud hum and clicking like a tazer at the same time. After they finished the first eye I wanted to run. And the doctor asks "Now that wasn't so bad was it?" I just wanted to get it over with, not have some doctor make small talk. Yes it was that bad and please stop now. I tell him "Sure", he replies "Now you know what to expect we'll do the other eye." I want to run. I pull myself together. You can do this it's just another few minutes. They do the other eye. It was worse the second time, the smell and the sound I don’t think I can take it, I just squeeze the balls and try not to think about it. He finishes and I sit up. I look at the clock and I see the numbers on the clock. I couldn't tell you what time it was all I remember is seeing the big 12 clear as it could be only moments after surgery. The surgeon checks my eyes, everything looks good.

I go the dark corner of the waiting room, I have to put drops in every 15 minutes while I wait for a check in 45 minutes and then I can go. I call my mother and let her know I’ll be ready to go in an hour.
I get the check and I am free to go. I get my prescription and the my mom takes me to her house. The worst car ride of my life. The freezing is coming out and it feels like razor blades in my eye balls. I have to cover my eyes, even with dark glasses on, as little bit of light is a searing pain. We get to her house and she closes all the blinds and I put in the drops to ease the pain. Then I have to put in drops every half hour for 4 hours so sleep was not restful but all I wanted to do was keep my eyes closed. By 5pm its not so bad and I actually wanted to be up and around, the light sensitivity was gone. After a somewhat good night sleep the pain is gone. All in all totally worth everything as I can see better than I did when I had glasses. Its just getting used to not wearing glasses.

If I have regression and need a redo -- drugs will be taken!!!