Surgery Day!

My surgery was scheduled for 4pm, so I had all day to worry about it.  I tried to go to bed late and get up early the night before because I had heard the more you can sleep after the procedure, the better you will feel when you wake up.  I planned to go to bed after I got home and sleep until the next morning.  Hah, plans...

I arrived at the surgery center at 3:50, signed my life away and paid in full.  They told me to have a seat and they would call me back.  My butt had barely hit the chair when they called my name.  They took me back to the eye scan machines they had used during my consult and my pre-op exam to triple check my eyes and ensure there had been no changes.  The tech that did my scans joked that I need to play the lottery after I told him about my contact use with no complications.  Then he took me back to the surgery suite.

In the surgery suite, he sat me down in a massage chair just outside the operating room.  There were two other women waiting.  They both had surgical caps on and one was being given a Benedryl by the nurse.  The nurse then asked me if I had my Valium and if I wanted a Benedryl to help me sleep after the procedure.  I declined the Benedryl but took the Valium.  The nurse left the room and the three of us sat mostly in silence.  I noticed that the other two were visibly as nervous as I felt.  They had their legs crossed and were kicking their top foot.  It was funny to see how their feet slowed and eventually stopped as the Valium kicked in.  The first woman was called in and the remaining two of us wished her good luck.  Not long after, the second woman was called in and I was alone.  Then it was my turn.

The tech that did my scans led me into the operating theater and had me sit down in a dentist’s chair next to a big expensive-looking machine.  Dr. Wiley came in and introduced himself because it was hard to recognize him with his surgical garb.  He told me he was going to be putting in the numbing drops.  He placed one drop in my left (PRK) eye and two in my (LASIK) right.  He reminded me that the LASIK procedure would be the more uncomfortable one because of the suction required to cut the flap.  I guess that's the reason for the second drop.  

Flap Cutting:

After several minutes, he taped my left eye shut and approached my right (LASIK) eye with a device that looked like a stick with a small hoop on the end.  I think this was the suction device that I had dreaded so much about the LASIK procedure.  I don’t recall him putting anything in to hold my eyelids open, but I assume he must have so I don’t think I even felt it.  He centered the machine and it lowered down to my eye.  My vision went dark for a second, but it was not scary at all.  It really just seemed like he covered my eye with a black piece of paper or something.  After a few seconds he moved the machine and said the flap was done.  I didn’t even feel the weird sensation most people reported during the suction/flap process.  He removed the tape from my left eye.  I sat up and could not see anything out of my right eye.  Just fog.  He had me stand up and led me to another room where an even bigger, more expensive looking machine was. 

Laser Time:

Again, I laid down on a dentist’s chair.  He moved the machine over my right (LASIK) eye.  There were four white lights in the corners with a green, fuzzy blob in the center.  I asked if I should look at the green light and he said yes, but we were not ready yet.  I stared at the green light anyway, just in case he forgot to tell me when we were ready to begin.  The tech re-stated my pre-op prescription strengths during this time.  After what seemed like an eternity (but was probably only a minute or two at the most), he said it was time.  He reminded me to focus on the green light and I noted lots of tiny, clustered red dots flashing at different points in my peripheral vision.  I started to smell the burning protein but kept my eye on that green dot, which became less of a green fuzzy blob and more of a green dot.  The tech said a few numbers, “20,” “10.”  I think he may have just been counting down.  Then it was over.  No pain, or any sensation really.

Then the machine was moved to my left (PRK) eye.  This time, the white lights in the corners seemed extremely bright and they hurt my eye.  The doctor said this was normal.  I guess the flap made them not so intense in the other eye?  This time, they were ready to begin almost immediately.  Again, I stared at the green dot which became sharper and more defined while the clusters of red dots flashed in my peripheral vision.  When it was all over, the tech sat me up.  I could see!  I turned to thank the doctor and he had already left the room. 

The tech led me through the first flap-cutty room and into another small room with a standard eye checker machine that you would see at any optometrist.  Dr. Wiley came in and had me sit at the machine, chin in the chin-rest and forehead against the frame.  He checked my left (PRK) eye briefly and moved to my right (LASIK).  This was by far the most uncomfortable part of the entire process.  Apparently the flap was a bit wrinkled, so he used a q-tip and what looked like a wooden cuticle stick to smooth it out.  I guess the numbing eye drops were wearing off because it felt like he was poking my eye over and over.  Finally, he was done and said everything went very well.  He said he would see me the next day for my first post-op appointment.  

A nurse came in and went over my discharge instructions.  She marked my eye drops “1,” “2,” and “3” for the order in which I was supposed to use them, followed by lubricating eye drops.  She gave me two sample packs of those.  She said for the day of surgery you usually do the drops every two hours, but that I didn’t have the start the drops tonight if I went to bed when I got home.  She said definitely start them four times a day tomorrow.  Then she taped my eye shields over my eyes and sent me on my way. 

I had the front desk call my husband to come pick me up and sat down in the waiting room to wait.  My right (LASIK) eye was very irritated and was watering like crazy.  I put my sunglasses on over the eye shields but it didn’t help much.  My left (PRK) eye was fine.  I couldn’t wait to go home and go to bed.

At home, I took an Ambien and went to sleep.  It was about 7pm.  I couldn’t sleep anymore at 9pm, I don’t know if it was the excitement or the kids being loud just before bed.  I got up and did the four eyedrops, then ate some dinner.  My eyes felt fine, if only a little different.  I dozed between 9pm and 11pm.  I woke back up, did my four eyedrops again, then read some emails and did some more LASIK/PRK blog reading.  Mostly, I marveled at how clear my vision was without glasses or contacts.  I finally went to sleep for the night around 11:45.