Well. I got the surgery done on the 4th. It was an interesting experience.
My plan was to stay up late on the 3rd so I could sleep until close to 8 and not being thinking about the fasting, but instead I woke up around 4 and didn’t really get back to sleep. I got a Lyft to the surgical center and arrived a little early. I got 6 drops in the right eye, one of which I was told could leave my eye dilated for up to 7 days (atropine). I had to pee in a cup so they could give me a pregnancy test (negative). They got me all set up and I had to sit and wait for quite a long time in a very chilly room. They gave me warmed blankets.
I didn’t get to have my phone or a book to read; I just sat there and decided to do paced breathing to pass the time. I started with counting, 5 for in and 5 for out. Then I switched over to the monk’s chant from Monty Python and the Search for the Holy Grail. I didn’t have access to a clock, but I heard the techs discussing timing at one point, and I think my procedure got started around 11. I got an IV catheter inserted in my left arm, a blood pressure cuff on the right, and a nasal canula. The anesthesiologist came and gave me a quick talk before I went into the procedure room, but I don’t think anything we talked about actually happened.
He said I’d be put to sleep briefly and then woken up again and I don’t remember that happening. I suppose that could be an effect of the anesthesia, but it felt very much like I didn’t have any blips from the point I went into the room until I left. They had me put my arms down at my sides like I was, “going to be shot out of a cannon.” and then my left eye got covered and my right eye was attacked.
At least, that’s what it felt like. As I’d been warned, there was a lot of pressure, but there were also pokey pains. I was told if I felt sharp pains to say ouch, and I did, but nothing really happened. I didn’t feel the drugs I’d been promised to “take the edge off” do anything. I whimpered enough that I think they put more numbing on my eye, but I never felt relaxing drugs taking any effect.
It didn’t take too long. At the end, my right eye was thoroughly taped up, and then I got wheeled out to wait for my friend to pick me up, and I found out that I would get to spend the next 6 hours with my head down. “Chest to chin,” they said. My neck muscles started aching within about 10 minutes. But I knew I could do it.
When my friend Susan arrived, the staff was telling her that I wouldn’t remember what was happening because of the anesthesia, but I remember the whole thing. I really think they skimped on the drugs. Susan was kind enough to run into the pharmacy for me to get the eye drops that I’d need to start administering on Friday, along with some Tylenol. And we stopped at Wendy’s for a frosty for me because I needed something to eat that I could reasonably consume with my head down (or so I thought – I later read the post-op instructions and I could have had 5 to 10 minute eating/drinking breaks every hour).
Then she got me to my friend Jess’s house where she got to meet his roommate’s dog, Freya, who she totally fell in love with. She headed out and I listened to TV with Jess’s roommate. I texted my people to let them know what was going on. I did my full 6 hours with my chest to chin, moving positions to try and get relief for my back and neck, but it was never really comfortable.
At the end of the 6 hours, I moved over to the recliner where I’d have to spend the night, sitting upright. I put on movies, but only ones I’d seen before to listen to, because it kind of hurt to look at things. I mostly kept my eyes closed. I ordered Indian food for delivery for dinner. And I feel like I got a decent amount of restful sleep in the recliner, using the Lord of the Rings extended editions to keep something quietly playing on the TV.
In the morning, I got a Lyft over to Nampa for my post-op appointment. The doctor said everything looked good and asked if I had questions. Which I did, but I came up with more later. The most important question I had for him at the time was about driving. I really wanted to get home to Cambridge, and without being able to drive, I’d have to figure out a way to get myself and my car out there without my driving it. His initial answer about driving was to wait until Monday, but when I explained that I wanted to get home, he told me I could go to Walmart and get a pirate patch and drive myself home. The eye patch was so I wouldn’t be distracted by any vision in my right eye.
He asked me if I saw a round spot in my vision, and I did. He said it was an air bubble, and that until it went away, I would need to sleep on my side – either side. He said it should go away over the weekend, but that my pain would be worse by Friday evening because of the lactic acid build up in the eye muscles. I understood that, being familiar with delayed onset muscle soreness from CrossFit.
I started doing my eye drops once I got back to Jess’s house. Then I slowly packed up the car, doing multiple trips to make sure I was never lifting more than ten pounds. I’m limited to ten pounds this week, and I can add ten more each week past the surgery. I’m pretty much not supposed to do anything strenuous for a while. I kind of wonder if my really slow runs last week were my body insisting on not doing anything too strenuous because it knew my eye was in trouble…
I got home around noon on Friday. Reading and writing and even watching TV didn’t feel very good, so I mostly just listened to the TV, sometimes with eyes closed, often with glasses off. I’ve got timers set for my eye drops, and I’m getting better at aiming them. I hope I have some extra in the bottle, because I’ve missed a couple of times. I called the doctor’s office to ask if I was allowed to look up when I did eye drops, because the doctor told me not to look up, but I don’t think you can do eye drops without looking up. I got the answer right before 5 that I could look up to administer the drops, but then return to position. They also said I could return to work when I was comfortable, and that if my eyelashes got stuck together, to flush with artificial tears.
I set up a nest in my bed to keep me on my side for sleeping. I was nervous about accidentally turning in my sleep. It was hard to stay up to get my drops done. I felt kind of bored because I couldn’t read without pain. And I couldn’t really watch TV, so I didn’t want to watch anything that’s new to me. I was happy to get to bed after the last set of drops at 9 pm.
The nest worked very well to keep me on my side. I also had to tape a shield over my eye to protect it while I slept, which was more comfortable than I thought it would be.
My hips turned out to be the sticking point with side-sleeping. When I woke up in the night to pee, the hip I was sleeping on was quite sore, so I inverted myself to sleep on the other side, and went back and forth a couple times before my body was like, no more sleep! at around 5:30 am.
The tape on the shield was not kind to my skin. My face is not going to be happy with me, but it’s just going to have to get used to the tape. I do feel less inclined to nap if I have to tape myself up every time I sleep.
I ate my last breakfast sandwich for breakfast this morning, so I asked a neighbor to get me another box. I could technically drive, but I was hurting enough that I didn’t feel good about going outside. And also, it’s really smoky outside today, and I should avoid exposing the healing eye to particulates.
Another neighbor brought me a fresh cantaloupe and a bunch of pears. And another one brought in the package that was in the box at the foot of my driveway. I have really great neighbors. I’m so glad that I’m home this weekend and not still in Boise.
I’ve been taking pictures of my face, but I’m not going to post them here. I just want them for myself, to remember how things went. I was hurting more this morning, but I’ve been steadily improving. There’s less pain, and I’m getting a lot better with my eye drop aim. I watched K-Pop Demon Hunters on my niece’s recommendation; super cute and it got me in the feels, too.
I’m feeling well enough to write my blog today, so that’s good. I do still wish Ambrose was here to take care of me. He would be cooking. I bet he’d make me chicken soup. I was a little worried that I might not feel well enough to work on Monday, but I’m feeling more confident about working now that I can read and write without pain.
One more set of eye drops tonight and then I can go to bed. It’s been a long day. My eye is still red and swollen and gunky and well, it’s healing. It’s been through trauma and it’s healing. It’s itchy, too, which is also part of healing. That’s been the hardest part today. Don’t touch it! I’m just focused on resting and healing and I am looking forward to going to bed. The more I sleep, the more I heal. I hope the bubble goes away soon, because my hips really don’t like sleeping on my side.