The Cataract Surgery Experience
If we live long enough, we will all have a day when a doctor will tell us we have cataracts and we will need to decide whether to have surgery. I think about this in my own practice. When I must inform patients that they have cataracts or I am seeing them for their post operative care after the cataract surgery, I ask how they are doing and how the surgery went. Before having my own cataract surgery, I had to rely on the experiences of my patients, my educational background, and training to explain the surgery to help guide the patients through the decision-making process. Learning through the experiences of hundreds of patients, I still wondered how I would do during the surgery. The question that haunted me was how could I honestly relate to patients that the surgery was not difficult or painful if I had not gone through it myself?
Last year after I had retinal surgery, I had cataracts develop rapidly, which is a commonly expected result. I started noticing I was having problems doing one of my favorite hobbies, birding. I was not able to see the birds at a distance or determine identifying markings through my binoculars. My vision got to the point where I did not feel safe driving at night due to the glare and blur the cataracts were causing. One moment that struck me is when my wife and I were looking at the fall colors and she exclaimed how beautiful a group of orange, yellow, and red maples were. I looked and thought there was nothing especially memorable about it.
Fortunately, I work with Dr. Pamela Lynch and had her examine me. Dr. Lynch found my vision had decreased significantly and the cause was the cataracts. At this time, no change in prescription eyeglasses would increase my visual acuity.
I was then referred to one of the best cataract surgeons in our area. At that appointment they measured my eyes for the corrective lens implant and scheduled the surgery. Despite hearing of so many experiences my patients related to me about the ease of the surgery, I was still nervous. On the day of the surgery the staff at the surgical center made me feel at ease and comfortable.
The rest of the procedure was almost entertaining. Due to my previous retinal surgery I had to have the laser procedure to break up the cataract for removal. As I looked into the laser and the treatment began, I felt no pain and enjoyed the kaleidoscope of colors forming in front of me morphing into various shapes. That was probably the most psychedelic experience I have ever had. Next, I was wheeled into the operating room with reassuring voices prepping me for the procedure. I barely remember seeing lights and brighter lights and the procedure was over in much less time than I had expected. I had experienced absolutely no pain or discomfort other than dilation and my vision seemed normal.
My wife was my chauffeur post-surgery and got me back home safe and sound. I only had to have my eye patched for a few nights to avoid rubbing and to protect the eye from foreign bodies entering. The first day after the dilation wore off my vision was stunningly clear, and the colors were brilliant. As I have heard from so many patients, the blues, the greens, everything is so vivid and richer than I remember. I had no pain; only a slight, scratchy feeling occasionally that first day after surgery.
Over the next several days my vision continued to improve; I was astonished at the clarity. During my pre-op I had elected to have an added correction to eliminate my astigmatism which has enabled me to achieve perfect 20/20 vision with no glasses or contact lenses in the distance for the first time in my life. The combination of my previous retinal surgery that removed the floaters and now the cataract surgery enabled me to see a pure rich blue sky for the first time in decades.
My second eye surgery was like the first, again with no pain or discomfort. The couple of weeks between the surgeries were only difficult due to the imbalance between my already corrected eye and the uncorrected eye. After the second surgery the distance vision was even more astonishing. The only adjustment is I must wear glasses for reading. Previously I could take my glasses off to read, but that is no longer an option. I now have several pairs of reading glasses to aid me seeing close. I still love waking up each morning being able to see at a distance, enjoy being in the rain with no rain-smeared glasses, and no steaming up when coming inside from the cold.
I feel fortunate that I had excellent doctors helping me through my retinal surgery and treatment of cataracts. It is wonderful to be able to see at a distance better than I have in my entire life. I must agree with a patient I had in the office years ago that was quite anxious about having his cataract surgery. When he returned to our office for his post-op care he said “Doc, that was as easy as having a cup of coffee.”