LSA News

No. 67, August, 2005

The View from Hidden Spring

(story continued)

I had tried wearing contacts when they became available in the '60's, and wore them for several years. Over those years, because the contact lenses were hard, I scratched my corneas several times. This is agony: you lie in a darkened room, your eyes a constant flow of tears, just waiting for the tissue to repair......I couldn't do it anymore. The soft contacts, when they came out, worked for some of my friends, but they couldn't correct my sight, it was too extreme a correction. I'm also astigmatic, which means that the cornea, instead of being a nice convex surface, undulates or has raised parts.

My glasses were donned in order to find the floor! Until the light-weight plastics came into use, my glasses were so heavy that they made dents in my nose and constantly slipped down it. My glasses lenses were so strong that other people said they pulled their eyeballs out when they tried to look through them. I had no peripheral vision, much like wearing blinders or having tunnel vision. To see something to the side, I moved my head to focus in the small one inch diameter focal point of the lenses.

Riding my bike in the rain was dangerous, as many of you know. When I was hot, my glasses steamed up. When I was riding horses there was always the chance of flipping the glasses off and being blind. You see I was legally blind. When I had my baby, I was concerned that my vision might be passed on, as it is genetic. Fortunately, she got her father's good eyes (and his teeth requiring braces).

In 1999, I had to change ophthalmologists. My wonderful doctor, Bill Spangler, whom I had used since I was 19, had a motorcycle accident which left him irrevocably injured. When I visited the new doctor, he asked if I had ever entertained the thought of Lasik (laser) surgery to correct my vision. I had actually discussed this with my previous doctor five years before, and he had suggested I give it more time to prove itself. Well, five years is a lot of time to prove itself!

Dr. Hoffman gave my phone number to several of his patients who had also had my degree of near-sighted vision, but had had it corrected. One woman called me and we talked for at least an hour. By the end of the conversation we were both in tears. Me because of the realization, through this person, that for the first time in my life I might see normally, and she because she was so happy to be able share with me her story.

Kirk and I discussed the cost and the procedure, and what we would do if it didn't turn out okay. I could be blind in one or both eyes, by far a worst-case scenario that Dr. Hoffman has never had.

Three months after I started working here in the library, Kirk and I gave me a Christmas present that was a miracle. I had several appointments with some very space-age instruments that mapped my corneal surface and depth. If my cornea wasn't thick enough to have a sufficient amount removed to correct my vision, then it wouldn't work..... and I needed a lot removed.

On December 17, 1999, I went in for Lasik surgery. The doctor and I decided that we would start with one eye, and if that one went well, we would do the other at the same time. The surgery was painless, though it made me feel sort of claustrophobic. It took far less time than I expected. I was sent home with various drops, eye patches for night, and complete covering plastic glasses to prevent anything touching my eyes.

On the drive home my vision was still blurry; I had been told it could take a few days to clear up. But, I looked out the window of the car as we were driving over 30th Avenue and started reading off the license plates of the cars as they went by. Kirk just about drove off the road. I could see.

That night I was watching television from the couch and Kirk got up to get something from the kitchen. On the way back he said it was so weird to see me look at him. I said "What?" His comment was that I was watching him without turning my head. I could see.

My vision cleared though I had a persistent double image with one eye. When I mentioned this to the doctor, he said we might have to redo that eye. I thought about it and very quickly said yes; there was no additional charge. That surgery took mere minutes and immediately improved the vision. I could see even better.

This December will be my 6th-year anniversary of reclaiming my vision, and not wearing glasses. Dr. Hoffman adjusted one of my eyes for close vision and one for long distance vision. Therefore I can both drive and read. I've learned that I am not nearly as afraid of heights as I was, because now I can see down and how far up I actually am. I no longer reach for my glasses each morning, a habit that took years to break. I do still, though infrequently now, try to remove my glasses before getting into the shower. I ride my mare Meg without a worry that I might not be able to see, I never worry that I might lose my glasses and not be able to drive home. (This concern had always caused me to leave my last prescription in the car whenever I got new glasses.)

When I had my surgery it was expensive and was not covered by insurance, but it was worth it. Every day when I wake up I can see, I can really see.

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