I can see clearly now....

Life changed a week ago. I got laser eye surgery at the Maloney Vision Institute. I can now wake up in the morning and see my clock.

I am amazed.

Contact lenses and glasses were a normal part of my life for almost fifteen years. Through college my ability to see far away declined quickly (perhaps physiologically and metaphorically) and steadily got worse each year. I've been waiting quite a while for my optometrist, who is also my dad, to give me the okay for LASIK. We had to wait till my vision stabilized and it finally did at a -5.75 on my right eye and -3.50 on my left. This past Christmas my gift from my parents was a green light.

I got referred to Dr. Robert Maloney though a family friend. It all happened fast and smooth. I went in for a consultation and booked a surgery appointment set for three weeks later. February 9th at 8:30 am.

I was nervous. For days, hours, and minutes before. No matter how many times I watched the video of the procedure on their website, it still didn't register in my head that this was actually going to happen to me. Strange as it seems, I was also feeling a bit sad to give up my contacts and glasses that I got used to over the years. An unhealthy attachment perhaps, or a fear of change. Excitement was also very much present, and I was relieved to have everything align so nicely.

When I woke up that morning my heart was about to leap out of my chest. Chris, my designated companion in flight for the day, came by at 6 am and we had a light breakfast of green smoothies and toast with almond butter and honey. We joined the morning commuters to Westwood and took a short stroll around. Reminded me of my days at Jules Stein. Checked in right on time and after I got my paperwork and payment done they gave me a small dose of valium as a sedative. One of Dr. Maloney's assistants lead me to a big chair outside of the operating room where she put a series of eye drops in. Shortly after, she walked me into the operating room and before I knew it I was laying down and Dr. Maloney was greeting me. The night before I was talking to Scott who got it done a few years ago and when sharing my feelings of anxiety with him he said, "at a certain point you just let go." This was that point.

They said the procedure would take five minutes per eye but it felt a lot shorter than that. Dr. Maloney talked to me in his calm voice each step of the way to tell me what he was doing and informed me when I would lose vision and when things would be blurry. I either could not see anything or was looking at a hazy orange light. I could feel pressure on my eye with no pain. Towards the end I could smell burnt tissue, sort of like burned hair. They worked efficiently and confidently. Immediately after, Dr. Maloney asked me to sit up, look at the clock on the wall in front of me, and to tell him what time it was. It was 9:35 am. I could SEE the clock and I could SEE Chris smiling at me, who had been sitting by my feet the entire time. I could see!!! Right way! I sat for about 20 minutes with my eyes closed in the waiting area, got a short exam, and then I was good to go. I put on my goggles and then went home to recover.

I was instructed to go home and take a nap for four hours. Got my tummy filled up with a yummy sandwich, took an ambien, put on a Dr. Brian Weiss meditation and fell asleep fast. When I got up my eyes felt dry, scratchy, and sensitive to light. But not once did I feel pain. I spent the afternoon and evening lounging around and had a wonderfully fulfilling home cooked meal. I felt like I was on vacation. I was well taken care of, provided for, and experienced what seemed like a miracle. I am in awe of how life just keeps getting better.

At my one day follow up exam I was seeing 20/20 out of both eyes though my left eye on its own was a little weaker. For the next few days my eyes continued to feel dry and sensitive to light and in darkness I would see halos around lights. At times it was uncomfortable but easy to tolerate. Each day it got better and now it feels great, my vision is clear, and I am enjoying this new freedom of unassisted vision. These days most things in general seem more clear to me. It is quite a nice feeling.