Another successful surgery!

I had my cataract removed today; once I can see better I'll post much more detail :)

Here's a quick post-surgery snap; note my left pupil is back to being black, which is so so good :)

My left eye is dilated and no longer has a cataract in it! This is about 5 minutes post-op.

Before [cataract surgery] photos

Finally got photos from Dr. Shields back, so am retroactively posting these before photos so you can get an idea of how dense my cataract was :)

Trigger warning: basically none. Just close-ups of my eyes :)

[Trigger warning] surgery photos!

The post you've all been waiting for!

Warning level: EXTREMELY graphic. If you don't like blood, needles, sutures, or thinking about things touching eyeballs, do not click the Read more link.

Before photos (teaser)

Warning level: vanishingly small. These are close-ups of both of my eyes pre-surgery. More (and more exciting) photos later!

More than a week later

My eye continues to feel better over time! I've come to think of this in three ways:

• Pain/discomfort: currently it's only minor discomfort, and I'm no longer noticing an improvement each day though it is definitely net better and hasn't gotten worse. I think most of the discomfort stems from there still being stitches in my eye, which I definitely feel when I blink and which my eyelids are no ok with (it just feels like there's something in there...which there is, so that's consistent).
• Vision: still blurry. This doesn't seem to have improved since, like, Saturday or Sunday. And every time I put antibiotic ointment in my eye (3x or more daily) it immediately makes things worse vision-wise, so this is a tricky one.
• How it looks: this is the one that's still noticeably improving each day. As my eye becomes less swollen, the stitches appear to be farther and farther from my iris / cornea. My eyelids are almost back to their normal level of open-ness (they were droopy from disuse before).

Anyway, I want to share pictures but I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable! So we'll start with some simple cell phone shots of my eye, which you can find by clicking the Read more link below.

Warning level: mild. These are close-ups of a super-red eyeball with some stitches in it. No gore (yet)!

After pics + update

Here's the update; it'll be a series of bulleted lists because I can't really see very well :(

• I went into surgery around 12 PM and got out around 1 PM
• I hung out in recovery for a half hour before I was ready for my mom to visit and to eat food (food = grape juice, pretzels, and fig newtons)
• After another half hour they took the IV out and I was able to get dressed
  
• By 2:30-ish, we were in the hotel room at the Hilton Garden Inn on 11th and Arch
• Mom got me a chocolate chip cookie at Reading Terminal Market and luckily also picked up some milk :)
• We ordered room service for dinner

More lists below, since I like list making :)

I have prescriptions for the followig meds in case I need them:

• Tylenol with codeine - for pain
• Ativan - for anxiety (e.g. itchiness / "get this sh*t off my eye" sort of feelings)
• Zofran - for nausea

Apparently day one is the worst, and if you can avoid taking the meds, you'll be happier, so I haven't even filled these scripts yet. They said if you have a decent tolerance for pain, this should be doable, and I do have a high tolerance for pain; I've taken some regular Tylenol so far but not much more.

Here's the plan:

• Thursday (post-surgery - apparently the worst, pain-wise)
• Had a doctor visit to check in
• Sleep recommended, so that's what I've done until like 6 PM
• I put a contact in my right eye (glasses have no hope of staying on; see below for  a pic) so I could watch some TV
• Likely going to bed around 10 PM Eastern
• Friday
• Will have another doctor visit before noon
• My plan is to watch TV, read, do some internets, maybe listen to some music or podcasts, etc.
• Saturday
• Will have a doctor call to check in
• If you're in town, text or call me or my mom to coordinate a visit!
• If you're pregnant, you're not allowed
• Otherwise, you can come over and hug or touch me once or twice, then stay 5-6 feet away
• Otherwise, same TV/reading/listening plan
• Sunday
• Will have a doctor call to check in
• Otherwise, same TV/reading/listening plan
• Monday
• I'll be on an 8 AM shuttle back to Wills Eye for the plaque removal surgery

I'm radioactive!

Fashionable lead shield (under the gauze)

Key selfies

Last time both my eyes work perfectly

Last good strong left eye rub for a while (probably)