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Latest on My Eyes

david — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 07:32:46 +0000

For the last several days, I was thinking about what I was going to write for this blog entry. My eyes weren’t going to be part of the post. One year ago today I started paying attention to what and how much I was eating. Through mid-summer, I lost about 80 pounds. I’ve been in maintenance mode since then, eating about 1800 calories a day. I will create a post dedicated to how I did it and a spreadsheet to track your daily caloric intake. For now, just know that this scale was instrumental in my weight loss. It’s $25 and you get free shipping.

The thoughts on my post changed once I went to see my retina specialist, Dr. Garg. I figured in the last couple of days, there might be a conflict on what to write about because of my appointment, but only if there was anything new with my left eye (the one that sees more than light.) Sure, I’ve noticed my vision getting worse over the past months. It’s been brutally frustrating, but when we left for my appointment I thought I’d get a, “Everything looks okay, I don’t know why you’re having these new troubles…” Today, Dr. Garg noticed three things that are most likely causing the decrease in my vison and only one of them has to do with my retina.

It seems that the only issue with my retina is from folds that developed from my pressure being low for a long period of time following a trabeculectomy (glaucoma surgery) back in 2003. Dr. Garg told me that even though my pressure has been in the “normal” range (for me) over the last five years, the folds will never go away (just like you can never get a piece of paper completely smooth again after it’s been folded.) This will slowly take my vision. Dr. Garg said if that were my only eye issue, it really wouldn’t be too big a deal. The other issues Dr. Garg saw today were both cornea related. One is corneal edema, or swelling of the cornea. The other issue has to do with the transplant I had two years ago. He said there was some cloudiness behind the new (to me, 69 years old to the original owner) endothelia. Dr. Garg stated he thought that happens in about 25% of transplants. I’ll know more when I visit my cornea specialist in about 10 days.

When we left the appointment, I said to Eliz that at least there was something there and I wasn’t imaging it. I was somewhat happy. It seems that the cornea issues can be handled with meds and a “procedure” (which makes me think of City Slickers – “You’ll have surgery, but call it a procedure…”) After we returned home and I thought about it, I realized that for the first time in my life, I can’t keep my vision from getting worse. From the time I was a young boy, I was always told ‘there’s no way to improve your vision, we’re just hoping to maintain it.’ Of course, I had hopes and dreams over the years that something would come along… Now, my vision can’t even be maintained. I hope it’s not a slippery slope.

This post is sponsored by the EatSmart Precision Pro Multifunction Digital Kitchen Scale. It has an extra large LCD readout (which means that I can see it when I’ve got my reading glasses on) and an 11 pound capacity. I’ve used this product since last December to lose weight. I weigh everything in grams, because, to me, it is easier using a whole number. If you want to drop some weight, this is a tool that will certainly help you.

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Post tags: corneal edema, daily caloric intake, glaucoma surgery, post, pressure, retina specialist, scale, vision, Weight, year ago today

An Hour and a Half in Rehab

david — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 05:53:13 +0000

Okay, that is a pretty dramatic title. It was low vision rehab. Just like Lindsay Lohan, I don’t think my rehab will work either. Today at Dr. Astorino’s office, Dawn had me try prescription glasses for distance, stand magnifiers, and contrast enhancing glare filters — basically sunglasses but with amber, orange, plum, and light gray lenses. My vision was worse than normal today and my eye was watering quite a bit, so I was eager to see if anything would make a significant impact on my sight.

I was really surprised at the difference the glare filters made on both contrast and depth. I tried about 34957285 different colors, with amber working out best. I guess it really is the color of my energy… Last week during my visit, Dr. Astorino put a few lenses together to help me see for distance. Today, I tried them on to watch TV in her office, walking around her office, and then looking around outside. Since the lenses were in one of those bulky lense holders, it was hard to get a good feel for them while walking around. Watching TV and looking around outside it was slightly better. At $205, I did think about not getting them since it was a slight difference. In the end, though, I thought any improvement was better than nothing.

I go back tomorrow to have a look at portable electronic magnifiers, Kindle, iPad (like I need a doctor to tell me I need on of those,) and a couple other things. I’m kind of excited to check out the Kindle, though you can’t reverse the screen to do white text on black which is about the only way I can comfortably read. I’ve missed reading magazines and would love to read a book. Of course, I can do that at my desk on my computer, but it’d be awesome to sit on the porch on a nice day and read.

While I was somewhat happy that there are things to help me out, it is only a small step forward. Like my dad says when I tell him his stock was up a penny, “at least it didn’t go down.” Forward is better than backward, but I want more.

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Post tags: astorino, electronic magnifiers, glare, glare filters, ipad, Kindle, Lohan, office, prescription glasses, vision

My Inglourious Sight

david — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 05:24:31 +0000

For the past four or five days, my vision has sucked more than normal. I don’t know why. It’s almost like interference on a television screen. The picture is still there, but it’s hard to see through the static. I’ve been a little nervous about my vision because Eliz and I are heading to New York tomorrow for an internet marketing conference — Affiliate Summit East. Just walking around a crowded event will be challenging.

When my vision doesn’t cooperate, like over the past few days, I spend less time at the computer and the time that I do spend there I get less done since it takes me longer to read. It gets pretty frustrating. It seems I need help from Eliz or the kids to get even the simplest of tasks done. Tonight, Jane and I looked through some inventory to pick out some specials for ForYourSalon.com (we ended up adding the 1189 flat iron from Hot Tools, the Turbo Silverado hair dryer, the One ‘n Only Acid Extra Body perm, and Hair Rescue Intense Clarifying Treatment from Zotos to our specials.) I have to tell you that I get pleasure when I can accomplish something on my own.

Tonight I realized how poor my vision was. While flipping through the channels, I saw that Ingloourious Basterds was on. Eliz and I watched that movie in late April, just after my surgery. I absolutely loved it. The best part of it then was I was actually able to read most of the subtitles on my own. That wasn’t the case tonight, so I didn’t watch it.

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Post tags: Basterds, body perm, hair rescue, internet marketing conference, screen, sight, summit east, television, tomorrow, vision

Almost Unbelievable…

david — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 06:28:35 +0000

As you’ve read here over the past seven weeks, I’ve been pretty frustrated and miserable. On the way to my my cornea specialist, Eliz and I were talking about what I was planning on discussing with Dr. Ayres. I was going to tell him how tired I was running back and forth to all these eye specialists who couldn’t really figure out why my vision had deteriorated to 20/200 (close to my pre-surgery acuity) after I was able to read most of the 20/100 line a week after the surgery. I was also going to ask Dr. Ayres to ease off some of the drops. I was up to about 8 to 10 per day, and after some, my vision was blurry for varying lengths of time, reducing my vision further.

So we’re driving down Lancaster Ave. after dropping Jane at softball camp at Villanova and we turn on Preston and Steve on WMMR (Eliz is a huge fan.) They were talking about some guy who was trying to get into the Guinness Book of Records by singing the lowest note ever. The discussion somehow turned to the Oak Ridge Boys and their hit Elvira (warning, don’t click the link, you won’t be able to get the song out of your head…) They were talking about how deep one of the members of the band could sing, were making fun of the song and then mentioning that one of the members was from Collingswood, NJ (it is in southern New Jersey.) I was laughing so hard I was crying. Tears were streaming down my face for over five minutes. When they finally stopped, we were just passing St. Joe’s on City Ave. I grabbed a tissue and wiped my eyes and began to look around. Things looked clearer to me. We stopped at a red light and I looked at the trees and buildings and told Eliz that things looked better than before the tears flowed.

We were only a minute or two away (his office is on Presidential Blvd. in the Pagoda Building, just off City Ave.) We sat in the car for a minute or two since we were early. I looked at the building and the trees and things still looked better. Once we walked in, things were still tough to see inside. We took the elevator to his office and signed in. Eliz grabbed a magazine and started looking through it. I glanced at the front cover, but couldn’t make out the title, so I thought my vision was returning to its current normal. After a few minutes, I was called back to Pod 3 (which I suggested on multiple occasions to rename EyePod 3.) Tia was the name of the tech and she questioned me about what meds I’ve been taking and how my vision was doing. Then she turned on the eye chart. E looked clearer. So did SL. I was then able to make out the L first, then the P in the OPLB line. (As I’ve mentioned before, I know all the lines down to DAO6, the 20/60 line, so I’m never 100% sure I’m actually seeing them.) There is no alternative 20/100 line other then the OPLB line, like there are for the 20/80 line and better, so I was given credit for seeing the P and the L. With the pinholes, I tried both the CAV8 (20/80) line and its numerical alternative without being able to read anything.

Dr. Ayres came in a few minutes later and I told him about what happened on the way into the appointment. He then took a look and had me blink twice. He noticed that my eye was losing the tear film in about five seconds (he didn’t use a stopwatch, instead opting for the technical Philadelphia, as in one Philadelphia, two Philadelphia, etc. We always used Mississippi when we played football as kids. You could blitz on five Mississippi…) He then explained to Eliz and I that 10 seconds is the norm for the tear film to last after blinking. I’m not surprised that my eyes aren’t normal. Never have been, never will be. He also mentioned that once the eye begins to dry, the visual acuity begins to fall. He gave me more drops, over the counter lubricating drops for during the day, and a prescription for a drop to use at bedtime. It is an antibiotic that evidently is somewhat thick. It is used for infections in the eye, but I was instructed to close my eye and massage it onto the edge of my upper and lower lids. I’ll let you know how that goes in a few days since I haven’t used it yet. Dr. Ayres also took me off one of the steroid drops (two less drops per day) and Muro 128 (four times per day.)

Can it be that at least part of my current eye issues were discovered because of Preston and Steve? Yup! So, thank you Preston and Steve (and Kathy, Casey, Nick, Marisa, the Oak Ridge Boys, and that guy trying to sing the lowest note!) Now I just have to hope that the new drop works. Wish me luck (again…)

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Post tags: Casey, City, cornea specialist, day, Dr. Ayres, Eliz, Elvira, eye, guinness book of records, Jane, Kathy, L. With, line, Marisa, Mississippi, Nick, NJ, oak ridge boys, Philadelphia, Presidential Blvd., Preston, preston and steve, southern New Jersey, St. Joe, Steve, Tia, vision, wmmr

It’s Been a Few Weeks, Not Much New

david — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 05:27:18 +0000

I haven’t posted an update for about three weeks. In that time, my vision still sucks and I’m wondering if I made the right choice to have the surgery. I visited the retina specialist on Tuesday and was told that there isn’t much difference on the macular edema from the last visit about a month ago (and that was only slightly different from earlier this year.) Seems a bit odd since during my appointment in May, he was able to point out the differences with my OCT scan then and the one earlier this year. I was also told that I had a bit of swelling in my cornea (cornea edema.) I don’t recall if that was an issue at my last cornea doc visit, but I’m scheduled to visit him this coming Tuesday (22 June,) so I’ll ask. At this point, my vision seems to fluctuate between slightly better than before the surgery to worse than before the surgery.

It is so frustrating to me that nothing can be done to get me back to where I was just days after the surgery. For about 10 days from 18 April, my vision was the best it had been in years. Seems now like that was a cruel tease. I’m getting tired of running to the doctors multiple times per month and not making progress.

In other news, Jacob is in Japan with a group of students from Westtown. The last few days they’ve stayed in Kyoto and taken day trips by rail to other cities and sites (Hiroshima, Miyagima-guchi, Miyagima, Kinkaku-ji.) Sunday, they move on to Tokyo where they meet their host families and prepare for a week at Tamagawa, Westtown’s sister school in Japan. The family Jake is staying with has a boy a year or two younger than Jake and seems to live a bit of distance away from the school. Eliz and I hope Jake can manage the train transfers…

Jane is looking forward to meeting her favorite band All Time Low on Sunday at meet and greet during The Bamboozle Roadshow. Monday, she heads to softball camp at Villanova for a week. She is also doing two weeks at an overnight camp at Bryn Mawr College in July and going to the Outer Banks in August with Margaret, Meghan, and Chris. Did I mention she spent yesterday (Thursday) in New York with her friend Rachel?

Since Eliz and Jane won’t be here on Sunday, I’m planning a day of football… Well, at least the last two games (Azzurri/All Whites and Brazil/Ivory Coast (sorry Slovakia/Paraguay, I’m not rolling out of bed at 7.30am.) So, if you want to watch some footie, come on over!

Finally, I’ve lost another pound, which I am trying not to do. I’m trying to maintain 163 pounds, but have been between 161 and 162 the last couple of days. I’ve bumped to 1800 calories per day (from 1700) to try not to lose any additional weight. It’s been tough this week, because we’ve eaten out four times and I’ve had to estimate my calories once and calculate my calories after the fact another time. By the time I added ‘em up, I was short by 200 calories (ate 1600 calories) and it was too late to have anything else if I wanted to go to sleep by 2.00am. At 161, I’m down 73 pounds since I started on 10 December 2009.

More next week, after my cornea doc appointment.

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Post tags: bamboozle roadshow, Brazil, bryn mawr college, Chris, cornea, Hiroshima, Ivory Coast, Jacob, Jake, Jane, Japan, kinkaku, Kyoto, macular edema, Margaret, Meghan, New York, Rachel, retina specialist, surgery, time, Tokyo, vision, week, Whites

A Frustrating Week

david — Fri, 28 May 2010 05:16:24 +0000

Well, it has been a week of total frustration. Since mid-afternoon last Thursday, my vision has not been good. Every day when I wake up I hope that it will be better, but then I open my eyes. I’ve got just under three weeks until I visit the retina doc again, but at this point, it seems pretty obvious to me that the drops aren’t working.

I’m pretty sure I’ve been less than a joy to be around this past week. I have just been miserable. Even watching the Flyers advance to the cup finals brought me down. I was there in 1997. Not this time. No point in going. I’ll watch it on TV though.

I’m tired of not being able to find things and having to ask Eliz for help. I’m tired of bumping into door jams because I go a little wide right. I’m tired of waiting and hoping. I want to move forward.

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Post tags: Eliz, flyers, frustration, jams, last thursday, point, retina, Thursday, vision, week

Play Ball!

david — Fri, 21 May 2010 05:18:06 +0000

For the first time in a very long time, I got a chance to hit in a softball game. I’ve been looking forward to it since the middle of April, after my surgery. A few weeks ago, when my vision was heading in the wrong direction, I didn’t think I’d even try. After my visit to Dr. Garg a couple of days ago and starting the drop regimen, my vision seemed to improve a little, so I was back in.

After some stretching (okay, very little stretching on the parents’ part,) we grabbed a ball and warmed up. We threw the ball around like we do here: Jane to Eliz, then Eliz flips me the ball to me (I like to pretend I’m the second baseman and I’m turning a double play,) then I “fire” it to Jane. Jane will sometimes just give me grounders that I field (without a glove, I don’t want someone to think I can actually play and throw me the ball) and throw to her. After about 10 minutes of that the girls took the field and the parents went to the bench.

The batting order was determined by who went over and grabbed a bat first. I hit fourth. We went through the order all at once. After three outs though, if there were any runners on base, they came in and the next batter started a “new inning.” Wasn’t too different than t-ball for Jane about eight years ago. Two of the first three parents struck out, while the other grounded out. I felt no pressure stepping into the batters box, since I wasn’t going to be the first one to strike out. I so wanted to make contact. First pitch was a ball high. Second one was over the inside part of the plate, strike one. Third pitch was in the exact same spot, strike two. The fourth pitch bounced on the front of the plate, ball two. I probably saw that one the best and had the bounce been higher, I probably could have hit it — like in mush ball. The fifth pitch looked good, but I swung and missed, strike three. There were at least six strikeouts on our team, including Jane’s K of Eliz.

I noticed when I was batting that I couldn’t see as well if I looked straight at the pitcher, I had to glance toward first base to see the ball better. That concerned me, because that is what seemed to be going on over the last couple of weeks. My central vision wasn’t good. I went out with Eliz to stand in rightfield. As we were talking, I told her my vision wasn’t right. Since I started the drops, I had noticed an improvement. I even commented to Eliz on the ride to school that I’m glad I took the eye drop just before we left home and that I was seeing pretty well as I watched the cars on the road in front of us. How could my vision have changed so quickly? Was it the running around while we were throwing the ball around? Was it bright sun? I don’t know what the answer is, but my vision seems like it has gone back to how it was before I went to Dr. Garg on Tuesday. Once I finish with this entry, I will investigate macular edema a little further.

After two more drops today, my vision is bad. I had trouble reading most of the graphics on TV tonight and the text on the computer is fuzzy. Fortunately, I have an appointment tomorrow with Dr. Ayres, the surgeon and cornea specialist. Maybe he’ll have an idea about the macular edema and the quick change in my vision. Most likely, I’ll have to wait until I go back to Dr. Garg on 15 June. It’s funny, I think if I had hit the ball, I don’t think I would have noticed or been bothered by the decrease in vision. I’m already looking forward to next years game…

Couple other short items… I spoke to Dr. Rist, my gp, today. She was calling to give me the results from a blood test I had yesterday after my appointment with her. They were all very good and well within the normal range. They were dramatically better than a year ago. My blood pressure yesterday was also pretty good, 104/68. All in all, the 1500 calories per day has been a good thing. I will be increasing my caloric intake to about 1700 next week, since I’m within a few pounds of my goal. The doctor calculated my metabolism and came up with that number. I asked the doctor if the results were back from the throat swab she had done yesterday (I’ve had a sore throat since early last week, along with chills the first day or two,) but they haven’t as of today. She prescribed Amoxicillin yesterday since she had noticed some things in my throat.

Also, we’ve been getting more calls to our design company (Digital Graphics Design) as of late. I had to cancel a meeting with a prospective client earlier in the week since I wasn’t feeling well. Today we got a call from a professional looking for a small website. I am going to attempt this one on my own. Let’s see how that goes. When I took the call in the morning, I was seeing okay and was confident I could do it. Now I’m not so sure.

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Post tags: ball, batters box, double play, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, Dr. Rist, Eliz, Jane, jane jane, pitch, second baseman, softball game, Today, vision

Wow, I was Wrong!

david — Wed, 19 May 2010 05:41:48 +0000

I say that like it doesn’t happen often. Today I had an appointment to see Dr. Garg, the retina specialist I visited several times in January and February. As far as I was concerned, he was my last hope of finding why I was having difficulty seeing over the last couple of weeks, after noticeably better sight after the cataract extraction on 15 April. I mentioned in this space last week that I didn’t think he’d spot anything. Fortunately, I was wrong!

After having difficulty reading the 20/200 line (their chart is different than all the others, the 20/200 line is CD not SL) I had my IOP taken (9 in the left, 28 in the right – that is high, but since there is no pain and virtually no sight, who cares,) I was given drops to dilate my eyes. After a 10-15 minute wait, we went to another examination room. Dr. Garg came in and asked me about the trouble I’ve been having and the surgery, then had a look. He noticed something and said he would like me to have an OCT scan. After another short wait, Tom called me in and did the OCT scan. After another short wait, we went into a different exam room.

Dr. Garg came in and immediately said that I have Macular Edema. I was pretty happy for a second. I thought, “Wow, he actually found something!” Then I though, “Uh oh, now what?” I asked the doctor how it is treated and then I was happy again. Eye drops (the name escapes me at the moment, but I think it begins with a D) four times per day. That is easy enough. He then showed Eliz and I (between my dilated eye and poor vision, I couldn’t really see much) the OCT scan from today and the one from 15 January. He pointed out the difference in the one today, which Eliz was able to see. After about two hours, we were done. I go back in four weeks.

Today was the first of three doctor’s appointments for the week. Tomorrow, I go to my general practitioner for a check-up. Perfect timing for me to visit her, as I’ve had a sore throat for about eight or nine days. I’m interested to see what she says about my weight. I was in the mid-180′s the last time I was there in March. I was 168 this morning. I know many of you have been asking about how I dropped a total of 66 pounds since 10 December 2009 and want to know my secrets. The short answer is 1500 calories a day and I weigh everything I eat at home (unless it is packaged, then I use the nutritional info on the package.) When we’re out, I use the restaurant’s own nutritional info. If a restaurant doesn’t provide the info, then I calculate it. If I can’t calculate it, we don’t eat there. Do you hear me Bertucci’s? I’ve kept a food journal since February and I’ll post it soon (I wanted to do it a couple of weeks ago, but my vision issues got in the way.) Friday, I visit Dr. Ayres for another post op check.

Lastly tonight, I went to Anthem Institute (formerly Chubb Institute) for a Graphic Design Advisory Board meeting. It was both good and bad. Good because I love talking about graphic design work, the industry, and the curriculum at the school. They’re making some positive changes there that will give students a deeper design knowledge that should translate into being better prepared to land a job once they graduate. The bad part about tonight was talking about new version of programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and Flash. How is that bad? I so want to use them, start shooting pictures again, shooting videos (and editing them,) and cool stuff like that, but my vision is not cooperating. Maybe I’ll be able to get back to it once the drops work their magic…

Oh, and one last thing. Really. The parent daughter softball game is Thursday afternoon at Friends Central. I am hoping to get an at-bat. I will most likely strike out, if given the okay to hit, but I want to try. I’ll let you know how it goes. Fortunately, Lankenau Hospital is literally right around the corner…

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Post tags: cataract extraction, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, info, last hope, OCT, perfect timing, poor vision, retina specialist, Today, Tom, vision, wait

Going the Wrong Way

david — Mon, 10 May 2010 05:28:54 +0000

Since Wednesday or Thursday, I’ve noticed that my vision didn’t seem to be as good as it was earlier in the week. By Friday, after talking with Eliz, we decided it was probably a good idea to try and visit Dr. Ayres, the surgeon that removed the cataract (and performed the endothelial transplant in Dec. ’08.) Fortunately, they were able to squeeze me into their busy schedule at Wills Eye at noon on Friday.

We didn’t have to wait long in the waiting room. I was very curious about reading the chart. The E was not a problem. I could see the SL on the next line, but it didn’t seem as sharp as my previous appointment about 10 days earlier. I could not read the OPLB line. That was a step backward.

When Dr. Ayres came in, I told him about what was going on. He took a look and said everything seemed about the same as my previous appointment. No signs of retina detachment, the new lens was still in place, and there was no signs of rejection on the previously transplanted endothelia. My IOP was at seven, which was down from 10 at my previous appointment. As he put it, the good news is that it is not a problem from the surgery, but that means I don’t really have any way of fixing the issue. He prescribed a non-steroidal eye drop just in case there was a little swelling that he didn’t notice. He said it was like Advil in drop form.

On Tuesday I have a scheduled appointment with Dr. Pro, who is my glaucoma doctor. I want to have a Fields test, because one of the things I have noticed is more blind spots, especially in my central vision. Hopefully, he’ll find something that can be corrected.

So, it seems I’ve missed my opportunity to go to the movies or a Phillies game. It might also be time to learn how to do things without much sight. I was waiting for the surgery before I tried anything new, but I think it is time.

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Post tags: appointment, central vision, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Pro, eye, eye drop, Friday, phillies game, problem, retina detachment, vision, wills eye

Second Post Op Visit

david — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 06:20:40 +0000

I was looking forward to my second visit to Dr. Ayres since the surgery on 15 April. The last few days have been trying. I began to notice that my vision was changing. I was getting a bit nervous as I was having difficulties seeing things close to me and up to five to 10 feet away. Some of the problems, I figured, had to do with my eye healing and changing. The eye drop regimen also could play a part in my vision.

While we were in the waiting room, Eliz and I did the word scrambles in the Inquirer (her mother gives that section to us after she finished the crossword puzzle, so we usually have a few days of scrambles to do.) I realized today while we were doing the scrambles that I am a visual thinker when it comes to these puzzles. That is not good since I can’t see the puzzles at all. I have no trouble doing math in my head without seeing the numbers, but I am slow, usually, with the words. I do occasionally get the words before Eliz, but she is usually quicker than I am.

After completing three puzzles, we were called back to Pod 2. I was able to read the OBLB (20/100) line, though it didn’t seem as crisp as it did the day after the surgery. The pinholes brought it into focus, but I couldn’t read any of the CAV8 (20/80) line. Dr. Ayres came in and had a look. He said things looked very good. My IOP was up to 10 (which is higher for me than normal,) but he believes it is from the steroid drops that I was taking four times a day and believes that will fall back a few notches as I lower the amount of those drops (I take them three times per day for the next week and then two times per day until I see him on 21 May.) I hope he is correct about the pressure…

After he finished looking, we talked about what is going on with my vision. I told him of my difficulties seeing things close to me and the trouble I had since the weekend even on the computer. He apologized about not giving me the whole story before the surgery and said that the lens he put in was for distance. I told him I was happy with how I could see things in better detail than before. He explained that, like a person 10 to 15 years older than me, I had lost the ability to focus at things close up. He hoped that the problem could be fixed with glasses, but it was too soon for that since my eye is still healing and will continue to change as it does.

I brought the pair of reading glasses I’d been using since the surgery to read on the computer and see food on my plate so he could check the strength. I’ve used several different magnifications since the transplant in December ’08 and I wasn’t sure which pair these were. I was also concerned, since they were less effective over the last few days. Fortunately, they were 3.5X. I knew that I had a pair of 4x glasses at home, somewhere. When we got home, I found them and was relieved that they made reading my screen much more comfortable than the 3.5X pair. I hoping I don’t need to go up to 5X, but they would still be cheaper than prescription glasses. They will do a refraction at my next visit on 21 May.

I don’t know if it was the 4X reading glasses or what Dr. Ayres had to say about how good things looked, but it seems that I can see better after the appointment. I only have to wait two weeks before I see my glaucoma specialist, so we’ll see how the IOP is doing then. I’d also like to get a fields test to see how that has changed since the surgery. Maybe I can have that done then too. I’ll post it here on the blog if I have it done…

Generally, I’m happy with the results so far. Eliz and I may go to the movies this weekend (her birthday is Saturday and she’s requested Mexican Post for dinner, then a movie at Regal across the street.) Jane’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah schedule (six in the next eight weeks) may force us to reschedule… I tried to help Eliz prepare some parts of dinner tonight, with limited success. Shooting pictures and video is something I’d like to try soon. I tried taking a picture a day or two after the surgery, but couldn’t see well enough through the viewfinder. I may have to leave the lcd screen on for pics and videos to be usable… For now, lets see what tomorrow brings.

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