New Eyeballs

We put a hefty chunk of moolah into our flexible health care spending account for this year.  And then we didn't need it.  And then my hubs said to me on our anniversary, "I want you to get LASIK."  What?!  Ummm...okay!

I started wearing glasses when I was 10 and began wearing contacts when I was 12.  I don't have the worst vision in the world, but I can't function without glasses/contacts, so I was THRILLED!  And then I felt guilty.  That's a lot of money to spend on me.  And then my hubs told me to stop feeling guilty.  So I did/tried.

We checked out a few places nearby and found that they were crazy expensive {$2200/eye}.  At first I didn't want to go with the cheapest place because...well...these are MY EYEBALLS!  But as we researched we found that there was a dedicated LASIK center on the other side of the water and they can do LASIK cheaper because that is ALL that they do.  The places around here are mostly dedicated to other forms of eye surgery so they have to charge more to pay for that expensive piece of LASIK machinery they have hanging out in their office.  That is what we gathered, anyway.  And we checked out the surgeons at the cheaper place and the reviews from patients.  We went with the LASIK center {$1998/both eyes}.  It was a great office with great people and the surgeon I had is a BYU alumni, which scores a few points 'round here.

I had to wear glasses for one week prior to the surgery and felt a little nostalgic about never needing to wear that pair of glasses again.  

I bought these glasses right before my mission (12 years ago!) I met a few members in my first area and then met one of my favorites - Desiree - who told me that a man in the ward said to her, "Have you met the new sister missionary? She's from Las Vegas and she's kind of...jazzy." I tried to figure out what made me "jazzy" and settled on my spectacles.  But then I had to wear them exclusively for that week and quickly realized it wouldn't be hard to say goodbye...running in glasses, my baby grabbing my glasses, having to clean smudges off the lenses...I wasn't going to miss any of that.

I was nervous about the actual surgery...I mean, you're awake when they cut a flap on your eyeball!  Kinda trippy.  I took the "relaxer" they gave me at the office before the surgery.  You lie on a little table, they put in a bunch of numbing drops, and then put a machine above your head and your job is to look at the blinking light.  The blurriness/focus changed as they cut the flap, lifted it, put it back down...and then it was done.  15 minutes from walking into the procedure room to both eyes being done!  Incredible.

They gave me a sedative and told me to go home, take it, and try to sleep the rest of the day/night. We got home and ate a delicious dinner made by my sweet visiting teacher and dear friend. Ty took the kids to the ward party and I decided to wait to take the sedative.  Turns out sleep-deprived moms don't need sedatives!  I went into my bedroom, laid down, listened to a few talks from general conference and then I was out.  It was a good, good night.  

Recovery is pretty incredible too!  I was already seeing so well the next morning.  We went to my post-op appointment and I was at 20/20, but by the afternoon I was seeing even better than I had been that morning.  We went to IKEA {I wore my sunglasses the whole time...got several weird looks}.  I also wore my sunglasses in sacrament meeting the next day {fluorescent lights are kind of hard to take during recovery time}.  My eyes get a little tired,  which has been a great excuse to lay down a time or two a day.  Seriously, moms should get the surgery just for the rest aspect. :)  You have a strict regimen of anti-inflammatory and antibiotic drops, along with good ol' moistening drops, for 5 days.  I'll be using the latter for a while, from what I understand. Today is 6 days post-op and my eyes are doing great!  I can start wearing makeup again tomorrow, I have less moments of my eyes feeling tired/scratchy, and tonight will be my last night with these hot protective glasses.  I'll be sad to see them go.

For some reason I haven't thrown out my contacts and contact solution...I just keep thinking I should hold onto them...just in case.  Maybe I'll do that deed tonight.  LASIK is rad.  Do it if you have a chance.  That is all.