Some days life just gives you a whack!

acprinter · 04-30-2009, 10:43 PM

I woke up this morning and I was partially blind in one eye. The ophthalmologist when I called asked me how fast I could get there, well it was pretty darn quick. The diagnosis was detached retina; the problem is I live in a small community without the facility's to fix this, so it was a 50 mile trip to the nearest retinal specialist.

After the surgery it was a slow trip back home; at the end of the surgery a gas is injected into the eye creating a bubble that in a sense acts as a band-aid to hold the repair in place till healing occurs. The problem is that the surgery was done at 300 ft. elevation and I live at 1600 ft elevation; gas expands at higher elevation. The doctor tried to compensate for the higher elevation but told me to drive home (my wife drove) slowly and when my eye become painful or blurry to stop and go back down a a ways. The trip home took 2 hours, but I am home and my kind wife has posted this message.

So for the immediate future I will be listening to audio books on my ipod and spending very little time if any with the computer or reading. To those of you who have experienced a torn retina I was lucky and the bubble in my eye is almost straight at the top meaning I do not have to sit at a strange angle for the next couple of weeks.

montsnmags · 05-01-2009, 12:28 AM

Mate, that's shitty. Glad you were able to get to the ophthalmologist quickly though, and that they were able to refer you to someone who could attend to it as quick. I hope it all recovers quickly, fully, and with as little discomfort as possible.

And thank your wonderful wife for writing it up for us. I've heard that icecream and pastry and cake and chocolate are good for eye-surgery recuperation (*), so perhaps if you put on your most mopey expression...

(* This is a lie - I've never heard any such thing. It's worth a shot though)

Cheers,
Marc

dreams · 05-01-2009, 12:43 AM

What a scary way to start the day! I'm glad it was something that could be taken care of so quickly. I wish you a speedy recovery so you can get back to your reading

(and what a nice wife to be willing to post the information for us

)

Seabound · 05-01-2009, 12:49 AM

Take care of yourself and that eye. It's good you were able to get to the doctor quickly. Wishing you a fast recovery.

GeoffC · 05-01-2009, 04:56 AM

Gosh that's scarey ... glad you were able to get to a specialist extremely quickly, and have a loving wife to help you out .....

Now I've also heard that icecream and pastry and cake and chocolate are good for eye-surgery recuperation (*), so perhaps if you put on your very most mopiest of expressions ....

(* This is an untruth - I've not heard any such thing, but neither have I heard anything to the contrary. It's worth an experiment though ?)

Sparrow · 05-01-2009, 06:22 AM

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, I hope the audio books keep you entertained.

tirsales · 05-01-2009, 06:24 AM

I agree to GeoffC and montsnmags: Try the experiment!

Best wishes for a fast (and complete and painless) recovery ... I'd panic if something like that happened.

Curly · 05-01-2009, 07:37 AM

I'm glad to hear you were able to have it repaired quickly and you made it home safely if slowly. Do let us know how you get on via you kind wife.

By the way, tomorrow is Donut Day and I believe donuts, especially chocolate donuts, may help speed up recovery as well.

Best wishes.

jinlo · 05-01-2009, 08:42 AM

Indeed, life gave you a whack and not a very friendly one.

It is also true that your wife has stood by you and friends here offer the most sincere wishes of a speedy recovery. Heck, some have even wished upon you the glory of chocolate and donuts. In these sentiments, may you find comfort in knowing you are not alone.

I hope the recovery goes well and that you will be reading again soon.

zelda_pinwheel · 05-01-2009, 08:45 AM

that is quite a whack indeed.

i'm very glad to hear it was taken care of so swiftly and i wish you a speedy recovery. it's very nice of your wife to let us know what is going on ! enjoy your audiobooks and get lots of rest.

kwjones · 05-01-2009, 08:59 AM

That sucks. Do you at least get to wear a cool pirate patch?

zelda_pinwheel · 05-01-2009, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwjones

That sucks. Do you at least get to wear a cool pirate patch?

hm, that would almost make up for it...

maybe you should get one, even if the doctor didn't give you one.

jinlo · 05-01-2009, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwjones

That sucks. Do you at least get to wear a cool pirate patch?

And you could walk around saying things like:

"You'll walk the plank for that, matey!"

"Where be me treasure map?"

And of course - "Arrrr"

zelda_pinwheel · 05-01-2009, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jinlo

And you could walk around saying things like:

"You'll walk the plank for that, matey!"

"Where be me treasure map?"

And of course - "Arrrr"

now i want a pirate patch.

DixieGal · 05-01-2009, 10:23 AM

Oh No! I'm glad you were able to find a retina doc ONLY 50 miles away, that is lucky! Mine is in the building across the street from me, but elsewhere they are much harder to come by. I sit in the waiting room listening to people grumble about having driven since 3:00am, only to get there and have to wait 2 hrs to see the doc, and thank my lucky stars that it is so nearby for me.

Is your bubble blue? And did they give you a shot of Avastin in your eye to stop any possible bleeding?

Take care and do everything they told you to do. Were you able to sleep OK? Did they give you a shield to tape over your eye to keep you from scratching it in your sleep?

Keep us updated, please. Good luck!

04-30-2009, 10:43 PM	#1
acprinter Groupie Posts: 163 Karma: 3141364 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: California Gold Country Device: Paperwhite 11th generation	Some days life just gives you a whack! I woke up this morning and I was partially blind in one eye. The ophthalmologist when I called asked me how fast I could get there, well it was pretty darn quick. The diagnosis was detached retina; the problem is I live in a small community without the facility's to fix this, so it was a 50 mile trip to the nearest retinal specialist. After the surgery it was a slow trip back home; at the end of the surgery a gas is injected into the eye creating a bubble that in a sense acts as a band-aid to hold the repair in place till healing occurs. The problem is that the surgery was done at 300 ft. elevation and I live at 1600 ft elevation; gas expands at higher elevation. The doctor tried to compensate for the higher elevation but told me to drive home (my wife drove) slowly and when my eye become painful or blurry to stop and go back down a a ways. The trip home took 2 hours, but I am home and my kind wife has posted this message. So for the immediate future I will be listening to audio books on my ipod and spending very little time if any with the computer or reading. To those of you who have experienced a torn retina I was lucky and the bubble in my eye is almost straight at the top meaning I do not have to sit at a strange angle for the next couple of weeks.

05-01-2009, 12:43 AM	#3
dreams It's about the umbrella Posts: 25,110 Karma: 56250158 Join Date: Jan 2009 Device: Sony 505\| K Fire \| KK 3G+Wi-Fi \| iPhone 3Gs \|Vista 32-bit Hm Prem w/FF	What a scary way to start the day! I'm glad it was something that could be taken care of so quickly. I wish you a speedy recovery so you can get back to your reading (and what a nice wife to be willing to post the information for us)

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05-01-2009, 12:28 AM	#2
montsnmags Grand Sorcerer Posts: 10,155 Karma: 4632658 Join Date: Nov 2007 Device: none	Mate, that's shitty. Glad you were able to get to the ophthalmologist quickly though, and that they were able to refer you to someone who could attend to it as quick. I hope it all recovers quickly, fully, and with as little discomfort as possible. And thank your wonderful wife for writing it up for us. I've heard that icecream and pastry and cake and chocolate are good for eye-surgery recuperation (), so perhaps if you put on your most mopey expression... ( This is a lie - I've never heard any such thing. It's worth a shot though) Cheers, Marc

05-01-2009, 12:49 AM	#4
Seabound Steerage Class Posts: 711 Karma: 505995 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Pacific Northwest, USA Device: Won't fit here anymore, see sig for a list of liseuses.	Take care of yourself and that eye. It's good you were able to get to the doctor quickly. Wishing you a fast recovery.

05-01-2009, 04:56 AM	#5
GeoffC Chocolate Grasshopper ... Posts: 27,599 Karma: 20821184 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Muse HD , Cybook Gen3 , Pocketbook 302 (Black) , Nexus 10: wife has PW	Gosh that's scarey ... glad you were able to get to a specialist extremely quickly, and have a loving wife to help you out ..... Now I've also heard that icecream and pastry and cake and chocolate are good for eye-surgery recuperation (), so perhaps if you put on your very most mopiest of expressions .... ( This is an untruth - I've not heard any such thing, but neither have I heard anything to the contrary. It's worth an experiment though ?)

05-01-2009, 06:22 AM	#6
Sparrow Wizard Posts: 4,395 Karma: 1358132 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: UK Device: Palm TX, CyBook Gen3	Best wishes for a speedy recovery, I hope the audio books keep you entertained.

05-01-2009, 06:24 AM	#7
tirsales MIA ... but returning som Posts: 1,600 Karma: 511342 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Germany Device: PRS-505 and Really not owning a PRS-700	I agree to GeoffC and montsnmags: Try the experiment! Best wishes for a fast (and complete and painless) recovery ... I'd panic if something like that happened.

05-01-2009, 07:37 AM	#8
Curly I need a holiday! Posts: 1,227 Karma: 4622 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Device: PRS-505, ipod touch	I'm glad to hear you were able to have it repaired quickly and you made it home safely if slowly. Do let us know how you get on via you kind wife. By the way, tomorrow is Donut Day and I believe donuts, especially chocolate donuts, may help speed up recovery as well. Best wishes.

05-01-2009, 08:42 AM	#9
jinlo aka coco jinlo Posts: 415 Karma: 500002 Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: NJ-USA Device: Just purchased Sony 505, but alas, it is for the wife	Indeed, life gave you a whack and not a very friendly one. It is also true that your wife has stood by you and friends here offer the most sincere wishes of a speedy recovery. Heck, some have even wished upon you the glory of chocolate and donuts. In these sentiments, may you find comfort in knowing you are not alone. I hope the recovery goes well and that you will be reading again soon.

05-01-2009, 08:45 AM	#10
zelda_pinwheel zeldinha zippy zeldissima Posts: 27,827 Karma: 921169 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Paris, France Device: eb1150 & is that a nook in her pocket, or she just happy to see you?	that is quite a whack indeed. i'm very glad to hear it was taken care of so swiftly and i wish you a speedy recovery. it's very nice of your wife to let us know what is going on ! enjoy your audiobooks and get lots of rest.

05-01-2009, 08:59 AM	#11
kwjones Groupie Posts: 178 Karma: 1546 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Rising Sun, MD Device: Sony PRS-505; Motorola Droid	That sucks. Do you at least get to wear a cool pirate patch?

05-01-2009, 10:23 AM	#15
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	Oh No! I'm glad you were able to find a retina doc ONLY 50 miles away, that is lucky! Mine is in the building across the street from me, but elsewhere they are much harder to come by. I sit in the waiting room listening to people grumble about having driven since 3:00am, only to get there and have to wait 2 hrs to see the doc, and thank my lucky stars that it is so nearby for me. Is your bubble blue? And did they give you a shot of Avastin in your eye to stop any possible bleeding? Take care and do everything they told you to do. Were you able to sleep OK? Did they give you a shield to tape over your eye to keep you from scratching it in your sleep? Keep us updated, please. Good luck!

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