Day of Surgery: Don't Mess with My IOP

January 23, 2013

Surgery Day: My Gas Bubble

After snoozing for an extra 20 minutes, I dragged myself out of bed with my stomach grumbling for food.  Fast forward to 9 am, I had deja vu as we walk into Dulaney Eye Institute.  The receptionist remembered us, same routine as last time.  It wasn't more than 5 minutes before my name was called.

"Mrs. Dooley?"

I couldn't believe I was being called back already.  

I walked down the all too familiar hallway and rounded the corner to where I had been sitting just 9 weeks ago.  A trash bag, a hospital gown, and a hair net  are sitting on my gurney.  

After my wardrobe change, I knew what was coming next.

"Oh My God, what on earth happened to your arm?"

Remember when the nurse blew my veins during my pre-op physical?  Yeah, she was staring right at the bruises.

"Wow, I will do my best to not give you a nasty bruise like that on your left arm, too."

With one little pinch, the catheter was in and the worries of any bruising on my left arm were gone.  She clipped my finger into the pulse monitor and I quickly discovered that my pulse was much faster than it was during my first surgery.  A speedy 75 (it was only 55 at this same time during my first surgery).

After bartering with the nurse, Ryan and my Mom were able to come back and sit with me.  Dr. Grodin came by to do one final check to see if, by some crazy miracle, the fluid had disappeared and I wouldn't be needing surgery.  

One big bright light later: negative.  Oh well, I'm already here so let's get this done.

With cords and cables, I was anxiously awaiting to find out who my Anesthesiologist would be.  When that familiar face came walking towards me, I immediately began to feel a little better.

They were ready for me.

With a quick injection of the drunk-state-of-mind inducing medicine, I was staring back up at the same ceiling again.  Another shot of Propofol, and I was out like a light.

Dr. Grodin informed me that it was absolutely crucial that I stay as still as possible during the entire procedure.  With that order, and despite being under twilight anesthesia, I was completely still and quiet the entire time.  Before I knew it, it was all over and my gurney was heading back out of the OR.  The vitreous gel was removed from my entire retina without causing any more tears.  He removed all of the subretinal fluid, flattened out my retina, and treated the detached area and all of the lattice on the periphery of my eye with the laser to adhere my retina to the back of my eye. Done and done, success.

The beginning of THE FACE DOWN

I had about 5 minutes before the nurse told me that I needed to put my head face down on a table.  I hadn't even changed out of the hospital gown yet.  She read the rundown of instructions and medications to us, patiently answering all of our questions. 

My first attempt at trying to manage doing a normal activity while face down: changing back into my clothes.  

The wheelchair arrived and I'm pushed down to the car.  I climbed in and grabbed my travel block, only to find that using this contraption would be far more difficult then I thought.  One uncomfortable ride home later, I walk into our apartment, kneel down, and lower myself onto the ground.

I just laid there.  For about 10 minutes.  I had no interest in moving.


Then I moved up into my chair.



A little while later, I laid back down on the floor, this time in my snuggie.  

Snuggie plus floor.

For the next 2 weeks, I come with a warning label.  

Don't mess with my IOP

Pudding was the easiest thing to eat.  But eating regular food was feasible in very small bites.  Up to this moment I have yet to experience any major pain.  The worst part about this whole thing is definitely the positioning.  My neck is already becoming extremely sore.  However, my chair does come with a little tray table that I can eat off of, play board games on, read, or use my phone on.

Yum, dinner!

I'm almost like a horse with blinders on because I can only see whats directly in front of me on the tray.  My handy angled mirror does allow me to see a person sitting in front of me or the TV though.  

Sleeping will be the most difficult I think, especially with my eye patch. 

Zzzzz....

I can't wait until my Dr.'s appointment in the morning to have the eye patch removed since it's making it even harder to get in a comfortable position.  

Silver lining, surgery day: It's hard to not to feel good when I have had such a large outpouring of support from my closest family and friends, as well as friends I haven't spoken to in a while.  THANK YOU ALL!

Dictated by Tasha
Typed by Ryan