Tell me about cataract surgery please!

[CheeseDreamz]

I am due to have cataract surgery in December after a retinal detatchment earlier in the year. Surgeon has said he is happy to do both eyes and try and get me to a -2 prescription. This will be a massive/life changing improvement for me as I am extremely shortsighted. I will still need glasses as I have an astigmatism and that won't be corrected (can't remember the reason - I should have taken notes).

I am fine with the surgery, not squemish and very excited to have such massively improved sight. But it feels to good to be true, so am also apprehensive. My two questions are;

1. how long after the first op do they do the second one?
2. what is recovery like?

I only had one eye done, just last year, with no change in prescription as mine is mostly astigmatism.

Recovery was fine. You seem to spend the entire day putting eye drops in. If the sun comes out when it's as low as this time of the year it can be uncomfortable as it seems to flash off the edge of the lens while everything is healing.

Washing my thick hair was challenging, as I had to keep it dry and avoid getting shampoo etc in it but I bought some stick on plastic face shields to use in the shower which worked a treat.

I've had both eyes done, but separately

Recovery was nothing, honestly, I woke up the next day and I could see!

I think I had about 6 weeks between the eyes. I didn't use an interim prescription (not driving) and managed ok in the gap with cheap reading glasses. I still can't read or use tech without readers (NHS doesn't give varifocal lenses afaik).

Recovery was fine for both. One eye has some pressure problems post-surgery, so I had an extra set of drops for that eye. Basically it was blurry for 24 hours max, and then the main hassle was remembering the timing for my eyedrops regime...you might want to set alarms.

It was great to see the world burst into colour again.

I had both done too, like pp prob about 6 weeks apart. Recovery was fine, just needed to be careful and remember the drops but all good!

The recovery is fine. The annoying thing is that you have one good eye and one rubbish eye until your next operation. They tell you to take the lense out of your specs on the good eye side but it is not ideal! I have an astigmatism and varifocals so although distance vision was wonderful in my good eye, I had to buy some cheap reading glasses to be able to see close up.

It is fantastic once both are done though!

Oh this is so heartening to hear. They have already suggested popping one lens out of my current specs, but also suggested an eye patch.

I have so many old/spare pairs of glasses I wonder if I could get a clear lens put in ahead of the op - that feels like tempting fate though. I will be very uneven though for a while, but 6 weeks is bearable after so many years!

Top tip - invest in a pair of cheap but large swimming goggles! Not those tiny ones Olympic swimmers wear but ones which sit on the bones of your face IYSWIM. I looked like an overweight, female, naked red baron but could shower every day (hair is very short so I look like a Muppet if I don't wash it every day!) Told my consultant at my 2 week checkup and she thought it was a brilliant idea....

I am 10 days past eye no 1 and am also astigmatism.

Thecsurgery was 100% painless and so quick my DH had beggared off for a coffee!
That day was manageable with rest and a couple of paracetamol. My eye watered a lot and felt gritty.

Taking the eye shield off and bathing the eye next morning was lovely and it felt a lot better. What amazed me was the difference in colour vision between the two eyes ( I know cataracts make for yellowing, but the difference! )

I got the lens for the doneveyevtaken out if my glasses and that's helped. I am having some difficulty with focusing, especially outdoors. My brain is adjusting. I'm not driving.

I see the consultant next week for a check up and to discuss the date for eye 2.

It feels like a long haul - maybe mid January before I get new glasses, but am.confident it will improve my eyesight a lot.

Slightly different for me but you did ask....I had a retinal detachment too. Had it repaired under GA. Recently went for follow up cataract surgery. Got into theatre and had a complete meltdown and couldn't go through with it. How anyone is awake and aware and let's a surgeon come at them with a scalpel and needles is beyond me. It was horrendous. The staff couldn't have been nicer though. I'm now waiting for an appointment to have it done under iv sedation at hospital. Surgeon did say though that it won't be a radical improvement in vision for me because the retinal detachment permanently damaged the eye.

No needles involved- eye anaesthetic is all eye drops and works 100%. And you can't see anything coming towards you at all, just bright lights. I'm pretty cowardly and didn't even have sedation.

At one point the lights were so pretty (turquoise and white, like a beautiful sea) I said to the surgeon " I've never taken LSD but I bet it's like this!

I had astigmatism and dreadful eyesight - +5.5 and +7.5. Getting cataracts was best thing that happened to me as they put bifocal lenses in and I now have what I call bionic eyes!

Op was fine - I did actually have a local anaesthetic for second as I couldn't keep my eye still when they did first op but it was just a small injection that I didn't really notice. Recovery was great- waking up after first op and being able to read alarm clock for first time was amazing!

Both me and DH have had both eyes done. No more glasses except for reading. We don't need them to drive. It's a fantastic operation and doesn't hurt.

@SleepingisanArt "an overweight, female, naked red baron" is a look i aspire to 🤣🤣, but thanks for the tip!

I think I'll be fine with the op, the detached retina one was more interesting than scary and I didn't have sedation for that.

@FuzzyPuffling - how long was it before you could work again?

@ZoeyBartlett if you don't mind me asking, how old were you when you had your cataract surgery? I have similar prescription. I am mid 50s.

I think it depends on what your job is. Constant screen work makes my eyes tired, gardening is limited for a bit, I'm not driving, but I feel perfectly well and healthy.
Maybe 1-2 weeks off work? ( "Do you need a sick note?" was the first question the nurse asked!)

Then that splash when the lens is pushed into place and it all stops swimming around.

Yep, went through pre-op and all prep. Had eye drops in etc. I just had a total panic attack and couldn't do it.

That must have been really unpleasant for you. I hope next time is much easier for you.

I had my cataracts done a few months apart in 2019.

First day post op was uncomfortable and lots of faffing with eye drops.

I had a few days off work as I went from very short sighted in both eyes to one eye with distance vision and one still short sighted.

I did the popping out of lens thing in my varifocals and again with some cheap reading glasses to give me options, but it took a while to get over the disorientation and be able to work with computer screens.

After the second eye was done it was much easier as I could see distance without glasses, and use reading glasses for close work, and was able to get new varifocals (much thinner and lighter - and cheaper) soon after.

I had three days off in total including the day of the op. I work at home on screens so I wasn’t going out and about. The second eye I had done on a Friday so by the Monday I was back working.

OP it’s generally very straightforward.
as you’re very shortsighted, you have a creased risk of high eye pressure afterwards.
It’s usually 6 weeks, but they’ll wait and see how the first eye went.

For me the worst part of recovery was the eye drops. DH was too squeamish to do it.

I actually loved one part of the surgery while was when they smashed the lens before removal, it looked like brightly coloured snowflakes

I had mine done last year and was super nervous, but it turned out way easier than I expected—quick and totally painless. The weirdest bit was the bright light during the op, but it didn’t hurt at all. My aunt actually had hers done at this oftalmologie iasi and said they were great, very reassuring staff and quick recovery too. One eye done one week, the other the next—she's thrilled with the result.