Suddenly

Knitting in the waiting room

In one moment your life can change dramatically. One unexpected moment. And as you will be reminded it could always have been worse, and it will get better. Statements which both comfort and frustrate. Though I am grateful. There is still the shock of it, the why me moments, the acceptance of it, the plan of treatment. The questions, concerns, hypotheticals. Quite simply, the retina has detached in both my eyes and they require surgery within a month of each other. (Those readers who are less squeamish may be inclined to watch this You tube clip of a Scleral Buckle.)

I noticed on the weekend that when I closed my right eye the vision in my left eye was blurry. I'd had floaters for quite some time, but this was not uncommon for me and I always mentioned it at my yearly optometrist appointments. Monday morning I rang the optometrist and couldn't get an appointment until Thursday afternoon. At my appointment I was diagnosed immediately with retinal displacement of my left eye. Within minutes the optometrist was on the phone to the hospital, inquiring whether they could operate on me that night. It was frighteningly sudden. In the end, I was expected at the hospital first thing this morning, with the possibility of surgery today.

I spent much of today in the waiting room at eye casualty, my sister beside me. Six pairs of eyes peered in to mine and it was confirmed that both eyes were affected and required surgery. The right being less damaged needed repairing first to ensure it torn no further. The left, the damage being done, will be improved by surgery, but will never be the same again, I will have permanent vision loss. The first surgery is now booked for Monday morning.

From Monday I will be stepping away from the blog for an undetermined length of time. (I have portraits to post on Sunday.) My vision is not expected to return to normal for up to six weeks. (No knitting!?!) So dear readers let me ask of you, if you have floaters in your eyes, or flashes of light (whether your eyes are open or closed), or see grey curtains across your vision please see an optometrist and mention them when you book your appointment. I will check in when I can to update you, here or via Facebook and Instagram.