Several have asked how my strabismus surgery went. I had eye muscle surgery in May…lateral rectus recession. My eyes had been drifting a lot more prior to the surgery, and had become increasingly unstable and uncomfortable. It was difficult to hold a focus to read. My eyes are much more comfortable since the surgery, less tension, and I get a lot less headaches now. My eyes don’t drift as spastically as before surgery. They still drift though, especially at close range. I still can’t focus to read very long. My eyes look straight, but one eye sees things rotated slightly clockwise, the other slightly counter-clockwise since the surgery, and things appear higher with one eye than the other, so it was a bit of a trade-off I think.
My surgeon had told me at my one month checkup that I would likely need medial rectus resection in the fall. But when I went back last month, he didn’t seem to think that would help and made prism glasses instead. The prism glasses didn’t help either. Things were very distorted with them, and I saw two images of everything. (Update 11-15-05: I’ve since gotten prism glasses from my local optometrist, and I can see out of them much better. I have to hold things very close to my face to read with them, and can’t read for a long time like I’d hoped. But am trying to adjust to them so they will be more useful. I’ll keep you posted.)
I think if I had been able to get help sooner it may have been easier to turn things around. I’ve had strabismus over 50 years and it’s gradually gotten worse. One of my main goals with this blog is that others might find the help they need early. Not that I’ve given up. I’m grateful for the help I’ve gotten and continue to do vision therapy and work to improve my eyes. I’m learning that success may not be measured in whether I am able to read a lot again, but in what I’m able to make out of the vision I have at this point in my life.
[Update September 24, 2007: On April 12, 2007, I shared an update about my second strabismus surgery done on January 4, 2007. There are links in that post about problems I was having related to my first surgery in 2005. There is also a link at the bottom of that post to my June 23, 2007 post which updates my latest progress. I still have difficulty maintaining a focus to read. I still have difficulty finding things in a page, and I still have difficulty finding locations I'm not familiar with when driving. But I am thankful for the progress I've made. You can fill in the gaps of my story by clicking the Lois' story link in the sidebar.]
George, thats very encouraging that you still have good alignment after 2 years. I think at the moment I expect to wake up any morning soon and find my eye has drifted into the corner again, I think its because I am so happy with the results & its all quite novel for me to see my eye straight, I am hoping in the coming months that the worry about my eye drifting again will go to the back of my mind & I will just get used to the fact my eye is straight & may well stay that way for a while. I will deal with the squint coming back as & when necessary.
Its now 15 days post op, the healing is going well the redness has almost gone, no-one would know now I had been through the surgery unless I told them. The irritation is 99% better, my eye just feels a little dry & gritty occasionally.
Trish, beleive me I was terrified about the operation, I had to weigh up how my squint made me feel against a few days of pre-op anxiety & some post op discomfort. I promise you I would go through it all again so it cant have been that bad, the feeling when I look in the mirror now is so worth it. Even when my eye was all sticky, red & sore I couldnt stop smiling every time I looked at it !!
I live in the UK so had my op done on our NHS (which is why I had to wait a while) The surgeon was very positive about getting an improvement from the outset. Also he knew how nervous I was and was very encouraging, he made me feel very comfortable – he let me ask as many questions I wanted as many times as I wanted and was very patient with me. I trusted him absolutely. Of course he told me all the risks but he was very keen I go ahead, he said he could see how it affected me even just speaking to him (no eye contact, head tilting etc)
Of course its an entirely personal decision weather to go ahead with the surgery. In my case through, like George its proving to be one of the best decisions I have made.
My husband has just started a new job so I have never met his colleagues, he came home the other day asking if I wanted to go to his works Christmas party early December, for the first time in a few years my first thought was ‘yay a party’ – before the op it would have been ‘hmmmmmmm, a party that will be nice but on the downside I have to meet new people’ a works party may seem like something so small but to me it will make such a big difference.
Greta, its also very encouraging that you are happy with the outcome of your surgery a year on. Its good to be able to share this with people who have gone / are going through the same. Thank you to everyone who posts here. Its been a big help.
Trish:
I hope others will respond to you with their experiences. Once you make your initial appointment with the opthmologist who specializes with strabismus surgery, you can get an evaluation of your condition. Once you are satisfied with your doctor’s experience and barring existing complications, schedule a pre-op appointment. You can set up the procedure at the start of the school Christmas holiday. By the start of the year, your eye redness will be down by 70% if you have no adjustable sutures. You will need to wear special sunglasses for about two weeks also because of the sensitivity to light. You will also need to use eye drops before the procedure, and for about a month after. I went to a trade show two weeks after my procedure and could look straight into other’s eyes for the first time in my adult life, and I was 62. It will do wonders for your confidence. Remember that a deviation of 10 diopters or less is considered cosmetically straight. I tried to patch my good eye to strengthen my weak deviated eye before the procedure, but it made it much worse for me. If you have just one eye that is deviated, you will have a choice of doing both eyes. The doctors say that give you the best chance of coordinated alignment. Also you may be offered to have general anesthesia or local, adjustable sutures or fixed. I had general anesthesia, one eye operated, non adjustable sutures. At your age, you may choose differently. Make a list of questions to take with you like how many adult strabismsus procedures has he/she done, for how long, success rate, does he recommend adjustables or not, both eyes or one, general or local (most recommend general and both eyes). Your deviation and other conditions will affect their recommendations. If you have insurance, make sure the doctor requests approval to correct a medical condition such as double vision, not for cosmetic reasons. It may take several weeks to get the approval, so I would start soon. The insurance companies will not approve procedures for cosmetic reasons. Please keep us posted.
Hi, hope everyone is well. This is just a quick 28 days later update.
I cant belive its 4 weeks since the op – all the pre-op anxiety & now we are a month post-op !
I finished the eyedrops (yesterday) its looking good. My eye is looking very straight cosmetically – I can now see the slight inturn a little bit more now the redness has almost gone, this does not bother me at all though – I’ve passed myself on the photo test – I have had pictures taken looking straight at the camera (something I have not done for at least 5 or 6 years !) I very much doubt anyone else would notice it unless I told them. The healing process has gone really well, I am very pleased.
The worry that I will suddenly wake us & it will have turned out again is subsiding, I am not cehcking it every time I am near a mirror now – I think i’ve accepted all is well & will make the most of not having my eye to worry about until such a time in the hopefully distant future when it starts to drift out again.
I still have the tiny stitches in the outside corner of the white of my eye – I find them slightly irritating from time to time, sometimes it feels like I have a lash in my eye. The surgeon said they would take a few weeks to disolve (he said anything between 3 weeks – 6 weeks is normal) I hope they go soon, apart from that i’d say I am almost there !
I hope your ok Trish, if you have come to a decision to have the surgery I wish you all the very best.
Good report, PJ. It has been two years for me and I am still happy about it.
Note for Lois:
How are you doing? I hope things are continuing to improve. We miss your input. It seems that this site is petering out. There is a lot of talk on the other site, but I cannot participate on it. I wish I could. My strabismus procedure has made such an impact on my life that I wish to help everyone I can.
George
Thanks for asking, George. Overall I’m doing great. My cataracts seem to trigger my strabismus into double vision, mostly hypertropia. But weren’t bad enough for surgery at last visit 6 months ago. Have appt with ophthalmologist tomorrow, but I am not thinking they have worsened that much.
As for the other site, I am not sure which site you are referring to. I will email you about that. We need you wherever you can help. I want to assist you to get to all areas that you desire to help with!
Lois
OK, Lois. I like discussions and sharing experiences if I can master signing on. As it is, I do not even open my strabismus e-mails because I cannot respond to them. I have a rule of thumb. Generally If I cannot do something not essential the first time with or without help, I do not try again. I have no patience for things that are not intuitive. I guess I am too old to learn these new technologies and toys. For you, I will hide my thumb this once for a worthy cause and all your service to the community of strabismus sufferers. On a side note, the day after my cataract surgery, I could read the Bible without glasses and without squinting after wearing thick (bottleglass) glasses my entire life. Now my vision is not as good, but my doctor said a film may develop over them which he can clear. I have not gone to my one year follow up. In my case, I see double all the time as I have my entire life if I use my right eye.
Thanks so much George. We will work on it via email.
Lois
I just had my 3rd surgery. I am 40. The first was when I was 3, and the second was when I was 32. It has been 5 days since surgery. My eye is still a little out. That is ok for now. I am wondering though, my eyelid will only open about 1/2 way even with concentrated effort. It also feels very very strained to the point of pain to look to the right or left with that eye. It really bothers me to drive or to look around. I don’t see swelling really, just a lot of red and yellow on the eye, and the conjunctiva, the eye covering seems a little big. The dr said that was swollen and it would go back to normal. It also feels like I have a contact lens in, which I don’t, and that it feels like it will fall out. Did anyone else experience any of this? I don’ t remember it with the other surgeries.
Hi Michelle
I am now 5 weeks post op & all is well, the stitches are still there in the outside corner of my eye but look like they are starting to dislolve – they are now just a very small grey bump, I’d say thats the only evidence now of the op – apart from the cosmetic improvement of course. My eye is still a bit pink but only as if I had rubbed it a little, no-one would notice or think anything of it. I have been told that it could a little pink for about 12 weeks after the op so thats not a worry. My first surgery was at the age of 4, this was my second I am now 36 – I didnt really know what to expect afterwards, I think even when the surgeon tells you how it will feel its hard to imagine. I actually expected it to be much worse than it was.
For a week. possibly 2 post op the eye was quite closed compared to the other, its probalby only this last week its fully opened – I had a nasty cold last week so that may not have hepled, that always makes my eyes a little puffy & small.
I have never worn contact lenses so dont know what they feel like – I can relate to the feeling that something is in the eye though. my eye was also quite sticky for the best part of a week after.
I’d say my eye lid was a bit swollen for a week at least. My eye also felt very tight when I moved it (not painfull) it was quite a wierd feeling.
Thats the best way I can describe how things felt after the op. Hope that helps a bit.
Michelle:
Like PJ said, I have seen posts from several people that say that if they had adjustable sutures that it felt like there was something foreign in their eyes-the sutures, of course. Also many have said that it takes longer to heal with more swelling, and it takes longer for the redness to disappear. It think this is all normal. For two weeks while my eyes were red and swollen, and I did not have adjustable sutures, I thought that my eye was overcorrected. When the swelling went down and most of the redness disappeared, I could then see my right eye was straight. Make sure you use all your drops religiously until they are gone. Do not look up into lights when you try to put them in. It took me about a week for the swelling to go away and about three weeks for all the redness to go away. I used my drops for at least one month.
Good evening to all.
Wow! After reading many post I am happy, excited and scared all at the same time. I’m a 34y/o female who all suffers from lazy eye.
The left eye underwent surgery when I was 7 y/o and doc suggested I should have another soon after. However my mom was too scared and didn’t go thru with it. My surgeon did a great job with that one surgery and from 7 till 19 the eye stayed in straight alignment. Since then however and thru my college years I have had classmates mention to me that my eye goes upward. When I was a teacher my students didn’t know who I was looking at and then as a I changed careers and would conduct presentations and one on one consultations I noticed people rubbing and closing their eyes or looking the other way.
All that always bothered me but I never looked into it. I am very confident so I decided to deal with it by ignoring those people. However I am never able to make eye contact nor walk in a room able to feel I can look at a distance because I know the eye turns up. I also rather skip out on going out to eat, which I love to do. But I avoid it so that I don’t have to look at the waiter.
So with all that said. I am having surgery tomorrow morning. YES!!!! The doctor mentioned that I have entry level alignment problem. That is so easy to fix. So what he is planning on doing is loosening up the good eye muscle (the right eye)so that it can work with the lazy eye and they could be aligned.
I don’t understand how that works. I have spoken to him and he reassures me all will be fine. He has had it done himself and he looks great! He shared his personal experiences with me and I feel I am in good hands. He is the head of the hospital and also a professor. He specialized in Adult Strabismus and has conducted so many adult surgeries.
I am very nervous. But after reading so many posts I will go on with it because everyone’s experiences are different. I don’t see double, but I do only see with the right eye. I don’t use both eyes. All doctors have ever told me is that I need to use glasses before I totally loose vision on the bad eye. So I have worn glasses but my good eye is the dominant one and I still don’t use the bad eye the left eye. I also get headaches in the bad eye area and I don’t trust my side vision on the left eye at all.
Oh and lastly my eye sight is 20/20 on both eyes. Night vision is not that good though. And headaches are almost always present. Left eye pretty much does what it wants and people look away from me the minute I make eye contact. They don’t speak to me either. It’s like I’m from another planet. On pictures it’s the luck of the draw. Sometimes my eyes are focused in other pics they are not. When I look in the mirror they are straight but I have to concentrate. Family and friends do notice it too but they don’t know the inner feelings of having a lazy eye. Nor do they know the medical issues that come with a lazy eye.
I am very nervous. So nervous, that I have asked so many questions and I have done so much research. I have found the best doctor in the world. And I will post everything I undergo. I pray I am another success story. I pray that all goes well. I pray that the eyes are aligned and that I can finally use both eyes and make eye contact. I pray that the headaches go away.
My mother will be with me tomorrow morning and she is very encouraging. I am very nervous. I have prayed about this for many years and here it is now. I can actually have something done about it.
I will say a prayer tonight and I will leave the surgery in God’s hands and pray that he watched over me and the doctor throughout the entire surgery.
Good night to all. I will try to post something tomorrow after the surgery. If I can’t then I will as soon as possible.
Emilie
The time has come. As I get ready for the major procedure my stomach is feeling weezy. I know it’s my nerves. I am very nervous.
I have chosen stay awake during the procedure so the doctor will only numb the eye he will work on.
Okay, I need to go.
Good afteronon everyone,
I am back home! Done with the surgery. Truly it was a very smooth experience. Now it’s all about awaiting for 6 hours to pass to remove the patch. I have the drops for tonight as well. So it’s all about waiting for now.
Now It’s time for a nap, I do feel tired and sleepy,
Emilie
Emilie:
You have gone through the identical experiences that many of us have. People looking away, loss of self confidence, extreme nervousness before the surgery, etc… I was so nervous that I postponed the procedure for about 6 years from the day it was scheduled. Your eyes will be very red and swollen (depending if you had adjustable sutures, longer) for about one week. The swelling will be gone in about one week. The redness will be 70% gone in two weeks and altogether gone in one month if you did not have adjustables. I do not know about vertical deviation, but for horizontal, up to 10 diopters your eyes are considered cosmetically straight. Anyway, congratulations for overcoming your apprehension. I think you will be very pleased because you chose a surgeon who does a lot of adult strabismus.
Good evening everyone,
Update: Feeling good, just a little sleepy still. Took a nap earlier and now I am about to get ready for bed again. However I will remove my patch first.
Here it goes. Give me a few seconds and I will share the overall appearance of the eye and what it’s doing.
Okay for all of you who have gone thru this you know. Okay for those who haven’t here it goes. The eye is teary and it’s shut. I am about to get a cloth and place it on the eye with cold water. Basically there is a little bit of bruising under the eye area but that’s it.
I will post any changes later.
I truly hope that this will help others considering surgery in the future.
Emilie
Good Luck Emilie, I realy hope you are pleased with the results.
Regarding the confidence thing, I can totally relate to all of that. I never let it stop me going out, socialising & having fun but the thought of my eye was always lurking in the corner of my mind. Whenever I spoke to people I would be so concious about what angle I was stood at, I would also look around alot so as not to fix a gaze. I must have done a fairly good job of hiding it to some extent as some people I have now mentioned it to said they didnt actually realise I had a lazy eye (quite a few had noticed it). I was very lucky though to have great family & freinds who thought mothing of it, no one has ever been cruel to me or said anything nasty, people I spoke to who had noticed said it was just something they noticed once or twice then kind of forgot about, it was just part of me as far as they were concerned. One thing a couple of people have said though is they didnt think I liked them when we first met, I think that was to do with the eye contact side of things, maybe they thought I had no interest in what they had to say ? Luckily though they gave me another chance & we ended up being great freinds.
It was becoming such hard work trying to hide it, the releif now is massive ! I still tend to stand at a certain angle when talking to people but I think its out of habit, its such a nice feeling when I catch myself doing it & realise I dont need to. I will then face someone staight on and hold eye contact. Its great. My husband said he has noticed subtle changes in my confidence, its not like I suddenly think i’m beatiful or anything but I hold my head up a little higher, smile more, just little things like that. Before my operation I was happy to fade into the background & not really be noticed.
Its made such a difference & its great
)
George,
Yes I am like many people who suffer from eyes that aren’t aligned. I went in one day and knew it was something I had to get done.
I was scared but my first thought was that I wouldn’t let fear take over me. So I went for it.
Today is the first day after surgery. This morning I had to drive so I did. I went and did one errand and I’m back home resting. I feel a little sick but that’s normal. Yes the area under the eye is swollen and the inner part of my eye is red. The eye ball feels a little pain.
The doctor’s nurse called this morning to check up on me and I shared everything I was feeling with her and she said I was doing good. For me to relax and get some rest oh and one thing she did share with me was to not look in the mirror too much. She said relax and let your eyes adjust and let them get use to what just happened.
My doctor’s staff and entire team was awesome. I am so blessed to have found him. If it wasn’t for his professionalism and patience to explain everything I wouldn’t have done it. He even took the time to consult with me the day of surgery before anything got started.
I am about to get some rest. My post op appointment is next Thursday 11th of November.
Hope my experience helps those who are still considering surgery.
To George and all who have had this surgery, and for those who haven’t. I love this site. I feel so comfortable posting my experience with others who understand.
Emilie
George & P.J & others who have experienced surgery.
Question: I was researching how to get rid of the bruise under the eye on the internet this weekend. What I found was that the cold towels help with the swelling and to help lock the blood from spreading. Then after that has occurred that warm towels will then help open up the capillaries and the bruise will heal faster.
Please let me know if there is anything either of you did to help speed up the healing process.
Right now I’m in the beginning of the 4th day after my surgery. The redness is almost gone and the bruise is confined to one area under the eye and it’s dark purple. It appears to be healing but I would like to speed if if possible.
Please let me know your experiences. I have two functions to attend this weekend with the family and I have pictures scheduled in about 3 1/2 weeks. Which makes that about 4 total weeks after the surgery.
Share your experience. Please.
By the way P.J. I feel that as an adult I have been discriminated more so then any other time of my life. I too am confident and I love life but I want to be able to look at people in the eye without them trying to figure out which eye is looking at them. That is what bothers me most oh and picture taking. I never know how they will turn out and I’m always so nervous. So I pray that at my visit this Thursday that my eyes are aligned.
Emilie
Hi Emilie
I wouldnt worry about the healing too much, at 2 weeks post op my eye was still fairly red but I would have doubted anyone would have thought too much of it, they may have thought I had a touch of conjunctivitus or a stye, if your redness is subsiding after 4 days I think your doing well. I have some pictures I could e.mail you if you like (I dont know if there is a way to post them here – if there is please let me know how someone) They show my eye 1 day post op, then at 2 weeks later & just over 3 weeks later. I didnt have any bruising outside of my eye, like any brusing though I imagine it will get better day on day.
Regarding the confidence thing, I am lucky in my work as in that I work for a small engineering company I helped to set up 12 years ago, I knew the owner he is a freind so my eye has never been an issue regards discrimination etc at work. I must admit though had I been faced with an interview situation I dont know how I would have coped with that. I felt confident within my own comfort zone (close family & freinds) anything outside of that was quite hard work for me.
I hated having my picture taken, I would always imagine my eye would look really obvious & dread seeing them, it was always a relief when it turned out ok…. I became an expert at getting into position as soon as a camera came out (so I was at a good angle)
PJ,
Thanks for the reply! It has been another week since I wrote and things are much better. Most of the redness is unseen now as it is under my eyelid even though that is still not quite as open as the other. Getting closer though. My eye does not hurt anymore when looking around and the tightness is much better. The eyes seem lined up much better and the doc says I may be without prism once I finish healing. The only issue I now notice is that when I am tired my eye goes inward. I am used to the opposite and I find it really disturbs my vision. Luckily this is only happening late at night thus far. Anyway thanks for the help and reassurance. I appreciate it!
My right eye has a slight inwards slant and I’ve become really self conscious about it in the past few years. I’m 36.
I’m unable to look straigt ahead and sometimes not even aware of it but others sure are. It appears that I’m bored, uninterested, rude, and not listening to what others are saying.
Has anyone here paid CASH for their operation? I am uninsured.
John:
All of us with strabismus have had the self awareness experience. I have seen people look away and laugh as they walk away talking to someone else. In my case, in order to not look straight at someone’s eyes, I look down slightly away from their eyes and I am sure the women thought I was looking at their chest all the time. What a personal embarasment! I had insurance, so I cannot directly answer your question. However, I can tell you that most of us spend at least 20 thousand dollars on a car we use for a few years and lose about 15 thousand on it when we trade it in, so why not spend far less on something that is really bothering us that we can fix for a long time if not for the rest of our lives? I have been following this site for 5 years, first to get advise and courage to do the procedure, then for the last two years since my procedure to help any way that I can from personal experience. I want to thank Lois once again for starting this blog in 2005 that has helped me and so many others.
Hello,
I went to my post op visit today and my eyes are straight!!!!!! I am so happy that the surgery was a success……
PJ, I am not sure about posting pics on this website. I haven’t tried. But you are so lucky that you didn’t bruise.
I am healing pretty fast. My doctor told me I look good. The tech did all the exams and my eyes are perfectly aligned.
To everyone, Surgery was 100% worth going thru. The redness and the bruise are no big deal.
My eyes are straight. I told the doctor that it felt like a dream. I can finally see people in the eyes and not worry about one eye wandering. It truly feels like a dream.
My doctor and his tech suggested I relax and go on about my day to day activities and to not think about the eye. They said for me to let the eye continue to adjust. My next visit is in 4 months!!!!
I am so so so happy………
George,
I totally agree with you! I truly appreciate this site. So many adults suffer thru this wandering, lazy eye struggle. We learn to live with it yet it truly bothers us. We learn to adjust to our obvious difference from other with straight eyes. This site has truly helped me. I found this site the night before my surgery. And after reading all the posts I knew I was going to go for it. Life is too short and if the surgery can help align my eyes for 5 years, 10 years or for the rest of my life, then it’s worth it. Personally I would go under the knife again if I need to in the future. So thank you for this site, it’s very encouraging!!!!!
Second comment regarding using cash to pay for this surgery!!!! We spend tons more money on cars and clothes and dinner that if you add all that up it would more then the surgery,. Just an opinion. I would suggest researching in your city and getting a plan going to get proper medical attention. Good luck John……….
Good night to all!
My parents had surgery done on my eyes when I was ten years old. My eyes were straight for about 35 years. If I could find a surgeon as good as Dr Page, My first eye surgeon, I would go get an exam and have surgery if he/she thought it would straighten my eyes and last for 15-18 years. At the age of 67 now, I am not sure that kind of wonderful, successful surgery is possible for me. I have no idea what the cost of the surgery would be either.
I have struggled with self esteem and self worth off and on as my eyes have gradually gone back the crossed state they were when I was a very young child, but did have some wonderful years while they were completely straight. I do think however, that even when I was a teen I had been wounded by the first 10 years of my life when my parents tried so hard to protect me, but other children, and adults looks and comments really hurt my esteem. Now I know that though it can be just as painful, having these wandering eye muscles certainly sorts out those shallow unfeeling people in a very short time. I also have to let go of worry about how my eyes are…when I see other people who have far greater problems it really puts my eye problem in perspective.
Leslie
Leslie
Leslie:
I had my strabismus surgery when I was 62 in 1957 in France. I also had my first surgery when I was 11. I too suffered the embarassment you describe. I had a few years of relative straightness between 18 and 24. But then it drifted out continually until about 2005 I was going to have it done, but chickened out. When the deviation went to 45 diopters of exotropia, I could not take it any more since I could not even look at myself in the mirror. I went to a surgeon with a lot of adult strabismus experience, got references, and went for it. I had insurance, but with a 6000 deductible, I wound up paying for it basically. To make it easier, I had hernia surgery the same year so at least that was covered. I did not want to wait until other problems cropped up. I and all the others before you have gone through the self esteem issues and every other experience you refer to. When you are young, they tease you. When you are an adult, they avoid eye contact and some look back and snicker after they walk away. At our age, we need some comfort and friends. After two years, I am very pleased still. If you have read my earlier posts, I had general anesthesia, non adjustable sutures. Procedure lasted 45 minutes. Outpatient procedure. In at 8, on the way home around 12. No pain whatsoever, no eyepatch. Very red and somewhat swolen. for about one to two weeks. Just had eyedrops to use for a month. I would be glad to answer any other questions. I know other are trolling this site. They may have input also.
Leslie:
I re-read my last post and I said I had my surgery when I was 62 in 1957. Made no sense. I was 62 when I had my last one done in 2008, but had my first one when I was 11 in France in 1957. Sorry.
hey there I’m 28 and also have had strabismus for as long as I can remember. I had 2 surgeries when I was in elementary school one on my left eye ( the bad one) then a second one in both my eyes but never really got around to do the treatment afterwards so my eye went back. I currently have no Insurance so I just want to find some one who can tell me the cost of the operation , please let me know how much it costed you to do such operation. thanks my email is caesargochi@yahoo.com
I really appreciate the stories and advice posted here. I don’t have strabismus but my 8 year old daughter does. She has had two surgeries now, one at age 4 and another at age 6. Based on what I read here and elsewhere I suppose she can expect further surgeries in the future. It gives me hope about her future to read about the courage and success of the people who have posted here. Thanks.
Hi everyone. A very happy new year to you all. I hope you are all well.
Just a little update regarding my surgery. I went for my 3 month post op check up yesterday, the surgeon is throughly delighted with both the result & the fact that I am very pleased. He noted the overcorrection was a little more than he had aimed for and my eye is turning in every so slightly now, I told him I could see it but it does not worry me that other people will, I think I only notice it because I look for it (It really is a tiny inturn). He said if I was happy with it then its all good, that was his aim. He also said the advantage of the inturn is that it will buy me time (possibly years) as my eye will inevitibly turn out again – he said he would expect it to be quite some time before it becomes noticable again.
I have to go back in 3 months time to see the orthoptist to have measurements taken again after that I should be discharged from the eye hospital & hopefully wont be back there for many years. Keeping my fingers crossed….
This surgery really is the best gift I could have wished for…..its made me look forwad to this coming year so much. I feel very lucky that its worked out
)
The very best of luck to all of you. I hope 2011 brings all of us good things !
PJ:
I am glad to see that you are staying in touch. I suppose the natural thing to do for most is have the procedure done and disappear. It made such a difference for me that I wanted to continue sharing my experience. I languished for over 40 years with the condition that for me it was a life changing experience. I wish I had done it years earlier. It has been over two years, now. Then I had two cataracts removed. Thanks for staying in touch. For those who are considering the procedure in the near future, your surgeon will not guarantee perfect results, but certain improvement. Perfection is half luck, the rest with the experience of your surgeon. When I was last evaluated over a year ago, I was off about 6 diopters, but still cosmetically straight. Considering I was exotropic by 45 diopters, good enough. Hope it stays.
George, I feel its is quite important for me to stay in touch seeing as this forum greatly helped me when I was anxious / unsure about the surgery. Like yourself If my experience can offer others some encouragement that would make me very happy. Ultimately the decision to go through with the surgery lies with each individual, however reading peoples experiences that the surgery was not so scary / painful will hopefully help others to make the decision to go ahead (if their surgeons feel its worthwhile). Knowing it has worked out for others helped me greatly. My surgeon told me that the result they were looking for was ‘improvement’ rather than a perfect alignment, it seems I have been very lucky its worked out so well but to be honest even the slightest improvement would still have made the whole thing worth while for me. Just for it to look a little better than it did before…..
It also seems clear we are fully aware we cant allow ourselves to take good eye alignment for granted. As I said my surgeon is hopeful it will look good for sometime. It is however a cosmetic fix which will eventually become undone. One thing is for sure though should I have to go through the surgery again I will be far more confident about the whole thing & alot less anxious than I was this last time, obviosuly my first surgery was aged 4 so I was a little too young to remember anything about it.
You say you wish you had done it years earlier. That is also my only regret, not having the guts to do something about it before I got married just under 3 years ago, it would have took so much worry out of the whole ‘wedding photographs’ thing. Luckily we still got some great pics so it all turned out well.
Maybe I will have to insist we renew our vows so we can have another great day & do the whole photographs thing again, this time without the anxiety about which angle I am stood at, lol
PJ:
GA (good attitude-just made it up) Incidentally, those are my initials, so I have no choice in the matter. Also, I am a descendant of Alexander the Great (so they tell me), and that is AG (all good). First time I have used textology (I think I just made up that word also to describe the art of texting). Sorry for the frivolity on a serious matter, but sometimes we need to laugh, even at ourselves. You have a GP (good plan).
George, you are such a GE! (Great Encourager) Alexander the Great…wow! Very fitting. Thanks for being here.
Lois
Lois:
I want to contribute on the other site, but I do not know where to post the comments and how to submit them. This one is so easy! Right now there is someone who has the almost identical condition I had with exotropia of 45 diopters in the right eye and wants advice and support.
I understand, George. Your input is valuable here and i am so thankful that you are able to help so many people through this one. But I’ll email you about the other one again.
Hello Everyone. I just had surgery 3 days ago. My left eye would drift outwards. The day after the surgery i took the patch off, and was horrified…my left eye went straight in to my nose. I spent the past three days being very depressed and crying non stop. Im so glad i found this website. There is not alot of info on any of this stuff. Im hopeful that my eye with turn to where it is supposed to be, like others have reported on here. Also i was wondering if anyone had vision therapy after there surgery. The vision in my left eye is very poor, and i would love to be able to use both eyes to see.
Hi Brooklynn
Try not to worry too much until you have been for your follow up appointment. I am certainly no expert on this but I & I believe many others are told the eye can move and settle into position some time afterwards. Also if your eye is as red mine was (very bloodshot / bright red) for the first few days it may look much worse than it is. If it does not settle into a good position hopefully they can do something to help and correct it.
Do you wear glasses / oontact lenses ? On my last visit I was told that my glasses actually correct my slight overcorrection very nicely so that may make a difference again when you have started to heal. I have never had vision therapy (since I was a very small child) it is not something offered as standard toi adults here in the UK. My right eye vision is very poor, I can see shapes etc & people but could never read anything with it unless it was in 5ft high letters, lol. Luckily my left eye seems to make up for it, its a super-eye I think ! I was born with the poor vision in my right eye so have never really known any different I do sometimes wonder what it would be like to see with both eyes, I am curious as to what its like to experience all these 3D Films / TV that seem to be all the rage at the moment.
Hi I have just had a squint opp in the uk ( 4 days ago ) I am blind in this eye and the eye had drifted outwards ,for many years ,so far it seems to have gone well and looks pretty straight .Like yours was ,the eye is very itchy at the moment ,and the temptation to rub it is unberable .Can I ask how long was it for you before the eye stopped being red and swollen ,I know i’m a bit impatient ,but am also excited to have 2 normal looking eyes agai .many thanks Rob
Hi Rob
Glad it went well. My eye took about a week to 10 days feel better (the itchyness / soreness was never unbearable just a little annoying) it should start to look much better in a week or so too.
From time to time I felt like something was in my eye, that went on for quite a few weeks and it felt a little wierd when my stitches started to disolve about 8 weeks after the op (you didnt say if you had adjustable sutres or not). The redness subsided properly after about 8-10 weeks – altough after about 3 weeks post op I doubt anyone else would have noticed it was red unless they looked close up, it got better day on day.
Its 4 months since my op now & my eye is still a little sensitive, If I get shampoo or anything in it it goes very red & (it dosent hurt or itch though) it only lasts for a few minutes then is fine again. When I went for my 12 week post op my surgeon said that was perfectly normal & could go on for a year or so, I am fine with that as long as I know all is well.
Be patient & DONT RUB !! In a week or so you will really see the results & all that soreness / itchyness will have been worth it. I guess everyone heals differently but if your experience is similar to mine you will see such a difference very soon
Hi Pj ,thanks so much for sharing your experience ,I am realy pleased how it has gone so far ,the itching etc is not as bad today ,so hopfully I’m through the worst of that ,the eye itself looks worse than it is but I’m sure it will be fine in a few weeks time .The surgen used disovable stitches ,so not sure how long they will stay in there for ,I think you said 8 weeks for yours ?I know its nothing to do with squint surgery ,but I have very heavy scaring on the eye (which I have had for many years ) so when the eye has settled down after a couple of months ,I have been made a contact lens to colour match my good eye ,so eventually I should at least have 2 good looking eyes lol even though I have vision in only one .Next thing will be to decide whether to have the cornea graft or not ……but that can wait for now ! many thanks once again .regards Rob
Robert:
I did not have sutures, so I did not experience the itching, but I have read most everyone else with sutures telling the same story. I had the strabismus procedure for extreme exotropia (45 diopters) done in my right eye about 26 months ago now and while I have not gone back for follow up for a long time, they appear very straight. However, if I force looking through both eyes at the same time, I see double. Up to 10 diopters divergence is considered cosmetically straight, which is what I was mainly looking for.
I appreciate reading everyone’s posts. I had surgery about a year and half ago. I had both eyes done at the same time. It was a very good experience. My eyes are cosmetically straight but not perfect. I am happy with the results though. My problem now is double vision. I have always had poor vision in my left eye. I have been able to suppress my left eye and use my right eye for most everything. But now if I use my right eye for anything but reading I have double vision. I am unable to suppress the left eye now. I have difficulty doing most things especially driving using my left eye. I have tried covering my left eye and using my right eye, but that does away with peripheral vision. This is very frustrating.
Rick:
I know exactly what you are saying .I am lucky in a way. Since I have had a very lazy right eye for 60 years and hardly used it, I can still suppress it so I only see double when I force seeing with both eyes. My eyes are also cosmetically straight, which is what I wanted, but because they are not perfect (about 6 diopters divergent), I see double. I was told that the procedure would improve my alignment, but that I may see double. Apparently that is normal unless the alignment is perfect.
Hello all! It has been almost a year since my last surgery and I am still very pleased. I feel a lot better about myself and the depression that was my constant companion has been reduced to the status of faint memory. I never experienced double vision or any other ill effects that some people report. T do have a slight blind spot on my right side that wasn’t there before. It is nothing more than a minor nuisance and only mentioned because nobody else has reported this. I have actually regained some depth perception and I understand that is extremely rare. My eyes are a lot less tired at the end of the day and my general quality of life is much improved. My only regret is that I waited so long to do this.
Robert:
I my case, I had the strabismus surgery first, then two cataract procedures about 6 months later.
i feel the same way you feel. i feel like am not good enough to be with anyone because of my eyes. my eyes are straight most of the times but one eye will drift occasionally. most people cant tell i have strabismus becasue i can keep my eyes straight but i always feel self-conscious and insecure.
i have had this problem since i was ten and now i am twenty years old. this has really taken a toll on my self-esteem and confidence. i am considering surgery but i am afraid. i dont know if it will work or if it wil affect my vision. on top of that i dont have insurance so i dont know where am gonna get the money.
Update for me – it’s been about five months now and everything is going well. My eyes are still straight and I don’t have any problems with double vision. I do notice it if I’m not wearing contacts and I look at something very close (within a foot), but since I’m blind without contacts or glasses, that does not happen too often..haha.
Here’s a very old photo:
http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/3303/mejk6.jpg
And here’s a shot from last night: http://i.imgur.com/4hznS.jpg
Just a little better, hmm?