i am going through the same thing . my doc has advised to take my 5 year old for surgery. i am soooo scared and get all emotional when i think of handing over my baby to the nurses. did u’r daughter get the surgery done? Is she allright now? did she need multiple surgeries? please reply . how long did it take to heal ?

My suggestion: get copies of all your prior ophthalmology records. Esp. surgeon’s operating notes, a must for re-operations.

Then go to the local medical school library and read a recent textbook on strabismus surgery. Google Books has a lot too for free. Fully understanding your condition is time-consuming, but will help you to advocate for yourself.

Remember your surgeon will never care a tenth as much as you do about your eyes. Also, get a surgeon who did a fellowship in Pediatric Strabismus (even for adult patients), not a generalist. Not that everyone who did a fellowship is necessarily talented, but there are a finite number of surgeries that your eyes can tolerate. 3 is a lot. So why not get the best guy you can find to take the first crack?

Gladys from Uganda

Your sons are cute! Thank you for sharing your story. I think this blog will help parents.

My daugthter was born 3 months premature. She was diagnosed with esotropia of the alternating kind.

I patched 2 hours a day (alternating eyes) for over one year…then I was advised to only patch for about one day a week..

I was advised that she would be a good candidate for surgery, but told that results could not be guaranteed…doctors believe they can cosmetically fix the eyes, but not the loss of depth perception they believe will or did occur. No one knows for sure. After much resesarch, we decided not to opt for the surgery…there were too many what ifs and not enough certainty. A year or more later I am still certain that I/we made the right choice.

Surgery does not always produce the desired results and quite often creates additional problems…for some, like your cute son, the surgery works an is successfl, but for others the results are not so great!

My daughers eyes are a beautiful light blue and I would just love them to be straight…she is constantly cross alternating or fixating her eyes so they appear crossed (one or both) at all times…which by the way is a good thing according to the doctors.

In any event, there is nothing more than I want to have a daughter with cosmetically corrected eyes, but I am one of those who has opted not to take risks (very early on) and wait and see.

Her eyes have become a topic of conversation…people are just curious/interested….but they just can’t stop smiling once my daughter says HI…which she does quite often…Kids are resilient and adapt quite well.

I once went out with a very successful business man (many many years ago before the birth of my daughter) who had esotropia in one eye….(fixed if I can remember)….he asked me if I would still have found him nice looking or something if he did not wear a suit or I did not know he was successful…I found that question very interesting…and my answer was an honest yes….I would have liked him…
Now, I realize that he had some hang up about his eyes. I TRULY DIDN’T! Didn’t bother me at all! I remember him having a beautiful eye color.

I am so glad I had the opportunity to know him because it first makes me realize that people with huge visual impairments DO go on to leave full lives, EARN LOTS OF MONEY , and are great people. More importantly,many parents make the decision not to have their children’s eyes surgically corrected…as I believe was his case!

In any event, all of the people who are “curious” or “interested” can be intereste but what they should realize is that esotropia is not uncommon and can happen to just about anyone.

Parents who opt for surgery are extremely brave and bold!

I highly recommend lots of research before taking the plunge. Speak to several doctors, vision therapists and anyone you can possibly contact…you need the facts. Surgery offers permanent results.

Good luck and God Bless You!

Lots of people there have had surgery as well as vision therapy. I hope you find the help you need.

Lois

Im a girl from philippines who needs advise very badly. I am already 27 years old and 1 mother of 1 year old baby. I am blind in my left eye (blind since birth). I never had a chance to visit an opthalmologist because my family is poor. I never has a chance to find out what happened to me. sometimes i blame my mom because she never see an opthalmologidt to find out what happened to me or if theres still a way to have my eye cured. (well I still cant blame her because we are really poor that time). I admire your story. For sure your kids will be grateful because you made a way to have their eyes fixed. I am just happy that my baby has healthy eyes.

Now, i could say that I although I look like a taugh person, i still ahve plenty of insecurities inside because of my condition. I know ill be better if my eyes were normal. I have plenty of talents but I prefer to hide them because I am ashamed infromt of loads of people. I cannot even look other person straight into their eyes ( my left eye has cataracr as well it started to developed when I was 18 years old). My left eye is lazy ever since. Now that I am 27 and eventhough I am a mom, I am still loiking for a surgey (muscle construction) for cosmetic/aesthetic purpose only) i know for a fact taht my left eye will no longer see but I am somehow still hoping for it to be aligned. any one here gone through muscle eye surgery eventhough the eye is already blind? what are the risk?I badly needed advise.

thanks

lonelylady-

I still get intense migranes and have difficulty with sunlight. As I am now driving, I have had to fight to “estimate” depth perception, figuring out where stuff would logically be, a constant uphill battle. My eyes see colors differently, and my left eye is, in fact, going blind, at a surprising rate.