I dressed as they had suggested; comfortable slacks, a t-shirt, and my comfy dollar store shoes. It was the day of my first cataract surgery. I was looking forward to seeing better. When I arrived in the surgical unit, they asked if I had to go to the bathroom before they hooked me up to the heart monitor, put drops in my eyes, and put an I-V in my arm. I politely said no to the bathroom visit.
I was not anxious, but to fight any anxiety that might come, I silently recited as many Bible verses as possible. Waiting for the surgery was not bad, but suddenly, I had to go to the bathroom. My nurse disconnected the monitor and showed me the way. I was delighted to see the bathroom. Soon I was back in my bed, hooked to the monitor, and ready for surgery. Ten minutes later, they rolled number seven by my bed and into surgery.
I was number eight; I knew that I would be next. After a short meeting with my Doctor and the Anesthesiologist, they began rolling me to the operating room. I only remember half the ride; I was out. They must have administered the anesthesia on the way to the room because I do not remember arriving there.
After being out for a while, I began to see different shapes out of my left eye. Did I wake up? I heard someone say, “Why is this so hard?” Being a helper by nature, I moved my right hand toward my eye and said, “I can help.” They told me I did not need to help and to keep my hand down. I saw an oval shape and then what felt like a half cup of liquid in my eye. I do not remember anything else; I was out again.
I woke up in recovery talking to the nurse. She sat me up and gave me some water to drink. The water tasted good. I hadn’t had anything to eat or drink since midnight.
Everyone was on their “A” game that day. I had no pain, but I did have a large patch covering my left eye. Soon I was in the car and on my way home. I enjoyed telling my wife the story of how I tried to help with my cataract surgery. I was wide awake, so we stopped at one of our favorite restaurants. I ordered a broasted chicken dinner. We conversed and enjoyed a great meal. After lunch, we went home. I slept most of the day and all through the night. I can only surmise that after helping with the surgery, I was exhausted. Call me Dr. Bill.