Thursday, October 26, 2023

My eyes

Still no word from the Eye Doctor's office. Two months since the tests were done and the secretary did tell me I would hear back before November; I mentioned I would call in November to check on my surgery status. I need to book appointments so do need to call and see what is happening. I am beginning to understand the frustration of people trying to get their surgeries done and their other health needs like flu shots, COVID shots, eye appointments with optometrist, etc. etc. Having worked in a hospital for twelve years at the end of my career I do know it is busy there and do make allowances for that by  not cluttering them up with my presence - I have been lucky with my health although do need to be cautious as it is easy for me to slip back; my health is not strong just very careful attention to it on my part. So early in November I will call the office and see what the status of my surgery is; I do understand that there is a delay in these surgeries but expect they are triaged if urgency is seen. I decided on the simple IOL simply because the optometrist is always changing my lens when I go (that wasn't the case when I was younger but one's eyes do age I realize that). I do not want a fixed lens ($2000 worth) in my eyes if I still need to pay huge amounts for glasses to fix the differences that the more expensive lens produces (I do have insurance but it only pays so much). I have no ideas on that but it just seems logical. I would rather go with a simple lens since I will still need glasses anyways and I do hate bugs in my eyes. So works out well for me. But I am sure that not buying the more expensive lens does not result in my going to the back of the line. That wouldn't make sense. Triage should control when people get lens and I apparently have been waiting now for nearly four years since the optometrist didn't refer me when he referred my husband four years ago because one of us needed to drive and Edward's health was poor at that time and I was selected to wait unknown to me! Learning that two years later though (last January) and that he would refer me the next year I decided to ask for a referral right away. I did prefer to have an ophthalmologist but when Dr Sullivan retired from his practice to do only surgery I elected to go with an optometrist. I did ask what he thought and he said since my eyes were always the same basically that would work for me. One waits a very long time even 27 years ago for an ophthalmologist appointment (I have only ever had two ophthalmologists in my life Dr Dyson and Dr Sullivan until this latest visit to the Eye Institute except for one visit to look at a floater years ago now (may be twenty)) . I had never seen an optometrist in terms of an eye exam before then and I must say they do do a thorough examination of the eyes. The refinement of lenses has come a long way since I first wore glasses at one year of age (they were taped to my face in case one wonders how they stayed on!). Although I can still read looking through those tiny lens so a good fit by Dr Dyson way back when but he knew my Dad well and my eyes were (according to him) precisely like my father's eyes. Good call. This will keep it fresh in my mind for sure.

I need to remember to call as time slips by me very rapidly with my book, the outside work, the cleaning and the cooking. The book is fun but just a little frustrating because I did not plan way back in 2010 and earlier to ever do this so some of the items need a good look up and I am in that process. Plus the databases are so much better since I first subscribed to Ancestry back in 2004 and Find My Past when it went to a yearly subscription (was 1837online.com) and that was great news. I like Ancestry and Find My past equally and would not do without them. I do also subscribe to My Heritage but I do not have any European or American ancestors only English (and two Huguenots whom I know quite well in terms of records!) in the context of written past so the concentration tends to be with Find My Past and Ancestry. 

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