It started with glasses. Not dramatic. Just glasses. I’d get a new prescription, be happy for a bit, and then within the year everything would go soft again. So back I’d go, and back I’d come with another pair. That happened more than once and I still didn’t twig. I put it down to age, because that’s what you do at my age. Everything gets blamed on age until something makes you look properly.
The thing that made me look properly was that it stopped being about reading. Reading glasses I could live with. But then the distance went as well, and that’s harder to shrug off. You notice it when you’re trying to see something across a room and your eyes just won’t do it.
I went in for laser surgery and came out with a diagnosis
Here’s the bit that still makes me laugh a little. I didn’t go to the eye clinic worried about my sight. I went because I fancied getting LASIK done. Sort my eyes out, bin the glasses, job done. That was the plan.
They told me I was too old for it.
Then, while they had me in the chair, they had a proper look. And that’s when the doctor told me I had cataracts. So I walked in wanting laser eye surgery and walked out being told I had an actual condition. Not the appointment I’d booked.
I’ll say this though: I wasn’t blindsided by the word itself. I’m one of those people who reads up on things. If something’s got my attention, I’ll go and find out about it properly rather than sit and wonder. So when he said cataracts, I already knew roughly what he meant. Which turned out to be a mixed blessing, and I’ll come back to that.
What cataracts actually are, quickly
The lens inside your eye is meant to be clear. Over time it clouds up, goes a bit milky, and less light gets through cleanly. That’s it. That’s a cataract.
It’s not painful. Nothing hurts. It just creeps in, and because it’s slow, you adjust to it without noticing you’re adjusting. Which is exactly why I kept buying glasses instead of asking why the glasses weren’t working.
The things people tend to notice:
- New glasses that stop feeling new very quickly
- Headlights and streetlights glaring more than they should at night
- Colours looking a bit washed out
- Distance going, not just close-up
If any of that sounds familiar, go and get your eyes looked at properly. Not by me. By someone with the equipment.
Diet plays a part in eye health too, more than most people realise. I’ve written about why nutrient needs shift as we age over on my vitamins page, if you want to read into that side of things.
Yes, I was scared
Of course I was scared. I’d be surprised if anyone isn’t. And this is where knowing all about it worked against me. Because I’d read up on the procedure, I knew exactly what was going to happen. I knew they’d be working on my open eye while I lay there awake. That is not a comfortable thing to have a clear mental picture of. Ignorance would probably have been kinder.
I did it anyway. But I want to be honest that I didn’t stroll in feeling relaxed about it.
Doing it in Thailand
I’ve lived in Thailand a long time, so this was always going to be where I had it done. But it wasn’t only convenience.
It was much cheaper than the UK. Not slightly. Properly cheaper. And the money didn’t go on a worse version of the operation. It went the other way. I was able to have the best lenses put in, at about half what the same thing would have cost me back home.
That’s the bit I’d want anyone to hear. I didn’t save money by settling. I saved money and got the better option, which isn’t a trade-off you get offered very often.
The next day
They did one eye first. The following day, I could see. Properly see. I don’t have a clever way of describing it. Everything was clear and sharp and I was blown away by it, and I say that as someone who knew in advance what the operation was supposed to do.
There’s something strange about not realising how much had gone until it comes back. I’d got used to the world being slightly soft round the edges and had no idea, because it happened over years rather than overnight.
What I’d tell myself ten years ago
If I’d known this was on the cards a decade back, I’d have had it done then. No hesitation. Partly it’s practical. I do a lot of work on the computer, and being able to see the screen without fighting for it makes an actual difference to my day.
And partly, if I’m being honest with you, it’s vanity. I didn’t want to wear glasses. There it is. Not a noble reason, but it’s a real one, and I doubt I’m the only one. That’s the whole thing really. I spent years buying new glasses to fix a problem that new glasses couldn’t fix.