I don’t know what reminded to call the hospital to book an appointment for my LASEK surgery. They informed me that surgeries are only performed on Mondays, and that the earliest they could book me in was on the 13th of June. I agree and decided I would have to discuss this with my colleagues at work to see if I could take that week off.
Unfortunately things did not go as I wished. My colleague was already planning to go on leave the same week I booked my appointment. Although I was impatient to get the surgery done, I thought to myself that I’ve been wearing glasses for almost an eternity, and that one more week would not make a difference. I call the hospital and move my appointment to the 20th of June.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
The Moment of Realization (April 18)
I’m sitting at work during a meeting facing the window. I notice that there is a very weird light aimed at me and figure that this was caused by the crack in my glasses as the sunlight hits me at a specific angle. This does it for me. I got fed up with glasses and wanted to be free from them and all this hassle of getting new lenses, waiting, getting used to new lenses and frames.etc… I decided to call Moorfields to book a time for the surgery but after a hectic work day I forget about it. It’s not only my eyes that are bad….my memory was perhaps worse.
New Glasses! (April 17)
I received my new glasses two days ago and it did feel like I will need some time to get used to them. They were very light and the larger lens made things look funny when I looked down. As I was cleaning them one day I heard a funny cracking noise but didn’t notice anything in the glasses. As I put the glasses back on my eyes I notice a small water drop…which was in fact not a water drop. Congrats…I managed to crack my lens two days after receiving them (the lens themselves cost AED 1,000). The crack was very small and on the side and I didn’t notice it at all when wearing the glasses (nor can anyone else notice it). To me this felt like a message that it was time to move away from glasses to a better solution. A few moments later I forget about the whole thing and carry on with my life.
Ordering the New Glasses (April 10)
I got new glasses after yesterday’s appointment at Moorfields. I selected the maximum compression on the lenses (1.74) and some airlight frames to reduce the pressure on the nose pads. I should receive them after 5 days.
Keratoconus 5-Month Follow up (April 9, 2011)
5 months have passed and I decided to go for a follow-up. Good news was that my keratoconus condition was stable and I was a good candidate for LASEK. Dr. Edmondo Borasio informed me that my risks were similar to a good candidate for LASIK, and that he will have to perform Corneal Cross-Linking after the LASEK procedure to strengthen the cornea and avoid any issues with my keratoconus. To me this meant no eyeglasses and also avoiding any future issues with a progressing keratoconus condition (which may require a corneal transplant if it turns out to be severe)…2 birds with one stone. You would think that at this moment I would take the leap. Unfortunately I head back home to think about it…and eventually forget about it.
Breakfast at The Palm (November 13, 2010)
This was the first time I ever entered The Palm. To be honest, I was very impressed. To imagine that all this is man-made and noticing the sheer size of the place was unbelievable. I managed to find the place where my brother and his friend were having breakfast and join them.
Since the weather was nice, they decided to sit outdoors. Now my pupils were dilated and I preferred a much darker place, but decided not to ruin the moment and good weather and just sit outdoors. I don’t remember what I ate there but it was pretty good (not amazing, but not bad either). I actually liked the setting a lot more, since it was outdoors and you can see the beach.
After the usual greetings, I tell my brother of the results of my eye checkup. He told me to look at the bright side and go back after 5 months just for a general health checkup even if I am not going ahead with any procedure. It was good having him and his friend around to discuss the results and eventually my mixed feelings unmixed themselves and out went the bad ones, leaving me a lot happier.
Since my brother and his friend just arrived back from Bali last night, we spent the next 15 minutes or so talking about their adventure there. Now all their talk about their adventures pumped me up for a trip I was planning with friends in January to visit either Thailand or Vietnam. I think after breakfast we wanted to walk off all the food we ate and headed to Dubai Mall.
Since the weather was nice, they decided to sit outdoors. Now my pupils were dilated and I preferred a much darker place, but decided not to ruin the moment and good weather and just sit outdoors. I don’t remember what I ate there but it was pretty good (not amazing, but not bad either). I actually liked the setting a lot more, since it was outdoors and you can see the beach.
After the usual greetings, I tell my brother of the results of my eye checkup. He told me to look at the bright side and go back after 5 months just for a general health checkup even if I am not going ahead with any procedure. It was good having him and his friend around to discuss the results and eventually my mixed feelings unmixed themselves and out went the bad ones, leaving me a lot happier.
Since my brother and his friend just arrived back from Bali last night, we spent the next 15 minutes or so talking about their adventure there. Now all their talk about their adventures pumped me up for a trip I was planning with friends in January to visit either Thailand or Vietnam. I think after breakfast we wanted to walk off all the food we ate and headed to Dubai Mall.
Am I a good candidate for LASIK? (November 13, 2010)
My appointment was at 7:30 AM. I wake up early in the morning (since I live in Abu Dhabi) and depart to Dubai. The sun has barely come up but I was just too excited. Before I know it I have arrived in Dubai at 7:00 AM. I was half an hour early and impatient to get in. As I wait in the parking lot staring at the clock in the car, impatient for it to reach 7:30. The second I saw “7:30”, I turn off the car and head straight for the hospital. I think I was in the hospital before most of the staff even arrived!
After checking in, they take me to the waiting area where they serve complimentary tea/coffee/water and mamoul (small pastry filled with soft sweet dates). Before seeing the doctor they had to run some diagnostic tests to check the health of my eyes. However, to do so they had to dilate my pupils which meant putting special eye drops in my eyes to help my pupils dilate. After my pupils have dilated enough the checkups could start
.
The first checkup they did was a general retina check I assume, where they shine some light into your eye as you stare into a machine with the assistant looking into your eyes jotting down some notes. After that there was another test which tests the pressure of your eyes where you feel a puff of air into your eyes. After that they take me to see the optometrist where you do the regular eye check you usually do at optical stores (reading letters, etc…) where they come up with the new prescription you may need. This was all not interesting to me at all. After that they did another checkup where you see a horizontal bright line that turns 360 degrees. I assume this was mapping the surface of my cornea. After all of these tests it was finally time to see my doctor.
The doctor who I was assigned to was named Edmondo Borasio. I already looked him up in Google Scholars and he already had some research papers he wrote. Not only that I also found some newspaper articles that mention him so he was not only experienced, but also coming up with new surgical procedures on his own. That added to my comfort. He was also very courteous, friendly and happy to discuss anything I needed to talk about.
However, to my dismay, he informed me that I was NOT a good candidate for LASIK. Apparently I suffered from a condition called keratoconus, which meant that I had irregular astigmatism in my eyes where my cornea was conical shaped. He said that this condition could progress at any time in my life or just remain dormant, but there was no way of knowing. If he performed LASIK, that would weaken my cornea which meant if It ever did progress it would do so easily and severely and that LASIK was a terrible choice that I should not undergo.
I had mixed feeling now. I was happy that I had the opportunity of meeting a good doctor who really cared about people’s health instead of money (which was one of my fears). On the other hand, I was sad and discouraged that I would have to remain stuck with wearing glasses for the rest of my life. On the upside he informed me that he could perform LASEK (not LASIK) followed by a procedure called Collagen Cross-Linking (or Corneal Cross-Linking) if and only if my keratoconus was not progressing at this stage. This meant coming back after 5 months to see if there has been any change in the corneal surface. First of all since LASEK does not involve creating a flap, this meant it would not weaken my cornea. Second, Corneal Cross-Linking strengthens the structure of the cornea in order to stop further progression of keratoconus. However, at that time all I heard was “I am stuck with glasses for the rest of my life”.
Discouraged and full of mixed feelings, I left the hospital with my still dilated eyes. I knew they would dilate my eyes but still decided to drive myself since it was a Saturday morning, and I left way too early before any of my family members woke up. The sun was up in the sky now and things were a little brighter than I expected. I knew my brother and his friend were in Dubai and it was just about breakfast time. I give them a call and find out they are in The Palm having breakfast (actually they just arrived). I drive with my dilated eyes, squinting to avoid the bright sun, and hoping I wouldn’t crash into anything.
After checking in, they take me to the waiting area where they serve complimentary tea/coffee/water and mamoul (small pastry filled with soft sweet dates). Before seeing the doctor they had to run some diagnostic tests to check the health of my eyes. However, to do so they had to dilate my pupils which meant putting special eye drops in my eyes to help my pupils dilate. After my pupils have dilated enough the checkups could start
.
The first checkup they did was a general retina check I assume, where they shine some light into your eye as you stare into a machine with the assistant looking into your eyes jotting down some notes. After that there was another test which tests the pressure of your eyes where you feel a puff of air into your eyes. After that they take me to see the optometrist where you do the regular eye check you usually do at optical stores (reading letters, etc…) where they come up with the new prescription you may need. This was all not interesting to me at all. After that they did another checkup where you see a horizontal bright line that turns 360 degrees. I assume this was mapping the surface of my cornea. After all of these tests it was finally time to see my doctor.
The doctor who I was assigned to was named Edmondo Borasio. I already looked him up in Google Scholars and he already had some research papers he wrote. Not only that I also found some newspaper articles that mention him so he was not only experienced, but also coming up with new surgical procedures on his own. That added to my comfort. He was also very courteous, friendly and happy to discuss anything I needed to talk about.
However, to my dismay, he informed me that I was NOT a good candidate for LASIK. Apparently I suffered from a condition called keratoconus, which meant that I had irregular astigmatism in my eyes where my cornea was conical shaped. He said that this condition could progress at any time in my life or just remain dormant, but there was no way of knowing. If he performed LASIK, that would weaken my cornea which meant if It ever did progress it would do so easily and severely and that LASIK was a terrible choice that I should not undergo.
I had mixed feeling now. I was happy that I had the opportunity of meeting a good doctor who really cared about people’s health instead of money (which was one of my fears). On the other hand, I was sad and discouraged that I would have to remain stuck with wearing glasses for the rest of my life. On the upside he informed me that he could perform LASEK (not LASIK) followed by a procedure called Collagen Cross-Linking (or Corneal Cross-Linking) if and only if my keratoconus was not progressing at this stage. This meant coming back after 5 months to see if there has been any change in the corneal surface. First of all since LASEK does not involve creating a flap, this meant it would not weaken my cornea. Second, Corneal Cross-Linking strengthens the structure of the cornea in order to stop further progression of keratoconus. However, at that time all I heard was “I am stuck with glasses for the rest of my life”.
Discouraged and full of mixed feelings, I left the hospital with my still dilated eyes. I knew they would dilate my eyes but still decided to drive myself since it was a Saturday morning, and I left way too early before any of my family members woke up. The sun was up in the sky now and things were a little brighter than I expected. I knew my brother and his friend were in Dubai and it was just about breakfast time. I give them a call and find out they are in The Palm having breakfast (actually they just arrived). I drive with my dilated eyes, squinting to avoid the bright sun, and hoping I wouldn’t crash into anything.
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