vision changed?

[kathleen anna]

Hi.........I am asking another question!  I am now 11 weeks post op - translab and I am feeling that my vision is just not right.  I do have some weakness in the left eye, and it is dry.  But I feel that my problem is with the right eye!  I have worked for an optometrist, and he has been very helpful with me.....He did say that the RX is my right eye has improved a little and has made adjustments to my glasses.  I am wearing invisible bifocals.  My vision is good, but I feel like my head just isnt right when I wear them and/or my contacts.  I feel a little more off balance than I do when I wear nothing.  But I cannot see when I wear nothing!!  Has anyone felt like this?  Its like I cant really tell if it is the glasses/contacts or if it is my head.  Or both!   Thanks....................Kathleen Anna

[CHD63]

Hi Kathleen Anna .....

Those of us who are bifocal (trifocal for me) wearers probably struggle with this more during post-AN surgery than non-glasses wearers.  As you know, I am not a doctor, but in my opinion it has to do with the brain having to quickly adjust between the near and far corrections in the lens.  Our brains are already working hard maintaining balance with only one vestibular nerve (in my case no vestibular nerves) so it adds confusion when you switch between looking through the near and far lenses.  (Well, it makes sense to me .....  )  I am extremely careful to tip my head down far enough when I am walking so I am only looking through the far-vision lens.  Do you have one contact for near and one for far or are they the weighted kind?  My guess is you will eventually adjust to it.  I have always had a period of "wonkyheadedness" whenever I have had a prescription change so that may be contributing to an adjustment curve, as well.

Keep your head tipped down and/or close the near vision eye when walking and be very careful to hold handrails on stairs until you have adjusted to this phenomenon.

Clarice

[Tod]

Kathleen Anna,

it was not until right at five months post-surgery that my eyesight was about normal. IANAD, there are a lot of things going on with your recovery that your brain is trying to adjust to. Also, if you have weakness in your left eye, it may be that muscles are also not responding as quickly as they used to do. I also wear bifocals and had significant double-vision. I wore a a progression of weaker and weaker prisms on my left lens until my vision was normal again. You may want to consult a optologist to see if what they might suggest.

Clarice offers very good advice about walking and stair handrails. You don't wish to add "recovering from a fall" to the work your body is doing now.

If you do seem to be having double vision, one trick that worked for me until I got my first prism was to tape over about 2/3s of the lens of my glasses on my AN side. By restricting the vision of that eye to whatever is straight ahead, it reduced the work my brain had to do to adapt. This was at the suggestion of my occupational therapist.

Tod

*IANAD = I Am Not A Doctor

[kathleen anna]

Clarice......................I was thinking the same thing.  I know that my brain is getting mixed signals normally now, let alone with the different powers in the lense.  The contacts that I wear are for distance, and I wear reading glasses with them.   Again, too many powers going on.  I use to wear the mono-vision, one near, one far, along time before the surgery.  I may try it again.......oh what fun this is!!!!  Thanks for the response......

Tod...............my problems seems to be more of the "wonkeyhead" than double vision.  My vision is actually really clear with this new RX, but just uncomfortable in the head.....What else is new?!!!!!  I will talk to my friend about "prisms".....  Thanks for the response..............

Kathleen Anna