Linton Hayride...

Went to the Linton Hayride yesterday. We had a lot of fun! Mom and Dad went with us. It was good to see everyone!
It was cold and it sprinkled off and on throughout the day, but that didn't stop the festivities! There was lots of scrumptious food and most of the attendees braved the weather and went out for the ride. I didn't - I'm a wimp! :)
I wore my sunglasses most of the day. I still have a little bruising and swelling around the right eye so I just thought it would be easier to keep it covered.
The kids had a pumpkin decorating contest that Mom, Dad and I judged. Ted gave out prizes for five categories - the scariest, the prettiest, the ugliest, the funniest and the most original. Everyone had fun!
I'm still using drops often throughout the day to keep my eyes moist and cold compresses to ease the swelling and bruising. Not using much pain medicine, and when I do, it's just regular Tylenol. I'm still using the Bacitracin at night. The outer corner of the right eye is still red and tender, so I'm giving it a little TLC to help it heal.
We are still waiting on the safety glasses to come in from Dr. Tavel. Dad, Mom and I went in to the office on Thursday and talked with them. There have been some delays in their deliveries, but they were very helpful in making sure everything is set to go smoothly once the frames come in. Hopefully, it'll be Tuesday or Wednesday this week. I'll keep you posted on that as well.
I have another followup appointment scheduled with Dr. Martin in about a week and half, so I'll be updating you on that too.
Until next time,
God bless,
Debbie :)

Called the Doctor Today....

I called my retina specialist today and talked to his nurse. I've noticed some floaters and some white flashes in my right eye that I didn't have in my left one. I remember back when I was having retinal surgeries, those were some of the things they said I should call about.
She said that any time the eye has any kind of trauma or surgery, it's normal to have some of these symptoms, at least for a while. As long as they remain mild and I don't notice any blood in my vision, everything is fine. I told her I was glad to know that, but I thought I should call to make sure. She said that was fine and to be sure to call if things got worse.
This Saturday is the Linton hayride and I'm looking forward to it! I'm glad I'll be back to at least semi-normal by then! :)
Have a FABULOUS weekend!
Love to all,
Deb :)

The stitch is GONE!!!!...

Went to the doctor with Geri today. Had the stitch removed. Again - instant relief! Wow - I'm glad that's over! Dr. Martin said he's really pleased with the tone and tightness of both lower lids. He said to start using the drops in the right eye again and keep using the bacitracin. He said to be very careful when I put the drops in not to pull on either the upper or the lower lid. The stitches are very tiny and we don't want any of them to pull. Even the left one, he said is still very vulnerable and I should still take great care not to rub or pull on the lids.
He said I should wait to schedule my appointment with my cornea specialist until after the right eye has healed. He wants to see me again in two weeks and see how it's doing. Once he releases me to the cornea doctor's care, then I should make the appointment.
We talked again about the cataract. He said I should definitely wait a few months, after all is healed, to start considering that surgery. He said at that point, I would have to discuss those options with the cornea doctor and my regular eye doctor to weigh the risks. He said the corneas are definitely better protected now, but they still may not be healed enough for my eye doctor to see through it to get to the cataract. He really didn't sound very optimistic. But I'm not giving up hope yet! Who knows what God has in store?! I keep praying, and so far, God has surrounded me with His peace - not to mention the love and support of all my family and friends! And GREAT doctors! :)
I also asked him how often he does this type of surgery. He says he does a lot of them, but very seldom for my problem. He said the neurotrophic keratopathy is not a common problem from diabetes. He said while neuropathy is very common in diabetes, keratopathy is not. You hear more about diabetic retinopathy (which I have also had and been treated for) than keratopathy. Most of the time, the surgery is done as a result of a brain tumor damaging the trigeminal nerve, and sometimes, but not as often, from head trauma. So, that was kind of interesting, and somewhat explains why I couldn't find much information online about my condition.
Another reason for this blog! Hopefully, it can be used by someone else faced with the decisions I've had to make, to help them gain some perspective on what to expect - though each individual's experience may be different.
Geri and I had a great visit along the way. We solved the problems of the world. We now know how to raise our children perfectly and what all marriages need to survive! lol Just kidding - though we did have some opinions!!! :)
Mom and Dad ended up not going to South Carolina today. The graduation has been postponed, so Mom came by and we went to lunch at Max & Erma's. She got to see my eye and we both agree that the right one is still a little swollen, but after the swelling goes down, it will look just like the left one - which is what the doctor said too!
I am very pleased with the way it looks. There is still some mild bruising, but it's subsiding. I'm off narcotic painkillers now, and it feels so much better!
I'm posting a new picture today to let you see the difference!
Hope you are all doing well!
Love, Deb :)

Lunch at Applebee's...

Dad and I went out to Applebee's for lunch today. I wore my sunglasses the whole time, so I wouldn't frighten anybody. I was a little leery about going out, but it was nice to get out of the house for a while. We had a nice visit and I enjoyed his company!
Before we left, we called Dr. Tavel to see if my glasses were in yet. We have been calling almost daily to check on them and they're STILL not in! They said they've had a change of employees in their lab and that's what the delay is. They said they'd be sure to call us when they're ready. Yeah - that's what they said almost three weeks ago!
Anyway, I keep putting cold compresses on my eye. This one is more irritated than the other one, with the stitch that's holding my lower lid up. It just feels like something's stabbing me in the eye all the time. And itching! Man - Thank Goodness for Benadryl! :)
I have an appointment on Tuesday to have the stitch removed. So not much longer! Mom and Dad will be leaving early Tuesday morning to go to Teddy's graduation from boot camp in South Carolina, so Geri Sears, one of Dad's cousins, and a great friend, will be taking me up to the doctor's office. I'm looking forward to our visit. She's always so fun! :)
I'll post another picture once that stitch is gone. It's SO ugly! Ugh!
Anyway, I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Love,
Deb :)

2nd Surgery-3rd Day Postop...

Not much happened today. I did have a better night last night and dozed on and off most of today. Dad came by with lunch from Burger King today and said if I feel up to it, maybe we'll go out for lunch tomorrow. It'll be nice to get out of this house for a while!
Thad and Hunter have been great! Even Hunter asks, "You doin' okay, Mom? Do you need anything?" I'm so, so very blessed to have such great guys in my life - including you, Dad! What would I do without you? (Okay, I'm getting teary-eyed, so I'd better stop! lol)
I'll have a report on my first day out tomorrow!
Love, thanks and returning prayers to all,
Deb :)

2nd Surgery-2nd Day Postop...

Well, last night was not good. I called first thing this morning and left a message for Ann to see if I could get a Rx for Oxycodone, though I wasn't sure she could call it in, since it's a narcotic. They are in the Evansville office today, so she was going to try to get one of the other doctors to write the Rx up in the north office. Unfortunately, there was no way we could get up to the north side today.
After some calling back and forth, Tammy, one of the other doctor's assistants, called and said she lives on the south side of Indy and she could drop the Rx off at a Walgreen's down here! Oh! I was SO grateful! I called Mom and told her and she picked it up for me! I will certainly be sending a thank you card out to Tammy! What a blessing!
I just took one and am already feeling better! Hopefully, I'll sleep better tonight too!
Dad stopped by again today with lunch. He didn't stay long because he had errands to run. He said he'd come by again tomorrow.
I'm posting my picture today.
Thanks for all your prayers and support!
Love,
Deb :)

2nd Surgery-1st Day Postop...

Well, yesterday's surgery went well, though a little differently from the last one. Though I was awake for most of the first surgery, I was sedated enough that I don't remember much of it. The anesthesiologist put me all the way out while the doctor gave me a local anesthetic to numb the eye, but brought me back into consciousness during the actual surgery.
This time, I had a different anesthesiologist. He did put me out for the doctor to numb me, but when he brought me back, there wasn't much sedation, so I was awake and aware during the whole thing. I didn't feel anything though. They had my left eye covered so the bright light wouldn't bother it. I could open and close my left eye, and I could hear the doctor talking and the music in the background. I don't remember any of that from the first surgery.
I'm having a little more pain with this one and there seems to be a lot more bruising. Dad said that the doctor told him that he did have to work a little harder to get to the lower lid muscle on this one than he did the other one. So that's probably why.
The good thing is, I can see! The vision in my left eye is good enough that at least I can function on my own this time! I can draw up my insulin, take my blood sugar, fix my meals, and even do some light cleaning on my own! I'm sleeping sitting up, no bending over, no lifting, and taking Hydrocodone every four hours! The medicine helps, but it just doesn't seem to take all the pain away. There's some throbbing  and aching around the eye socket, and the lower lid area is very tender! I'm using cold compresses consistently throughout the day and taking lots of catnaps. I may see what I can do about getting some Oxycodone tomorrow if tonight's rough.
Dad brought lunch by today to check on me and we had a nice visit. He's been working on creating a DVD slide show with music using the pictures from the family reunion a few weeks ago. He's so into this new stuff! It's amazing what you can do on these computers these days! I've done some before, and I gave him the names of the websites and downloads I've used. I hope that can help him. He's having some trouble that I don't know how to help him with, so maybe he can find the answers on these sites. It's worth a try!
Anyway, I'll have a picture to post tomorrow.
"See" ya then!
Love,
Deb :)

Our 12th Anniversary...

Well, today is Thad's and my 12th wedding anniversary! Whoo Hoo!! We went out to Outback restaurant for dinner this evening, and I wore my little black dress! (Yes, Charlene, the one I got LAST summer, when we went shopping at the thrift shop, for FIVE DOLLARS!!! I FINALLY got to wear it!)
It was the first time I went out in public without my sunglasses on. I mean, I wore them to the restaurant, but when we walked inside, it was so dark, I had to take them off to see where I was going. I was really self-conscious, but no one seemed bothered by it. No one stared or asked about it. Our waitress was a doll, and she asked if we were celebrating anything this evening. We told her it was our 12th anniversary and she told us to pick an appetizer on the house! Thad made her promise - no singing and dancing! lol
The manager came over to our table and offered his congratulations and gave us a discount coupon for our next visit!
The food was outstanding! I had the fillet with mushroom sauce with a side of garlic mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables - SCRUMPTIOUS! Thad had a sirloin with a side of green beans and mixed vegetables. Of course, we had a bloomin' onion as an appetizer! It was SOOOOOO good - even better 'cause it was free!
Overall, it was a fantastic evening, and a nice "last supper" before my date under the knife tomorrow! (Nothing to eat or drink after midnight tonight!)
Well, say some prayers tomorrow! I know I'm in good hands! Thank you all!
Love,
Deb :)