Key takeaways:
Cataract surgery is a common procedure that can still make people anxious.
John Weis advises people to do their research but take heart in knowing their doctor has done this before. At least, he advises choosing a doctor who has.
John says resting, using eye protection, and following the doctor’s orders all help recovery go smoothly.
John Weis has worn corrective eyeglasses since he was 10.
He has always known that the vision in his right eye was worse than the vision in his left. Still, he was surprised when, during a fall 2021 eye exam, the physician doing the test said the vision in his right eye “couldn’t be completely corrected with glasses,” recalls John, a 57-year-old media relations director in Winter Park, Florida.
“He was not able to make things completely clear,” John says. “You know when they ask which is better, A or B? Neither was really correcting the problem, no matter how many different prescription combinations he tried.”
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The doctor theorized — wrongly, as it turned out — that the vision deficiency was likely the result of a lazy eye, a condition typically diagnosed in early childhood that results in abnormal visual development in one eye. But John had never been told he had a lazy eye before. Somewhat skeptical of this diagnosis, he visited a second doctor who, upon examining John’s dilated eye through the ophthalmoscope, immediately saw a cataract. A visit to a specialist confirmed the diagnosis.
A cataract occurs when the eye’s normally clear lens becomes cloudy, causing the world to seem blurry or less colorful. Removing the defective lens and replacing it with an artificial one is the only treatment.
Cataracts are more common in older people, according to the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health. That’s because at around age 40, the protein in the eye lens begins to break down, creating a cloudy effect, according to the NEI. More than half of Americans age 80 and older have cataracts or have had surgery to remove them.
The risk of developing a cataract increases in people who have had an eye injury or have certain medical conditions, such as diabetes. Cataracts are also more common among people who smoke or spend a lot of time in the sun.
About a month after his initial diagnosis, John had cataract surgery. He’s had no problems with his right eye since then. He saw immediate improvement and now considers it his “good eye.”
Here’s his advice for those having cataract surgery.
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1. Consider what kind of lens you want.
John thought carefully about what kind of lens he wanted to replace the damaged one, based on his budget and end goal. He chose a more expensive option because he wanted to enhance his distance vision.
“I could have gone with a general lens — but this one has something similar to a contact lens. It was worth the extra bit of money, because you’re going to benefit from it each day,” he says. “Before, I couldn’t see road signs from a distance, billboards, or the sharpness in the trees. All of those years, I was missing out.”
2. Do your research when choosing a surgeon.
John was selective about his surgeon and is glad he did his research.
“You want to go to someone who has experience and a lot of positive referrals online,” he says.
During his procedure, John says, his doctor played pop music and sang along as he worked. “That was odd but comforting at the same time,” John says. “It made me confident this wasn’t his first time doing this.”
3. If the doctor offers medication to relax you, take it.
“My advice is to take the meds if they offer them to you,” John says. “Don’t try to be a hero.”
Cataract surgery can be performed with or without anesthesia. John opted to stay awake with only his eye being numbed. He declined the doctor’s offer to take Valium to help with anxiety. And he soon regretted that decision.
His procedure took about 15 minutes and, for the first 10 minutes, “I got through without any problem,” John says.
But then the doctor removed the old lens, which created anxiety. “You’re temporarily blind until the new one goes in. I’m sure it was only 60 to 90 seconds, but it seemed much longer. And I was like, ‘I’ve got to get off this table as soon as possible.’”
4. Prepare to lie low for about 2 weeks after surgery.
It's important to keep the eye as dry, clean, and strain-free as possible, John says.
He had to wear a patch when he slept and showered. His doctors told him not to work or exercise. John stayed inside as much as possible. When he did go outside, he wore protective glasses.
5. Relax.
Cataract surgery is a common procedure. John says he had very little post-op pain or irritation.
The worst, he says, was at the very beginning when he used twice-daily prescription eye drops to avoid infection.
“It stung for a few seconds, but even that wasn’t that bad,” he says.
All in all, the process was relatively stress-free. Cataract surgery, John says, “was about as convenient and painless as it could have possibly been.”
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