Yeah…I can’t see…

Have you ever closed your eyes as tight as you can just to see what it would be like to be blind? Or walked through your house in the dead of night with no lights on, sort of feeling your way around? I have done both of those things, and while it gave me an idea of what it would be like to live in a world of darkness, it isn’t truly a good representation. It is too easy to open your eyes or to see glimpses of your surroundings from the street lamp outside.

But if you can’t open your eyes without extreme pain? When there is no other option but to keep your eyes closed? It gives a whole different meaning to not being able to see. I, unfortunately, experienced an abrasion on my cornea a few weeks ago, something I would not wish on anybody, and what gave me a new perspective on the importance of eyesight.

When it happened, I woke up in so much pain, I didn’t even know what to do with myself. I stumbled to the bathroom and stood in the shower, hoping that the warm water would help. Then I sat on my bedroom floor for at least an hour, rocking back and forth, willing it to stop hurting. When Fiona woke up, I felt my way into her room, squeezing my eye open just enough to get her up and into the glider to feed her.

As I sat there nursing her, looking at the inside of my eyelids, I couldn’t help but think about what it would be like to not know what she looked like when she eats…how she peeks up at me…how she rests her hand up on her forehead…how her eyes half close in contentment. I missed the sight of her already and it had only been 20 minutes.

A little later, Ben drove me up to urgent care, while I buried my eyes in my hands. The sun seemed to burn through my closed eyelids, even with sunglasses on. Once we got there, the staff was a little perplexed that I came to urgent care and not the ER, but I got in and recieved some medicine so that I could crack open my eyes without wanting to rip them out of my head.

Diagnosis? A corneal abrasion.

Treatment? A myriad of drops and eyeglass wearing…indefinitely. (my contacts were more than likely the culprit in this case)

Recovery? Slow. It has been almost three weeks, and thankfully, my eye is healed up. I still have some vision loss in my bad eye, which the doctors are trying to pin on an old prescription, but I know better. I guess I’m going to get new contacts and glasses out of the deal. (sigh…such a hassle)

But this whole experience taught me a few things. The first thing is that I need to take better care of my eyes. I can’t ignore it when my eyes start getting red and uncomfortable. The second thing is that I should be more appreciative of my eyesight. It is one of the many things that I take for granted, along with my other senses, physical health, a loving family (to name a few). It is a gift, one that I plan on savoring a bit more.

— Post From My iPhone