What’s nice after cataract surgery?

October 20, 2018 5:47 AM

Healthy and active female relative in early seventies is having laser outpatient surgery on one eye at a time for cataracts. First op is this week and I would like to get or do whatever might make things more comfortable. I am fully available to assist with tasks and I can throw a few quid at something that might make life easier or more pleasant around this time.
posted by Iteki to Health & Fitness (11 answers total)

My parents both just had both eyes on each of them done, one eye a week so we had a month of recovery all together. It was surprisingly easy recovery, mostly they wanted to sit quietly and were forbidden from leaning over, so any thing that needs to be "done" would be helpful like cooking and the light daily housework that needs to be done. Maybe put all the stuff she needs at counter level? Tissues, water, her eye drops, maybe a book a day or two in when she should be able to see. She will very definitely need a ride home and help getting situated.
posted by stormygrey at 6:45 AM on October 20, 2018 [2 favorites]

Does she enjoy audiobooks?
posted by Too-Ticky at 6:47 AM on October 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

Give her rides if she needs them - my mom had this several years ago and I came in to help. I don't remember that I had to do much other than take her to and from the doc and then to the checkup and then just a little light fetching. I was prepared for far more heavy lifting, but it wasn't necessary.

It was a pretty easy recovery for her, just a few days.
posted by 41swans at 7:45 AM on October 20, 2018

I had this done a few months ago. Really wish my doctor had told me in advance to get a variety of strengths of reading glasses. She didn’t tell me until right after the surgery when I couldn’t drive. Also, Amazon has a much better selection than local stores, and if I’d known in advance I would have ordered some for less money. Also wish she’d told me in advance to get sunglasses.

This depends on what kind of vision correction your friend chooses. If possible in the UK, if you want to get her glasses, call your friend’s doctor’s office to ask about strengths.

Also, if you look at my posting history, I got some great advice from MeFites and I think I wrote a follow-up with what I wish I’d known. I’m on my iPad, so it’s tough for me to link.
posted by FencingGal at 8:37 AM on October 20, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: My mom had this surgery.

Yes, SUNGLASSES. Ideally huge wraparound sunglasses - if you want to be extra-nice, get some stylish ones that she can continue wearing instead of just thinking of them as a "medical" pair.

Make sure nothing she could possibly need is anywhere that she'll need to bend down. Even if you're around to help out, it's easy for someone recovering to think "I'll just quickly grab this thing - no need to bug Iteki".

Do the general things you'd do whenever someone's ill or recovering: cooking, cleaning, bringing them tea, etc.

Think of what entertainment she'd enjoy that doesn't require her eyes. Audiobooks? Music? Sitting and chatting with you?

Honestly, though, I don't think it slowed down my mom at all, minus resting on the day of and avoiding bending down or lifting heavy object for awhile. Her main comment was "wow, my vision's so much better and I can drive at night again!"
posted by ersatzhuman at 9:13 AM on October 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

I had cataract surgery which also corrected severe myopia (near-sightedness) a couple of years ago, and only on the first day needed any adaptation beyond eye-drops. My reaction was pretty much the same as ersatzhuman's mom, with the addition of "wow I can see 20-20 without glasses".

I went backpacking a week after the first eye was done, wearing specs with a single lens; that was fine except my depth perception was wonky so I used to hiking poles to tell me how far to step up or down.

A big yes to sunglasses, and of course yes to reading glasses - I use a selection of different strengths depending whether I'm lying in bed, reading a book on my lap, or working very close to something like fine stitching. (I get reading glasses at a dollar store so have many pairs around the house)
posted by anadem at 9:29 AM on October 20, 2018

Best answer: Make sure she has a grabber tool, like this one.
posted by chromium at 11:18 AM on October 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

Just for fun, get her a color wheel. In the week between getting the first eye done and the second, she can marvel at the difference in color perception between her two eyes. When I had my first eye done, I was surprised to see that the patterned shirt I wore to the procedure was had both orange and pink in the pattern. If you had asked me before, I would have sworn it was all orange.
posted by juggler at 11:24 AM on October 20, 2018 [5 favorites]

Sunglasses.
posted by Don Pepino at 11:37 AM on October 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

Help her take the lens matching the eye of first operation out of her current glasses. This will allow her to continue to correct the vision on her pre-op eye while allowing the post-op eye to see without any correction.
posted by NoDef at 12:23 PM on October 20, 2018

Response by poster: Thanks all, great responses and the ones about bending and picking up were especially useful, grabber gotten, low items moved higher.
posted by Iteki at 11:34 PM on October 22, 2018